Also the head of a vaguely shadowy secret ops organization that protects creatures and folks from the mythological world is Lucy Liu, collectively onscreen for less time than it takes to sing the chorus of “Jingle Bells” and in an unfortunate wig to boot. She and her army of minions (including a talking CGI polar bear on its hindlegs) bring Jack in for questioning, though not after they’ve grilled the Headless Horseman as a possible culprit.
So the mismatched Jack (a “level-four naughty-lister,” according to North Pole brass) and Callum set out to retrieve Santa Claus in time for Christmas Eve. Shameless, just-in-time-for-holiday-shopping product placement is shoved in, from Mattel (Rock ’em Sock ’em Robots, Hot Wheels) and Hasbro (Monopoly), only alluding more to the capitalist imperatives that drove the project in the first place. And that could lead to myriad other cynical tie-ins to those toy giants’ own upcoming franchise movie plans.