TGIF Feature: 'Last Christmas'is a gift for Henry Golding & Emilia Clarke fans

Emilia Clarke, left, and Henry Golding in 'Last Christmas.'

Henry Golding, who has been in demand since his breakout role in Crazy Rich Asians has returned to the romantic comedy genre with Last Christmas, which had its general release last week.

Reviews have been mixed but one thing everyone agrees with is that Golding can be charming as hell. The Malaysian actor has been compared to Cary Grant. Finally, Clarke gets to play an almost normal contemporary person and her smile lights up the screen. Her role is a drastic  departure from the stern Mother of Dragons in Game of Thrones, the role that catapulted her to stardom.

The highly anticipated film has good bones, directed by Paul Feig (Bridesmaid, A Simple Favor), a script written by Emma Thompson and features Michelle Yeoh.

A new genre should be called "British Comedy with Witty Dialogue," that the Brits seem to be so good at (Four Weddings & A Funeral, Love Actually, Bridget Jones). 

If you love romantic comedies, especially the British variety, or you secretly long for a movie without exploding special effects and CGI effects, this might be the tonic for you this holiday season.

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First look at Henry Golding, Emilia Clark in 'Last Christmas'

Ready for romance? Is it too early to start looking forward to next Christmas?

Henry Golding released a peek at Last Christmas, a romantic comedy he plays a lead in opposite Game of Thrones' Emilia Clarke. He writes that Last Christmas is "going to be special."

Golding is a hot commodity right now with the wild success of Crazy Rich Asians. Everybody wants him for their romantic lead. The boyish charm he exudes and good looks has led to comparisons to Hollywood's leading men such as Cary Grant or Clark Gable.

"Mark my words, this one is going to be special ..." Golding wrote on Instagram. "First official look at Kate and Tom from @lastchristmasthemovie. November could not come any sooner!!"

According to The Daily Mail, the film — which takes its name from Wham!'s iconic holiday single — centers around Clarke's character, Kate, who works as an elf in a Christmas shop. Noting that Kate is "not quite fully formed as an adult," Clarke told the outlet that her character, "hasn’t got her act together, she’s just lost ... (Kate is) this hopeless young lady carrying her belongings in a wheelie bag. She’s always on her phone, always on Tinder, always getting drunk."

"He's out of sync with the modern world," Golding tells the Mail about his character. "I think he sees (Kate) as a bit of a lost soul and tries to bring her out of herself."

"It’s first and foremost a love story set in 2016, against a backdrop of Brexit and Trump," director Paul Feig said about the plot of Last Christmas. "And a chance to go against so much intolerance and see what a melting pot London, and the world, is."

Written by Emma Thompson, the rom-com also stars Golding's Crazy Rich Asians costar Michelle Yeoh.

Universal Pictures says in the film's logline: "As London transforms into the most wonderful time of the year, nothing should work for these two. But sometimes, you gotta let the snow fall where it may, you gotta listen to your heart ... and you gotta have faith."

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Christmas came early Friday morning.

Henry Golding shared the first look at the Universal Pictures film Last Christmas, co-starring Emilia Clarke. Directed by Paul Feig, from a script by Bryony Kimmings and Emma Thompson, the British romantic comedy also stars actresses Rebecca Root, Thompson and Michelle Yeoh.

"Mark my words, this one is going to be special..." Golding wrote on Instagram. "First official look at Kate and Tom from @lastchristmasthemovie. November could not come any sooner!!"

Slated for a Nov. 15 release, Last Christmas takes its name from the Wham! hit of the same name. "I'd met with George Michael. He was concerned about the homeless, which is a large part of this story," Thompson told The Daily Mail. "We spoke a lot about life and death, and there's a lot of that in this film as well." The movie will not be a glossy musical like Mamma Mia! or dramatic like the biopic Bohemian Rhapsody: "It's inspired by the songs and inspired by him."

Set in 2016, against the backdrop of Brexit and Donald Trump being elected President of the United States, the director said the film is "first and foremost a love story"—one that provides "a chance to go against so much intolerance and see what a melting pot London, and the world, is."

Clarke, whose character works as an elf in a Christmas shop, is "not quite fully formed as an adult," the actress admitted. "She hasn't got her act together." In fact, until Kate meets Tom (Golding)—who's her polar opposite—she's "always on her phone, always on Tinder, always getting drunk." As for Tom? "He's out of sync with the modern world," Golding explained to The Daily Mail. "I think he sees [Kate] as a bit of a lost soul and tries to bring her out of herself."

Ready for romance? As Universal Pictures says in the film's logline: "As London transforms into the most wonderful time of the year, nothing should work for these two. But sometimes, you gotta let the snow fall where it may, you gotta listen to your heart...and you gotta have faith."

Clarke, Feig, Golding and Yeoh recently held a contest via Omaze in support of RAICES. The winner, who will be named on or around Jan. 25, will meet the stars on the film's set in London.

"Mother of Dragons' reveals that she has a dark side

Emilia Clarke's real coloring, left, and as the blonde-tressed Khaleesi.

EMILIA CLARKE, the actress who plays Daenerys Targaryen, Khaleesi, Mother of Dragons, in HBO's megahit Game of Thrones, is part South Asian.

Who would've thought? The English rose has a "dark" past.

Her racial heritage came to light in an interview as cover girl for Harper's Bazaar's December issue.

“It's this epic story: My grandmother was colonial Indian, and it was a big old family secret because her mum had an affair with someone in India,” says the English rose Emilia Clarke. “She would wear makeup to make her skin look white.” Granny passed away when Clarke was 16, and the teenager took off for India with her boyfriend to scatter the ashes. “She loved India more than she loved England,” Clarke says. “F--k, yeah. I love that part of me—I’m like one-eighth Indian.”

It's great that the actress revealed -- and is apparently proud of her racially mixed heritage. In truth, we're all a little mixed up. 

I know, there are some of you who will say, "But she doesn't look Indian," or "But, she has not experienced the discrimination that other Indians have faced."

Small steps, folks. And if Clarke's admission will creak open the door for others to walk through, we'll be better off for it. And people have to realize, that Asians come in all shades and if people cheer her as she slays the White Walkers, they need to know that they are cheering for an actress who is one-eighth Indian. It makes it harder for them to swallow the racist lies perpetuated by the haters.

I say: Welcome, Emilia! F--k, yeah!
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