Over 50 years after Elton’s classic performance, the gloriously kitsch new video finds the video production team frantically trying to get the set ready for his arrival as they attempt to make it “Christmassy enough.” Despite the addition of a festive feather boa, balloons, and confetti, chaos reigns as they wrangle an escaped turkey, fail to book a real reindeer, and tackle a deranged fan who storms the set, all whilst Cara brilliantly mirrors Elton’s choicest dance moves and iconic facial expressions from the original video.
Cara’s star-turn in the video sees her fulfilling a lifetime ambition to step into Elton’s high-heeled boots. A lifelong fan and aspiring Elton wannabe from an early age, the pair have become firm friends over the years.
Elton says: “I saw Cara at Glastonbury last summer, and we talked about how much we’d love to work together if the right idea came up. She’s hilarious to spend time with; we both have quite a self-deprecating sense of humor. When someone suggested the idea of her playing me in a riff on the 1973 ‘Step Into Christmas’ video, I just thought it was the perfect opportunity. Thank God Cara thought the same because it came out great.”
Cara says: “Elton has always been an idol of mine, to say his music has had a deeply profound effect on me is an understatement. To be asked by him to PLAY him in this recreation was a dream that I didn’t know I had until it happened. Honestly, I wish I could pretend to be Elton every day. I hope that Elton may one day return the favor and agree to play me in my not-yet-developed, written, pitched, or funded biopic. Fingers crossed.”
Originally released on November 23, 1973, “Step Into Christmas” peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Christmas Singles chart in the US and No. 24 during its initial seven-week run on the UK Singles Chart. “Step Into Christmas” has returned over the past decade or so to become a seasonal favorite. It has spent a total of 44 weeks to date on the Billboard Holiday Airplay chart and, in the UK, has charted each December since 2011. In the 2020-21 winter season, the single obtained its highest position to date when it reached No. 8, three years after receiving the British Phonographic Industry’s Silver certificate (200,000 copies sold). Last year it was certified Triple Platinum by the BPI, 50 years after its release in 1973.
The reimagined video comes after Elton’s new documentary, Elton John: Never Too Late, premiered on Disney+ on Friday. Directed by R.J. Cutler and David Furnish, the documentary follows Elton as he looks back on his life and the astonishing early days of his 50-year career in an emotionally charged, intimate, and inspiring full-circle journey. Watch the trailer HERE. In November, Elton released the eponymous song ‘Never Too Late (From The Film “Elton John: Never Too Late”)’, which he co-wrote with eleven-time GRAMMY-winning US superstar Brandi Carlile. A collaboration between these long-time friends and artistic kindred spirits, Brandi was inspired to write “Never Too Late” after being deeply moved by an early cut of the documentary.
