Melissa Joan Hart ushered in the holiday season with Ancestry at the Ancestry Holiday Home event in New York City on November 18, hosting a celebration that blended family lore and a renewed appreciation for tradition.
The immersive pop-up felt like stepping into the Hart family attic: walls lined with heirloom photographs, recipe cards tucked beside old newspaper clippings, and, as its nostalgic centerpiece, a bar meant to be a replica of Hart’s Tavern- her grandfather’s business dating back to the late 1800s.
Amid these mementos, the Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Clarissa Explains It All, Holiday in Handcuffs star chatted with The Knockturnal about her latest venture. After 3 years in the making, the Christmas comedy A Merry Little Ex-mas is now on Netflix. It premiered on November 12 and follows an amicably separated couple (Alicia Silverstone and Oliver Hudson) attempting one last Christmas together before finalizing their divorce- an experiment that goes awry when her husband’s new girlfriend (Jameela Jamil) enters the picture. Hart stars as April, best friend to Alicia Silverstone’s character, and also serves as a producer through her long-running production company, Hartbreak Films.
A Merry Little Ex-Mas. (L-R) Alicia Silverstone as Kate, Melissa Joan Hart as April, and Pierson Fodé as Chet in A Merry Little Ex-Mas. Cr. Marni Grossman/Netflix © 2025
Hart expressed pride that the movie leans into a comedic sensibility she feels the holiday genre has drifted away from. “We’re bringing humor back to Christmas movies,” she explained. “I feel like, when I did Holiday in Handcuffs, that was a Christmas movie that was always on TV… Santa Baby came next with Jenny McCarthy, and then this sort of genre took off.” Referring to modern holiday rom-coms, she feels, “They’ve gotten very safe. Which is great because I think, at Christmas, a lot of us want the safety net of a good-feeling, happy ending… I feel like the current classics like Home Alone, Christmas Vacation, and Elf have a lot of humor, and they’re not always about romance. They’re not always super sweet or predictable.”
That doesn’t mean some real-life romance didn’t make its way into the script. One of Hart’s favorite Christmas memories inspired a hilarious moment in the film, where Oliver Hudson’s character gifts his ex-wife a sentimental, custom perfume, while gifting his new girlfriend a set of AirPods: “My husband, one year for Christmas, went and found the perfume I wore from when we first met… They don’t make it anymore, but he went on eBay and found it because he knew I missed the smell. Holly, our writer, actually put it in (the script).”
This season, her main focus is on reconnecting with what matters most. “This year, I’m really trying to simplify things… take it down to the root of Christmas, and that really is family,” she said. Ancestry, she added, has helped her understand that story more deeply: “You can really connect with your family in a new way.”
You can visit Ancestry.com/HolidayHome to learn more about Melissa’s experience while getting started on your own family history journey (and while Ancestry is offering its lowest price on AncestryDNA kits- $29 from Nov. 20-Dec… 31).
A Merry Little Ex-mas is now streaming on Netflix.
