Watch: Apple releases Ted Lasso animated Christmas short
David Farnor | On 16, Dec 2021
Ted Lasso is kicking off Christmas early with a new animated short released by Apple TV+.
The comedy stars Jason Sudeikis as Ted, an American football coach who is hired to manage a British soccer team despite having no experience, no knowledge of the offside rule and no clue what he’s doing. Except, underneath his Midwestern drawl lies a relentless optimism and earnestness that makes him impossible to dislike.
The show dropped a Christmas special this summer during its second season, which we hailed as “one of the best festive TV outings of the past decade”.
“There aren’t many series that could get away with homaging Love Actually in August,” we wrote in our review, “but it says a lot that Ted Lasso can: its success lies in maintaining that festive warmth all year round.”
Now, the series is scoring some seasonal goodwill again with an animated short featuring the voice talents of the ensemble cast – Hannah Waddingham, Brendan Hunt, Jeremy Swift, Juno Temple, Brett Goldstein, Phil Dunster and Nick Mohammed – as they help Ted search for a lost item that ultimately leads him to realise the meaning of the season. The short is available on Apple TV+ but is also available to watch for free on YouTube.
Here’s the video: