The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause
In the franchise's third installment, Scott Calvin (Tim Allen) has a rival for his job as Santa: Jack Frost (Martin Short), who has a big chip on his shoulder about always having to play second fiddle to the popular Claus. But, as the title suggests, there's an "escape clause" in Scott's contract, which takes Scott and Jack back to the moment when Scott first pulled on the enchanted red coat and became Santa. This time around, Jack grabs the garment and -- presto! -- he becomes Santa instead. This is not good. Not good at all. Mainly because Jack is sorely lacking in people skills. Unlike Scott, Jack isn't doing the whole Santa thing to bring joy and happiness to people around the world. He's only thinking of himself -- so much so that he re-names the holiday "Frostmas." Jack doesn't have the warm, fuzzy factor that Scott has, either. He frightens the kids, blames them when things go wrong, and takes the spirit of the season and turns it into one big commercial for himself.
The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause
NC (vo): ...look like the DVD menu of Santa Paws. (Camera zooms in on the subtitle: The Escape Clause) And how many clauses are there? Did Willy Wonka's lawyers oversee all these? The credits roll as we're shown the enchantingly magical North Pole, but from the looks on all the kids' faces, it looks like their parents dropped them off and they're just realizing they're never coming back. I'm not kidding, every child in this movie looks miserable, to a point where it's kind of beyond belief.
NC (vo): Laura's daughter convinces Santa they should all go to the North Pole to help out, as Frost discovers if Santa wishes not to be Santa while holding a magic snowglobe, the so-called "escape clause" will be put into effect.
Jack talks to Curtis the Head Elf about the Hall of Snow Globes and discovers that Scott's can be used to activate the Escape Clause, the most powerful clause of all. If the current Santa holds his snow globe and says, "I wish I had never become Santa at all," he can return to the point where he became Santa and prevent the event from occurring. Scott takes a quick break to show Lucy the Hall of Snow Globes, and gives her a magical one that shows her hugging a snowman, which turns pink because her hugs are so filled with love and warmth. As they leave, Jack sneaks in and steals Scott's, freezing Laura and Neil when they catch him, and threatening to do the same to Lucy if she tells Scott, before locking her in a storage closet. After further sabotage attempts, including Scott trying to finish decorating the Christmas tree, Jack manages to enrage Bud and Sylvia, and gives Scott a gift as he talks about his frustrations away from everyone else. Unaware of what he is doing, Scott is persuaded into uttering the Escape Clause while opening it and taking out his snow globe, just as Jack intended. He and Jack are transported back in time to his front yard, where, twelve years earlier, he caused Santa to fall off the roof and donned his suit to become the new Santa. Jack reaches it before the past Scott can, making sure of it by knocking the present Scott out with a shovel, and puts it on to become Santa.
In Santa Clause 2 (2002), the clause in small print that Scott/Santa fails to notice before he signs on to become Santa is one which requires him to take a wife before the expiry of his eight-year tenure. 041b061a72