Christmas 2024 saw Sabrina Carpenter team up with other major pop stars for a unique Netflix holiday special.
A Nonsense Christmas with Sabrina Carpenter hit Netflix for the holiday season, complete with a handful of guest stars and guest singers to accompany its leading lady.
Along with being the opening act for Taylor Swift’s record-breaking Eras concert tour, Carpenter has risen to her own level of comparable fame in the music industry. This led to half a dozen nominations for the upcoming 2025 Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist, Song of the Year, and Album of the Year.
In the midst of that success, she teamed up with Netflix for a pre-recorded 50-minute holiday special, in which she and multiple guest stars embrace the holiday spirit. Putting her own spin on holiday tunes, the special features 13 songs, sung either by Carpenter herself or her as part of a duet.
Every Guest Star & Singer in A Nonsense Christmas with Sabrina Carpenter
Sabrina Carpenter
Leading the way in A Nonsense Christmas is none other than Grammy-award-nominated singer Sabrina Carpenter. The special is largely inspired by her Short n’ Sweet music tour, which includes the “Nonsense Outros” for which she has become world-famous.
Going through over half a dozen outfit changes, Carpenter lends her vocal talents to nearly a dozen songs in this special. Rather than singing her own hit music, Carpenter belts out a handful of iconic holiday tunes along with a couple she puts her own spin on by switching lyrics around to fit her style.
Outside of her singing career, Carpenter’s acting work can be seen in Emergency, The Hate U Give, and Girl Meets World.
Tyla
Carpenter’s first musical guest is South African musical artist Tyla. This duo joins forces in A Nonsense Christmas to sing Donny Hathawy’s “This Christmas.”
Tyla has multiple wins at the South African Music Awards, and she won a Grammy Award for Best African Musical Performance in 2024.
Sean Astin – Nick/Santa
Sean Astin takes on a guest-starring role in A Nonsense Christmas with a role as Nick, more commonly known as Santa Claus.
Dressed in Santa’s classic red suit, Astin comes into the special when Carpenter introduces him as her boyfriend, Nick. This marks one of the comedic parts of the special as she is oblivious to the obvious signs indicating he is St. Nicholas himself.
Sean Astin is perhaps best known for his role as Samwise in Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy. He also has major credits in The Goonies, Encino Man, and Stranger Things.
Megan Stalter
Making a short appearance in one skit during this special is Megan Stalter.
While her character is never named, Stalter appears as one of Carpenter’s friends who is introduced to Nick. She has a tough time believing Carpenter when she refuses to commit to the idea of him being Santa Claus.
Stalter is most well-known for her role as Kayla in all three seasons of Max’s Hacks. Fans can also see her in Sometimes I Think About Dying, Queer as Folk, and Cora Bora.
Owen Thiele
Joining Stalter in her scene from A Nonsense Christmas is Owen Thiele. Thiele portrays another friend of Carpenter’s joining her for the holidays as he and Stalter are introduced to Nick.
Shania Twain
Carpenter’s roster of stars included one of the best-selling musicians in history, country star Shania Twain. Together, they performed their own rendition of “Santa Baby,” originally sung and recorded by Eartha Kitt in 1953.
Twain is a five-time Grammy-award-winning singer, her most recent wins coming in 2000 for Best Female Country Vocal Performance and Best Country Song. Her songs are on the soundtracks for multiple movies, including Twister, Crossroads
Kyle Mooney – Dave
Kyle Mooney takes on a small role in a small segment in which Carpenter sings “What Do I Get My Brother-in-Law?” In that short song, Mooney plays said brother-in-law, Dave, for whom Carpenter is struggling to figure out what to get as a gift.
Mooney is recognizable for his work in Zoolander 2, Y2K, and Brigsby Bear.
Jillian Bell – Amy
Jillian Bell is seen alongside Mooney in the “What Do I Get My Brother-in-Law?” segment from Carpenter’s Netflix special. There, she plays Carpenter’s fake sister, Amy, who is far easier to gift for than her husband, Dave.
Bell’s most notable movie credits include 22 Jump Street, Inherent Vice, and Rough Night.
Kali Uchis
The third singer to team up with Carpenter in her holiday special is R&B/Latin singer Kali Uchis. Their song of choice is “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus,” first recorded in 1952 by Jimmy Boyd.
Nico Hiraga – Ebby Scrooge
Nico Hiraga is seen playing a small role in Carpenter’s Christmas Special as a character named Ebby Scrooge. This character takes inspiration from Christmas legend as he is haunted by the “ghosts” of women he’s ghosted before, which include past, present, and future.
Quinta Brunson – Allie
Taking on the role of one of the “ghosts” of Christmas past in Hiraga’s segment is TV star Quinta Brunson. Here, she plays the ghost of Christmas present — the girl Hiraga’s Ebby is currently ignoring after going on a couple of dates together.
Brunson is currently known for her work as Janine Teagues on the Emmy-winning Abbott Elementary series. Other big credits on her resume include Big Mouth, Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, and Harley Quinn.
Bri
Completing the trio of ghosts alongside Carpenter and Brunson is world-famous actress/supermodel Cara Delevingne. Here, she plays the “ghost” of Christmas future before sitting down for a one-on-one conversation with Carpenter after the sketch.
Recently, Delevingne was part of the cast of American Horror Story Season 12. She is also known for her work in Suicide Squad, Paper Towns, and Anna Karenina.
Chappell Roan
The fourth and final singer to perform alongside Carpenter is Chappell Roan. These two join forces and voices on the song “Last Christmas,” originally released by Wham! in 1984.
