Malcolm Claus is the son of Grandsanta, the husband of Margaret, the father of Steve and Arthur Claus, a former Santa and a major character in the 2011 film Arthur Christmas.
He is voiced by Jim Broadbent, who also portrayed Horace Slughorn in the Harry Potter films.
Biography
Early Life
Malcolm was born to Grandsanta (the then Santa) and an unknown woman.
One day as part of tradition to all future Santas, Malcolm accompanied his father on his sleigh Evie.
In 1941, Grandsanta retired as Santa and was succeeded by Malcolm.
Malcolm married a woman named Margaret and had two sons with her named Steve and Arthur.
In 1962, after Grandsanta took Evie for a flight during the Cuban missile crisis and nearly causing World War 3, Malcolm and Steve decided that Grandsanta should not fly again with Steve ordering the elves to scrap Evie and seal it's storage barn. However unbeknownst to Malcolm and Steve, Evie was spared after Grandsanta threatened to feed the elves to polar bears.
Arthur Christmas
Malcolm is first seen in a painting in Arthur's office in The North Pole's letters department depicting him with a young Arthur.
He makes his first physical appearance on during his 70th Christmas Eve mission where he and his elves leave their spaceship the S-1 to deliver presents. During delivering presents to a boy in Germany, the boy wakes up and Malcolm is forced to duck to avoid being seen, but accidentally rests his head on a interactive farm toy, which would make a noise the moment Malcolm lifts his head. Steve (who is watching the scene from Mission Control) instructs an elf there to remove the batteries from the toy. Afterwards, the elves use their Ho-Ho devices to make a car noise and lights to distract the boy, giving Malcolm time to escape back to the S-1.
After delivering the last few presents, Malcolm and the elves return to the North Pole to a hero's welcome from his family and the other elves. Malcolm gives a speech thanking his family and says that he cannot wait for his 71st mission next year, much to happiness of the elves but the disappointment of Steve, who thought that Malcolm would retire after the recent mission and make him the new Santa. Malcolm later has Christmas dinner with his family where he makes a toast over doing a better job next year. Arthur brings out Christmas: The Board Game for the family to play, to which Malcolm uses the Santa gamepiece, with Steve being a candle (as Malcolm says that Steve has bright ideas), Arthur has a turkey piece and Grandsanta has a sleigh piece. However the game soon turns into an argument between Grandsanta and Steve over how delivering presents has changed.
Soon after, it is discovered that one present has not been delivered (a bike for a girl named Gwen living in Trelew in Cornwall, England). Steve claims that this Christmas has been their most successful and they will be able to give Gwen her bike in a few days. Following this, Malcolm goes to bed with Margaret where he wonders if he is becoming a figurehead.
After learning that Arthur and Grandsanta left the North Pole to deliver the bike, Malcolm, Margaret and Steve go in the S-1 to Trelew, but end up in the wrong Trelew.
They eventually arrive in the correct Trelew where Malcolm goes to Gwen's home and reunites with Arthur. Malcolm, Steve and Grandsanta at first argue over who should put the bike under Gwen's tree until Malcolm sees that Arthur should do it as he truly cares about Gwen's feelings. After Arthur places the bike under the tree, the four Clauses hide a cupboard and watch Gwen play on her bike and exclaiming that Santa got her it. Malcolm tells Steve that he deserves to be Santa but wonders if Gwen is right. It is then that Malcolm and Steve decide that Arthur should be the next Santa. The four Clauses then leave the house and travel back home.
In the epilogue, it is said that after retiring as Santa, Malcolm became Grandsanta's armchair companion and took up salsa dancing with Margaret.
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