10 Common Tropes in Hallmark Christmas Movies: What to Lookout For on Your Next Hallmark Marathon

There are a lot of holiday movies out there. Ones with adventure, ones with magic, and most commonly, ones with romance. The Hallmark Channel makes the most well-known and common holiday romance movies out there, and I have fallen for their spell! From November until January, my television screen is stuck on the Hallmark channel, watching all of the new and old movies. These movies are very comforting, and one thing that makes them so are the common tropes in Hallmark Christmas Movies that are used in nearly all of their films.

If you have watched more than one Hallmark Christmas movie, you will probably start to see a pattern in the structure. Sometimes, it feels like you are watching the same movie over and over again, with new characters in a new, generically named town.

After enough Hallmark movies, you can practically see into the future, and guess what will happen to the characters in the small, holiday-decorated town.

Something about the structure of these films is very comfortable and calming to me. I love watching a movie and knowing exactly what is going to happen. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good plot twist. I am a huge horror fan! But sometimes I just want to know that there will be a happily ever after. That all the characters will get what they want and fall in love. It is total wish fulfillment for me.

With all the time I have spent watching this channel, I have picked up on a couple of the common tropes that the creators use. I am also a writer, so my analytical side loves to find patterns in storytelling. I find it fascinating.

So, if you are interested in looking at these patterns as well, I have a list for you! Here are some of the most common Hallmark Christmas movie tropes I have seen. You can practically use this as a checklist or a Hallmark Christmas movie drinking game.

If you have never watched a Hallmark Christmas movie before and hate spoilers, I would recommend not reading this post. But if you have watched even one, you will definitely recognize most of these tropes.

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What is a Trope?

First, let’s define the word trope. This word is commonly used in discussions of film and books, and it is important to understand what it means in order to identify the common ones Hallmark uses.

A trope is a character, setting, situation, or phrase commonly found in a piece of media. Tropes are used to convey a certain meaning or feeling to the audience.

Various creators use the same tropes in different stories. For Hallmark, multiple movies, with different characters and different settings, use the same trope. Spend a day watching Hallmark and you will easily see these patterns emerging of tropes that are used in almost every Hallmark Christmas movie.

Identifying these tropes is a great way to understand what the film is trying to do. Creators will use these common tropes to evoke certain feelings in their audience, and for holiday movies, those feelings tend to be joy, comfort, and nostalgia.

Why do Hallmark Christmas Movies Make us Feel so Good?

That joy, comfort, and nostalgia I was talking about? That is exactly what makes Hallmark Christmas movie feel so good. When a film can evoke such positive feelings from its viewer, the viewer is bound to get attached.

When I watch Hallmark Christmas movies, I find the decorations, common tropes, and happy endings comforting. Whenever I need some self-care during the holidays, I cuddle into bed with a mug of hot cocoa and settle in for a night of Christmas movies.

I also love that I don’t have to pay too much attention to Hallmark movies anymore in order to know what is happening. Because I have seen so many, Hallmark Christmas movies make fantastic background noise. They all follow a very similar structure, with only small deviations.

There is a theory that rewatching old shows is so calming because you never have to wonder what will happen next. The unexpected doesn’t exist. I think that is the same thing that happens here because of the common tropes in hallmark movies. I never have to wonder if the couple is going to end up together, but they will. It gives my brain a break from thinking, even just about the movie I am watching.

10 Common Tropes in Hallmark Christmas Movies

1. The main character moves from the big city back to a small town

Out of all the tropes found in Hallmark Christmas movies, this one is the most common. The movie will open up on a person, living a fast life in New York City or Chicago. Bustling between stores, work, and their clean high-rise apartment with no holiday decorations except one cleanly decorated tree.

It is close to Christmas, which they are planning on working through because of a tough boss… or they are the tough boss. Suddenly they get a call from home. Something prompts them to visit their old small town for the holidays, whether it be family drama or a medical emergency.

You are probably picturing it now as I am describing it. This is how 90% of Hallmark Christmas movies begin.

2. The main character is already in a relationship at the beginning of the movie

This film trope is a little less common, but it is still prominent. When the movie begins, we see that the main character is already in a relationship, usually someone in the big city with an equally demanding job.

In this opening scene with the partner, it is clear that the relationship is far from perfect. The main character’s partner is too cold, too focused on work, or many other reasons.

Luckily, within 15 minutes of the movie, this person is usually out of their life, too focused on work to care about the main character, family, or Christmas.

3. An old fling from the small town shows up again

Once the main character gets back to the small town, they quickly run into their old relationship, or a crush they had in high school. This old fling died out many years ago after the main character moved away to the big city, but the feelings were never resolved.

The first meeting with this old fling is usually brief, and awkward. But over the course of the film, circumstance brings the two back together multiple times and they get closer and old feelings are rekindled.

4. The main character is obsessed with Christmas

In many Hallmark movies, the main character is completely obsessed with Christmas. Their whole life is Christmas. Sometimes, they even have holiday-themed names like Holly or Chrissy and they live in Evergreen. They spend the whole year planning for the holiday season.

You can see Christmas decorations in every corner of the character’s home. Even the bathroom has holly hanging from the mirror and a candy cane bath mat. Holiday cheer is on every inch of the home.

5. The main character has to choose between work and family/love

Somewhere in the middle of the movie, the main character comes to a crossroads. Whether they go back to work and make their boss happy, or they focus on family and love. This is one of the main conflicts that show up in Hallmark Christmas movies.

Spoiler alert, the main character will always choose family, love, and Christmas. They will quit their job, or ignore calls from their boss. All for the love of Christmas… and romance of course.

6. There is some miscommunication that leads to the couple breaking up

Once the couple finally gets together, that is rarely the end of the story. The film creators like to throw one more wrench into the movie by creating an issue with the main couple. You got to have some drama, right?

This usually shows up as the miscommunication trope. The couple didn’t tell each other something, someone was keeping a secret, or other characters got in the way of clear communication. Whatever the issue was, it causes a big fight. But don’t worry, they quickly fix the conflict by the end of the film, and the couple finally gets back together.

For me, this is the worst of the tropes in Hallmark Christmas movies. This trope just makes me angry because the fight would never have happened if the couple just talked to each other. But of course, this is one of the most common.

7. The small town holds an annual holiday art festival/farmer’s market/carnival/etc.

To add to the Christmas nastolgia and excitement, most Hallmark movies include a Christmas celebration of some kind that the whole town shows up to. Something everyone works to put together and everyone enjoys.

Some examples of this trope include a Christmas tree lighting ceremony, a Christmas carnival, or a gingerbread building contest. These events are packed full of Christmas decorations, Christmas cookies, and they usually end with the main character getting a cup fo warm hot cocoa or hot apple cider with the love interest.

This is a way for the film creators to really convert the holiday spirit to the audience. Without this trope, we might not feel that cozy holiday feeling we get when we watch Hallmark Christmas films.

8. The main character has a best friend who is always there for relationship advice

Whether it is a best friend back home or a sibling in the small town, the main character always had someone to turn to for advice. These characters make rare appearances in the movie, but are their when the main character needs them the most.

9. It starts snowing when the couple finally professes their feelings

This visual trope is a classic, and definitely sets the mood for the ending scenes of the movie. After the couple’s big fight because of miscommunication, hey finally realize that they were meant to be together, and with a grand gesture, they finally kiss under softly falling snow.

They might be standing beside a huge Christmas tree or in front of a beautifully decorated house. With the falling snow and dramatic music, you can’t help but feel joy while watching this scene. Well, at least I can’t help it!

10. The movie ends with a “happily ever after”

Every romance story ends in a “happily ever after.” That is an unquestionable truth in the romance genre. It would not be romance without a happy ending.

So of course, when watching Hallmark Christmas movies, you will always see a happy ending. No matter how last minute, the couple will get together and the town will be saved. The movie ties up all the loose ends in a nice Christmas package.

This, by far, is the best and most comforting trope in Hallmark Christmas movies. This is when the audience gets the sweet release of love. Love really exists and so does holiday magic.

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You can practically write your own Hallmark movie with this list of common tropes. The writing of these movies follows a structure, but in many years, Hallmark has been making some new movies that add a bit of twist to this formula. Although the change is slow and subtle, Hallmark, and other companies, have been creating some new and intriguing Christmas movies.

Hallmark movies have become a staple of the holidays for many people. So much so that other production companies have started creating holiday movies that follow the same structure and use the same tropes that you find in Hallmark Christmas movies.

Netflix has been releasing holiday romance movies just like the classic Hallmark films. I wrote this post, where you can find some recommendations, along with other holiday movies Netflix has been releasing. A couple of my favorites include The Holiday Calendar and A Christmas Prince.

Also, If you love Hallmark Christmas Movie tropes and books, think about checking out this post on my book blog! I created The Hallmark Christmas Movie Book Tag, full of bookish prompts and questions relating to Hallmark Movie tropes! Check it out!