Pulling off a Christmas Eve heist in one of London’s biggest retail stores comes with some twists and sparks in Netflix’s Christmas rom-com, Jingle Bell Heist. Olivia Holt and Connor Swindells play a thieving duo in a light-hearted film that captures the festivities of Christmas with delightful gifts and the profitability of holiday-season merchandising that swells profits for Maxwell Sterling (Peter Serafinowicz), who also lines his pockets fraudulently.
Jingle Bell Heist is directed by Michael Fimognari, whose budding oeuvre of romance titles includes Netflix’s To All the Boys: Always and Forever, which debuted in 2021. Co-written by Bridgerton’s Abby McDonald and Amy Reed, the rom-com uses its Bonnie and Clyde-esque duo to deliver a redemption story that doesn’t dig too deeply into its romance elements but lets them unfold naturally.
The film opens with a brief interlude that teases moments before the heist, then rewinds to two weeks before the protagonists’ meetup. Sophia (Olivia Holt), our lead protagonist, is a petty thief who works at the Sterling Department Store, one of London’s illustrious retail stores. From the movie’s first scenes, it’s clear that Sophia is a thief with an attitude and dramatic flair who takes joy in stealing from rude customers.
She’s gotten away with it long enough, but even the smartest thief can make mistakes and get caught in the process. Nick ‘O’ Connor (Connor Swindells) turns out to be the observer, catching Sophia’s larcenous misdeeds on the store’s CCTV cameras. An ex-convict with a record for stealing from Sterling’s Department Store while he worked there as a security consultant, Nick feels a pull toward Sophia’s seemingly shared enthusiasm for purloining. He soon approaches her with a blackmail request — steal on his behalf, or risk Sterling discovering her actions through the footage.
Connor Swindells adeptly plays a defeated, lowly, and self-conscious Nick, whose buffoonish blackmail attempt makes one question the validity of his prior crimes. Sophia sees through the facade, but fate forces her to join forces with Nick to rob Sterling’s store. As it turns out, Sophia’s mum, who is bedridden in a public hospital, needs an NHS specialist to treat her medical condition, but is down on the waiting list, so she needs to go private. And private requires deep pockets. Unfortunately for Sophia, the robbery falls through as the merchandise has already been stolen, setting the stage for the grand heist that involves robbing Maxwell’s hidden stash.
Jingle Bell Heist builds a genuine bond between Sophia and Nick, with unfortunate family problems that equally serve as motivating factors for the heist. Nick’s got one more chance to step up financially as a father to provide childcare, or risk his ex-wife whisking their daughter all the way to Birmingham. On the other hand, Sophia is under pressure to get money for her mother’s medical bills.
Despite the seriousness of these events, the story doesn’t lose its merriness, and this works as a double-edged sword. The film poorly pulls off tense moments and barely captures the intensity of a robbery attempt. However, on the flip side, both characters develop an easy camaraderie while hatching their plans to break into Sterling’s safe.
The pair are hilariously inept at carrying out the heist, but that is Jingle Bell Heist’s charm. There is a certain beauty in imperfection, and the holiday film leans heavily into the laughable antics of Nick and Sophia as they plot a heist with more holes than Swiss cheese.
The film effectively delivers the perfect moral justification for the heist: a villain who deserves to be robbed. Sterling (Peter Serafinowicz) is an insurance fraudster who stages fake robberies of his store and claims insurance on the items he sells — reaping profits both ways. Although we rarely see Serafinowicz in action as the quintessential big bad boss, his occasional remarks underscore the haughty attitude befitting of a self-important profiteer who would do anything to keep his business afloat.
The Netflix title never overplays its romance, but offers a fair share of chemistry-filled scenes that showcase Olivia Holt’s applaudable acting. Despite Jingle Bell Heist’s simple narrative, it pulls off remarkable twists that add to the film’s splendour.
Holt and Swindells superbly role-play Sophia and Nick, with notable supporting cast Lucy Punch (Cynthia Sterling) effortlessly dramatising the schemes of a scorned, opportunistic wife. At its heart, it is Holt and Swindells’ performances that give the story its warmth and soul — qualities essential to any Christmas movie.
- Release Date
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November 26, 2025
- Runtime
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96 Minutes
- Director
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Michael Fimognari
- Writers
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Abby McDonald
- Producers
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Matt Kaplan