Lifetime Announced the Cast For Its First LGBTQ+ Holiday Movie — Including Fran Drescher
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Lifetime's annual Christmas and holiday movie slate just got slightly more diverse.
The TV network has announced its first holiday movie centered around an LGBTQ+ couple, starring real-life couple Ben Lewis and Blake Lee. They will star in Lifetime's The Christmas Set Up, joined by Fran Drescher and Ellen Wong.
Lewis previously starred in The CW's Arrow, and Lee had a recurring role in Parks and Recreation. Wong is perhaps best known for her roles in Netflix's GLOW and the 2010 film Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.
"The world we create on camera should reflect the world we live in," Amy Winter, Lifetime’s head of programming, said of the film in a statement Monday.
The Christmas Setup is described as a "feel-good LGBTQ holiday romance" in which New York lawyer Hugo (Lewis) heads to Milwaukee with his best friend Madelyn (Wong) to spend the holidays with his mom Kate (Drescher), who is also in charge of the local Christmas celebrations. Kate, "ever the matchmaker," arranges for Hugo to run into Patrick (Lee), his high school friend and secret crush, who has recently returned after a successful stint in Silicon Valley.
Fran Drescher as a meddling matchmaker mom? Sign us up.
RELATED: Betty White Will Star In a Lifetime Christmas Movie
Along with The Christmas Set Up, Lifetime also announced it will be airing its first movie centered on an Asian American family and featuring an Asian director, writer, casting director, and cast. The movie, A Sugar & Spice Holiday, centers on a Chinese-American woman who draws on her family’s cultural traditions to spice up an old-fashioned Christmas baking competition.
Earlier this year, Lifetime also announced a holiday movie starring Betty White, another starring Jamie Lee Curtis, and one starring Kelly Rowland.
All the more reason to look forward to Christmas.
