This Christmas, is a holiday drama centered on the Whitfield family's first Christmas together in four years.
In
Los Angeles, Shirley Ann Whitfield (Loretta Devine), affectionately known as
Ma'Dere, is the matriarch of the Whitfield family.
Her
six children are scattered far and wide, wife and mother Lisa (Regina King)
lives in San Francisco and feels the need to take on the responsibility to
manage her extended family's welfare.
Traveling
jazz musician Quentin Jr (Idris Elba), who has been absent from the family for
four years, and Claude (Columbus Short) is a marine.
In
New York ad exec Kelli and (Sharon Leal) is the self-confessed selfish one, Mel
(Lauren London) is a college student and Michael (Chris Brown) still lives at
home while figuring out what he wants to do with his life.
Ma'Dere
has lived in the family home for a few years now with Joe Black (Delroy Lindo), a church deacon, with Ma'Dere's
husband/the children's father, Quentin Whitfield Sr., long having left the
family to pursue a life as a jazz musician.
Each
person present in Ma'Dere's house at Christmas is dealing with an issue in
his/her life, some known by the family and some not but they all have an effect
on the family dynamic associated with how “This Christmas” will turn out for
them as a collective family.
