Warning! This post contains spoilers for Nutcrackers.
Nutcrackers, a brand-new Christmas comedy starring Ben Stiller, is now streaming on Hulu, but this heartwarming holiday tale begins with a tragic loss. Although Nutcrackers follows several familiar holiday beats, it does prove to be rather unique both because of the songs featured in Nutcrackers and because of the odd (and rather sad) story that kicks off the events of the movie. Nutcrackers’ cast of characters stars Ben Stiller as Michael, a real estate hot-shot living in Chicago, and real-life brothers Homer, Ulysses, Arlo, and Atlas Janson as Justice, Junior, Simon, and Samuel Kicklighter.
Although the specific details surrounding the deaths of the Kicklighter boys’ parents are not revealed until about halfway through the movie, Nutcrackers is clear from the very beginning that the children have been orphaned. These tragic circumstances have left the kids’ futures in doubt, as their Uncle Michael (or “Mike” as they call him, despite his initial rejection of the nickname) has no interest in moving to rural Ohio and raising them. But what exactly happened to Janet and Steve Kicklighter, and where do the children end up?
The Kicklighter Boys’ Parents Died In A Tragic Car Accident
Janet And Steve Kicklighter’s Deaths Were Sudden
Nutcrackers is certainly a Christmas movie, but it has some incredibly dark moments. In spite of the general tone of levity throughout the movie, when Michael first arrives at the Kicklighter home, he suddenly happens upon the urns of his sister and brother-in-law, in a manner that is so abrupt it feels a bit jarring. Just a few scenes later, the boys are seen tossing the ashes into a fire—something Michael may not even know they’ve done.
Steve and Janet Kicklighter were sadly killed in a car accident at the center of town.
It was clear that some tragedy had struck that took both parents’ lives unexpectedly (hence there being minimal plans in place for a guardian to step in), but that isn’t revealed until later. It’s only when Michael must take the boys into town for groceries that Nutcrackers reveals what happened. Steve and Janet Kicklighter were sadly killed in a car accident at the center of town, on what the boys described as a rainy drive. The details are kept respectfully sparse, with Michael’s nephews only explaining that their dad had been driving and the car was ultimately turned upside down.
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Why Michael Became The Kids’ Guardian After His Sister Died
Michael Was The Only Person Left To Raise Them—Unless He Found Someone Else
With no one else to raise the children, Michael had to decide their fate. However, it wasn’t clear whether he would adopt them. All four kids and the social worker, Gretchen Rice (Linda Cardellini), hoped he would, but Michael reiterated many times in the movie that he was unable to stay. Instead, he tried to convince a wealthy man in town to adopt them and considered letting an over-eager foster mom take them in, adding to the countless children she had hidden throughout her home. It wasn’t until the end of Nutcrackers that the boys’ fates were revealed.
Michael ultimately decided to stay in Ohio and raise all four Kicklighter kids.
Only after significant growth and development, Michael ultimately decided to stay in Ohio and raise all four Kicklighter kids. The movie doesn’t get into the details of what this will mean for Michael’s life in Chicago, including the real estate job that absorbed nearly all his attention throughout the movie, but it’s clear that, over time, he realized family was more important. While Nutcrackers is a movie that begins with a terrible family tragedy, it really is a feel-good holiday story in the end.
Nutcrackers is a family drama film by director David Gordon Green and starring Ben Stiller. Stiller plays Mike, who, after his siblings pass away in a tragic car accident, heads to the heart of Ohio to care for his nephews in the aftermath. Though initially hesitant, Mike realizes they may be the family he’s always needed.
- Director
- David Gordon Green
- Release Date
- November 29, 2024
- Writers
- Leland Douglas
- Runtime
- 104 Minutes
