Eleven-year-old Andy Walken of Seattle, Washington, will take on the central role of Ralphie Parker in Fox’s upcoming live broadcast of A Christmas Story. The previously announced TV event will air December 17.
The broadcast, an adaptation of the musical from Tony and Oscar winner Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, will also star SNL and Bridesmaids favorite Maya Rudolph as Ralphie’s mother and two-time Tony winner Matthew Broderick as the grown-up Ralphie, who narrates the holiday favorite.
Walken's casting follows a nationwide casting call in which Telsey and Company launched an online search for a "regular kid" aged 9–12. Over 350 applicants were considered for the role.
Read: MATTHEW BRODERICK JOINS CAST OF FOX'S A CHRISTMAS STORY LIVE
Pasek and Paul (La La Land, Dear Evan Hansen) will collaborate on new material for the live broadcast. Jonathan Tolins and Robert Cary will adapt Joseph Robinette's book of the musical (they also executive produce).
The 1983 film starred Peter Billingsley as Ralphie, a boy in Indiana who (very vocally) wants a Red Ryder Range model Carbine Action BB Gun for Christmas.
Watch Walken's reaction to receiving the news of his casting below.
