Written by Murray, Sofia Coppola (Lost in Translation), and Mitch Glazer (Scrooged), the Yuletide special is directed by Coppola and described (by the press release) as “an homage to the classic variety show featuring Bill Murray playing himself, as he worries no one will show up to his TV show due to a terrible snow storm in New York City.”
Murray’s consternation appears evident in the short teaser for the special that accompanied the Netflix announcement for the special. Still, the press release promises a happy, holiday-themed end to Murray’s dilemma.
“Through luck and perseverance, guests arrive at the Carlyle hotel to help him; dancing and singing in holiday spirit,” reads the release.
Along with Murray himself as the focus of the program, the special has attracted a long list of celebrity guests, including George Clooney, Paul Shaffer, Amy Poehler, Julie White, Dimitri Dimitrov, Michael Cera, Chris Rock, David Johansen, Maya Rudolph, Jason Schwartzman, Jenny Lewis, Phoenix, Frederic Moulin, Rashida Jones, and Miley Cyrus.
Back in October 2014, Murray offered up his own description of the special in an interview with Variety.
“It won’t have a format, but it’s going to have music,” he said. “It will have texture. It will have threads through it that are writing. There will be prose. It will have a patina style and wit to it. It will be nice.”
There’s still no word yet on when A Very Murray Christmas will be available on Netflix, but you can bet your bobtails it’ll likely show up just in time for the holiday season.
