Exes of Christmas Past: A holiday film featuring Chicago suburbs
TOI GLOBAL DESK | TOI GLOBAL | Nov 19, 2025, 00:49 IST
"Exes of Christmas Past", a funny and romantic holiday movie, is a journey through the Chicago suburbs and landmarks. It shows the story of a hotel manager who comes back home to attend the reunion, where she was never expecting to meet three of her ex-boyfriends from high school. Based on the statements of the filmmakers, the movie features main locations in Woodstock, Libertyville, and Chicago.
TL;DR
The newly released Christmas rom-com 'Exes of Christmas Past' is mainly about Woodstock and Libertyville, with a few more shots done in Chicago. The local production team, which is suburban-based, complemented the support of the locals and the landmarks used in the film. The movie is available on demand from this festive season.
A new holiday rom-com is making a buzz by featuring highly popular Chicago suburbs after its debut. Over the weekend, "Exes of Christmas Past" started streaming, and it features the essential spots in Woodstock and Libertyville. Besides those, the film also points to the landmarks of Chicago. The story is about a resourceful hotel manager who goes back to her parents' B&B for Xmas and came across 3 ex-lovers of high school who were there by chance and stayed at the B&B.
The film is mostly focused on the Cherry Tree Inn Bed and Breakfast in Woodstock. Viewers might consider it the hotel of the "Groundhog Day" movie from 1993, which was the main location. A production release reveals that besides the place being known for its movie history, it was also selected for its nicely preserved architectural charm.
Much of the film was done in Libertyville as well. Several local businesses, including Conscious Cup Coffee Roasters, Firkin Alley, JC Licht Benjamin Moore Paint and Decor Store, Sweet Home Gelato, plus a historic Libertyville residence, get mentioned through the narrative. The production team said that a few of the business owners who were there in the film took part as cameo characters. Moreover, the movie is about that community's small business culture through the depiction of About Time Bookstore, As Above So Below, Edie Boutique, and Marigold.
Some of the Chicago scenes are from the Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel and 221 Blu Bar and Lounge, which adds to the suburban warmth and urban vibe hybrid that the film is going for.
Filmmakers, husband and wife team Jake Jarvia and Eliza Toser, who also wrote and produced the film, talked about their personal connection with the locality: "Jake and I are Gurnee residents and, with our daughter, we have been like a couple of tourists discovering new places in Libertyville. So, filming in a community we know and love was simply fantastic," Toser said in a press release. Jarvia put more light on that by saying that the whole team relished the working moment at the Cherry Tree Inn, and they were delighted by its cinematic history and the way the chosen spots gave their film a stronger visual sense.
In addition to the exes that became friends, Brittany Underwood and Alex Trumble, there are some actors from Chicago who have been a part of the series "Chicago Fire" and "Chicago Med" and are in the cast."
"Exes of Christmas Past" can be seen on Vizio, Tubi, Xumo Play, and Amazon's "Always Christmas" channel. The producers have informed that the film will also be on Prime's Christmas in July lineup in 2026.
FAQs
The newly released Christmas rom-com 'Exes of Christmas Past' is mainly about Woodstock and Libertyville, with a few more shots done in Chicago. The local production team, which is suburban-based, complemented the support of the locals and the landmarks used in the film. The movie is available on demand from this festive season.
A new holiday rom-com is making a buzz by featuring highly popular Chicago suburbs after its debut. Over the weekend, "Exes of Christmas Past" started streaming, and it features the essential spots in Woodstock and Libertyville. Besides those, the film also points to the landmarks of Chicago. The story is about a resourceful hotel manager who goes back to her parents' B&B for Xmas and came across 3 ex-lovers of high school who were there by chance and stayed at the B&B.
The film is mostly focused on the Cherry Tree Inn Bed and Breakfast in Woodstock. Viewers might consider it the hotel of the "Groundhog Day" movie from 1993, which was the main location. A production release reveals that besides the place being known for its movie history, it was also selected for its nicely preserved architectural charm.
Much of the film was done in Libertyville as well. Several local businesses, including Conscious Cup Coffee Roasters, Firkin Alley, JC Licht Benjamin Moore Paint and Decor Store, Sweet Home Gelato, plus a historic Libertyville residence, get mentioned through the narrative. The production team said that a few of the business owners who were there in the film took part as cameo characters. Moreover, the movie is about that community's small business culture through the depiction of About Time Bookstore, As Above So Below, Edie Boutique, and Marigold.
Some of the Chicago scenes are from the Radisson Blu Aqua Hotel and 221 Blu Bar and Lounge, which adds to the suburban warmth and urban vibe hybrid that the film is going for.
Filmmakers, husband and wife team Jake Jarvia and Eliza Toser, who also wrote and produced the film, talked about their personal connection with the locality: "Jake and I are Gurnee residents and, with our daughter, we have been like a couple of tourists discovering new places in Libertyville. So, filming in a community we know and love was simply fantastic," Toser said in a press release. Jarvia put more light on that by saying that the whole team relished the working moment at the Cherry Tree Inn, and they were delighted by its cinematic history and the way the chosen spots gave their film a stronger visual sense.
In addition to the exes that became friends, Brittany Underwood and Alex Trumble, there are some actors from Chicago who have been a part of the series "Chicago Fire" and "Chicago Med" and are in the cast."
"Exes of Christmas Past" can be seen on Vizio, Tubi, Xumo Play, and Amazon's "Always Christmas" channel. The producers have informed that the film will also be on Prime's Christmas in July lineup in 2026.
FAQs
- Who is in the movie?
The main cast consists of Brittany Underwood and Alex Trumble, plus a few actors from TV Chicago scene. - Where can people watch this movie online?
It can be watched on Vizio, Tubi, Xumo Play, and Amazon's "Always Christmas" FAST channel, with a Prime Video release slated for 2026.