Nugget is Dead: Stan’s new Australian Christmas film gets premiere date

Australia’s viral comedic duo Vic Zerbst and Jenna Owen star alongside Gia Carides, Damien Garvey, Mandy McElhinney and Tara Morice in Nugget is Dead: A Christmas Story.
Nugget is Dead. Image: Stan.

Stan has confirmed that its Stan Original film Nugget Is Dead: A Christmas Story will premiere next month.

The debut feature for writers and lead cast Vic Zerbst and Jenna Owen, who are best known for their original sketch comedy work, Nugget is Dead: A Christmas Story is an ‘offbeat look at strained familial relationships and reconnecting at a time when everyone is forced to come together’. 

Nugget is Dead: synopsis

As per Stan:

‘When her beloved family dog, Nugget, falls sick over Christmas, Steph Stool (Vic Zerbst) must abandon her very elegant holiday plans with her boyfriend’s family, and return instead to her small coastal hometown to confront the chaos of her own … less elegant family. In the week leading up to Christmas, each member of the Stool family must grapple with the mortality of the one thing that unifies them.’

Watch the Nugget is Dead trailer.

‘When looking for their first long form project to make together, Zerbst and Owen found inspiration for a heartwarming, darkly funny Christmas movie in a real-life experience of Owen’s – the death of her beloved family dog, Zuri, one Christmas in Wollongong, NSW.’

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Jenna Owen said: ‘Nugget is Dead is partially a love letter to my family and my upbringing in Wollongong. Like so many of us know … when you make that move from your hometown to the city, you sometimes try to create a slick new version of yourself. This movie is about coming home, to your family, your dog, but also to who you really are.’

Nugget Is Dead. Image: Stan.
Nugget is Dead. Image: Stan.

Nugget is Dead: production details

Nugget is Dead is produced by Easy Tiger and CBS Studios is the debut feature of Zerbst and Owen. The film stars Vic Zerbst (The Feed), Jenna Owen (The Feed), Gia Carides (My Big Fat Greek Wedding), Damien Garvey (Rake) and Mandy McElhinney (Love Child).

The cast also includes Australian favourites, including Steve Rodgers (Stan Original Series Bump), Alec Snow (NCIS: Sydney), Tara Morice (Strictly Ballroom), Priscilla Doueihy (Lioness: Special Ops), Claude Jabbour (The Stan Original Series Eden), Ed Oxenbould (Stan Original Film Christmas Ransom), Diana McLean (North Shore), Lelong Hu (Strife), Tiriel Mora (The Castle), Alexei Toliopoulos (Heartbreak High) and Kerry Armstrong (Frayed). 

Following the success of A Sunburnt Christmas, Christmas on the FarmChristmas Ransom and Jones Family Christmas, the Stan Original Film Nugget Is Dead: A Christmas Story will continue Stan’s tradition of providing Christmas films tailored to Australian audiences.

Nugget Is Dead: A Christmas Story premieres on 21 November on Stan.

Paul Dalgarno is author of the novels A Country of Eternal Light (2023) and Poly (2020); the memoir And You May Find Yourself (2015); and the creative non-fiction book Prudish Nation (2023). He was formerly Deputy Editor of The Conversation and joined ScreenHub as Managing Editor in 2022. X: @pauldalgarno. Insta: @dalgarnowrites