In this interview with Jeff Kinney, he reveals the inspiration behind Diary of a Wimpy Kid Christmas: Cabin Fever and bringing his books to screen.
December brings with it holiday cheer, and what better way to get yourself in the mood than the newest Wimpy Kid animated film, Diary of a Wimpy Kid Christmas: Cabin Fever? Based on the book by the same name, this movie takes place during the winter holidays, when Greg Heffley finds himself in a very stressful situation.
After planning to build the world’s biggest snowman with his friend Rowley, things go very, very wrong, and a snowplow gets damaged in the process. Not only does he find himself running from the law, he must dodge the watching eyes of Elfriendo, Santa’s helper elf that his mother has put out to make sure he is good before Christmas morning comes. To make matters worse, a storm knocks out power and snows in the Heffleys for days.
We caught up with author, screenwriter, and producer Jeff Kinney to discuss bringing this book to life on the screen. He reveals the inspiration behind this cabin fever story, what his favorite holiday traditions are, and the holiday hijinks he got up to as a child. Of course Jeff also weighs in on the animated version of Elfriendo.
Jeff Kinney Talks Diary of a Wimpy Kid Christmas: Cabin Fever
Mama’s Geeky: What inspired the cabin fever story?
Jeff Kinney: We just decided it was time to tell a holiday story. We did the school story, and the brother story, and it felt like a good time to tell a whole family story. Especially because these movies come out in December and it kind of hits the sweet spot right now. It was a fun movie to put together. It is a different kind of Wimpy Kid story, and it was a good challenge for us.
Mama’s Geeky: Elfriendo is perfectly creepy. What was your reaction when you saw him come to animated life for the first time?
Jeff Kinney: I loved it. I thought the animators did a really good job. It’s funny because I can’t tell if it’s scary. Like I can’t tell if a three or five year old kid is going to be scarred by this or if they’re gonna think it’s cute. I don’t know. I think we got it right. But you know what? We’ll find out when kids go to therapy and like twenty years.
Mama’s Geeky: Are there any holiday hijinks that you got up to as a kid? Because Greg.. this one’s pretty not great. Destroying a snowplow.
Jeff Kinney: We did something like that, my friend and I. Just like Greg and Rowley, we decided to build the world’s biggest snowman. We started to roll up this snowball, and we found it didn’t take long before we couldn’t move it very well. And then when we were able to move it, we were tearing up the grass. The sod, really. So we had this giant snowball, that now looks like a meatball, and a torn up lawn. I’m sure we tried to patch up the bare spots on the ground. So that’s where that idea came from. And we lived on a hill so that thing could have rolled down the hill and that would have been the end of a snowplow if it hit it.
Mama’s Geeky: I love that the wanted poster drawings depict Greg and Rowley as these older bad guys. It reminds me of Home Alone. What was it like imagining them as that?
Jeff Kinney: It was fun. I think in my books they were even half shaven or something. It’s fun to because that’s how it goes. When you remember somebody that did a bad thing. You remember them in this really bad way where they’re sort of evil looking. So it fit the bill for this movie.
Mama’s Geeky: I love that the mom in this movie is constantly pushing her holiday traditions on her kids, because I do it too. What is your favorite holiday tradition?
Jeff Kinney: I used to get that Sears catalog every year. I don’t know if that was part of your life. But we would get this big thick Sears catalog. And then we’d go through, at the back third of it was all toys, things that a kid could just dream about. In fact, I think they literally called it the wish book. And you’d circle the things that you’d want to make sure that your parents know that you’ve circled those things. So that was a big part of my tradition growing up.
Mama’s Geeky: My daughters love the end of the movie. Do you feel like you are inspiring kids to do the right thing around the holidays?
Jeff Kinney: I’ve always tried to avoid having my books be messaging or to trickly. I think that it was the right thing to do for this story. Every Christmas story really has to have heart or it’s not gonna feel like a Christmas story. But I’m glad that your daughters responded well to it, because that’s what we’re going for with that surprise at the end. I hope we didn’t telegraphy anything too much.
Mama’s Geeky: What is it like adapting your books for the screen? Is there ever anything you are sad that you have to cut out?
Jeff Kinney: I’ve learned that the language of a film is really different than the language in a book. In my books, plot isn’t that important to me, humor is a priority. In a story like this, for film, you really need to tell an emotionally resonant story. So I’ve just accepted that they’re very different things. I don’t even try to be too faithful to my books. Because there’s no real point to it. You won’t end up with a very good movie if you’re too faithful to the book.
Mama’s Geeky: My kids have read all the books, and I think they really appreciate when the film brings a different vibe, and different feel. So I think switching things up is appreciated by the fans as well.
Jeff Kinney: Well, I’m glad because sometimes when you’re a kid, that’s your first feeling of betrayal, in a way, is when you love a book and then you see the movie and they change something like the ending. That that can really sting. So I’m glad that your daughters responded well to that.
Mama’s Geeky: What do you think it is about the Wimpy Kid books that allows them to resonate so well with the fans?
Jeff Kinney: I hope that the humor is good. I hope that it’s a quality humor book. I think the number one thing is that they live and die on their humor. If they’re not funny, then kids won’t read them. So that’s my job. To make them as funny as I can in the time that I have.
Get ready for the naughtiest, nicest, and wimpiest Christmas ever.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid Christmas: Cabin Fever streams December 8 on Disney+.
NEXT: Luke Wilson Talks Merry Little Batman & Bearded Bruce Wayne
About Diary of a Wimpy Kid Christmas: Cabin Fever
The winter holidays are turning out to be especially stressful for Greg Heffley this year. After accidentally damaging a snowplow while making a snowman with best friend Rowley Jefferson, Greg worries he won’t get the new video game console he so desperately wants for Christmas. To make matters worse, he gets snowed in with his family, including his grumpy older brother Rodrick and annoying younger brother Manny.
Get ready for the naughtiest, nicest, and wimpiest Christmas ever.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid Christmas: Cabin Fever streams December 8 on Disney+.
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Tessa Smith is a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer-approved Film and TV Critic. She is also a Freelance Writer. Tessa has been in the Entertainment writing business for ten years and is a member of several Critics Associations including the Critics Choice Association and the Greater Western New York Film Critics Association.