‘Goodbye June’: the most important Christmas offering from Netflix in 2025
Everybody talks about the upside of Yuletide, but can we really say the same about the downsides? Yet, amid Netflix’s open-book offering of Christmas content, Kate Winslet’s directorial debut, Goodbye June, is shaping up to be one of the most important entries of 2025, and the reason is its unique perspective on the festive time of the year.
Christmas is usually that time of the year when it feels like a sin not to be around family and loved ones.
While Goodbye June also picks up its story just before Christmas, the holiday break is barely the reason why the family at the centre of this emotional drama comes together.
The Netflix movie, which Winslet directed from a screenplay written by her son, Joe Anders, revolves around four adult siblings, portrayed by Winslet, Toni Collette, Andrea Riseborough, and Johnny Flynn, who gather together for a homecoming ahead of Christmas when their mother, June’s, health takes a turn for the worse. Didn’t see that coming, right?
It may come as a surprise to many that not all homecomings this time of year revolve around a meticulously planned holiday break, festive feasts, vacation plans, or plum cakes, as a matter of fact. Some are rooted in uncertainty, the fear of the unknown, the anticipation of an impending loss, and the fact that time is indeed stopping for none.
Goodbye June upholds a cutthroat reality that not every Christmas gathering is spent under the mistletoe, watching the lights, and recounting what we did last time around. Some spend the break navigating difficulties at a bedside in the hospital, waiting for a miracle to happen.
But if the premise of Goodbye June makes you feel like it’s not the festive find you’re looking for, don’t worry, June isn’t letting go of the jolly season without biting humour and a lot of love to count on. And if that isn’t enough to convince you, that’s probably a rude reality you’re running from.
Although we sincerely hope festivities are never short of laughter and cheers, it’s also time we acknowledge the often-underestimated melancholy the holiday season brings. So, even when it feels a bit too serious for Christmas, take a chance with Goodbye June.
The film already landed in select theatres in the UK and the US on December 12th, and it’s slated for a streaming premiere on Netflix on Christmas Eve. Hence, mark your calendars and save the date!