If you’ve spent any time scrolling through Netflix during the winter months, you’ve probably seen the bright, festive thumbnail for Odio il Natale. Or, as we call it in English, I Hate Christmas. It’s a breezy, slightly chaotic Italian rom-com that follows Gianna, a nurse who—let’s be honest—is feeling the massive weight of family expectations. She tells a white lie about having a boyfriend and then has exactly 24 days to find one. The premise is a classic trope, based on the Norwegian series Home for Christmas, but what really makes the Italian version sing is the I Hate Christmas cast. They bring a specific kind of Mediterranean energy that feels way more "wine-on-the-canal" than "snow-in-the-tundra."
Honestly, the show lives or dies on Pilar Fogliati’s performance. If she wasn't likable, the whole thing would fall apart in five minutes. But she is. She's great. And the supporting players around her are a mix of legendary Italian cinema veterans and fresh faces that you might not recognize if you don't watch a lot of European television.
The heart of the show: Pilar Fogliati as Gianna
Pilar Fogliati isn't just a face on the screen; she actually co-wrote the second season. That's a huge deal. It explains why Gianna feels so lived-in. Fogliati is a massive star in Italy, known for her incredible ability to do dialects and impressions—seriously, check out her YouTube clips if you want to see someone transform their voice in seconds. In I Hate Christmas, she plays Gianna with a frantic but relatable vulnerability.
Gianna is a nurse. She’s competent at work but a total disaster in her personal life. What’s interesting is that Fogliati doesn't play her as a "loser." She’s just a person who is tired of being the only single one at the dinner table. You’ve probably felt that. It's that specific brand of holiday anxiety that makes you want to hide under a rug.
The friends who make it messy
You can’t talk about the I Hate Christmas cast without mentioning the core friend group. They are the ones who usually push Gianna into these ridiculous situations.
- Beatrice Arnera as Titti: She’s Gianna’s best friend and basically the polar opposite of her. Titti is confident, sharp, and seemingly has her life together, though we see those cracks form as the show progresses. Arnera has this dry comedic timing that balances out Gianna’s more "high-energy" panic.
- Cecilia Bertozzi as Margherita: Margherita is the third pillar of the group. She’s a bit more of a dreamer. Bertozzi plays her with a softness that makes the trio feel balanced. It doesn't feel like a "TV friendship"; it feels like three women who have actually known each other since they were kids and are slightly sick of each other's excuses.
The men of Gianna’s 24-day countdown
The show is basically a revolving door of potential suitors. Some are great. Some are absolute train wrecks. This is where the I Hate Christmas cast gets really diverse.
First, there’s Nicolas Maupas as Davide. If you follow Italian TV, you know Maupas. He was the breakout star of Mare Fuori (The Sea Beyond), which is essentially the Italian Skins or Euphoria. In this show, he plays a much younger guy who catches Gianna’s eye. The age gap is a whole thing in the first season, and Maupas brings this puppy-dog energy that makes the chemistry actually work without feeling creepy.
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Then you have Alessio Praticò as Mario. Mario is the "safe" choice. He’s nice. He’s stable. Praticò is a fantastic character actor who has been in much darker stuff, like The Traitor and The Hunter. Seeing him play a somewhat dorky, lovelorn guy in a Christmas sweater is a bit of a trip, but it shows his range.
We also get Marcos Vinícius Piacentini as Thomas, the mysterious pilot. Because of course there is a pilot. Every holiday rom-com is legally required to have a man in a uniform who shows up at a convenient time.
The heavy hitters: The family
The family dinner scenes are where the show feels most "Italian." It’s loud. It’s crowded. Everyone is talking over each other about pasta and marriage.
Fiorenza Pieri plays Gianna’s sister, Margherita. Wait, no—it’s actually Caterina. (The show has a lot of names to keep track of). Pieri is great at playing the "perfect" sister who secretly envies Gianna’s freedom. Then you have the parents. Massimo Rigo and Sabrina Paravicini play Pietro and Marta. They represent that classic parental pressure that isn't necessarily mean-spirited, but it’s constant. It’s like a low-frequency hum of "Why aren't you married yet?"
Why the setting is practically a cast member
While we are focusing on the people, we have to talk about Chioggia. If you’ve seen the show, you know it looks like Venice but... different. That’s because it’s a small fishing town nearby. The cast spends a lot of time on bridges and boats.
This setting changes the vibe of the acting. Everything is a bit more intimate. You can't run away from your exes in a town where everyone has to cross the same three bridges to get to work. The production team used the town's geography to trap the characters together, which creates that wonderful, claustrophobic holiday feeling.
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Season 2 newcomers and shifts
When the second season dropped, the I Hate Christmas cast expanded. We got Pierpaolo Spollon as Filippo. Spollon is a huge name in Italian network TV (Doc - Nelle tue mani). He brings a very different energy—more of a "slow burn" romantic lead. His addition shifted the show away from the "date of the week" format and into something a bit more substantial.
There was also a bit of a mystery element in the second season. Who sent the flowers? This kept the cast on their toes and allowed for some more dramatic beats that the first season lacked.
Does the cast actually like Christmas?
In interviews, Pilar Fogliati has been pretty open about her own relationship with the holidays. She’s joked that while she doesn’t "hate" Christmas as much as her character does, she definitely understands the pressure of the "big reveal" at family gatherings. Most of the cast has stayed together through both seasons, which is rare for these types of quick-turnaround Netflix shows. You can tell they actually like each other. The chemistry in the hospital scenes—where Gianna works with her colleagues like Umberto (played by Glen Blackhall)—feels natural.
Spotting the cast in other projects
If you finished the show and want more of these actors, you’re in luck. Italian media is having a bit of a moment globally.
- Pilar Fogliati: Check out Romantiche. She directed it and plays four different characters. It’s a tour de force of her acting range.
- Nicolas Maupas: Mare Fuori is a must-watch. It’s gritty, violent, and the total opposite of I Hate Christmas.
- Alessio Praticò: Look for him in The Bad Guy on Amazon Prime. It’s a dark comedy about the Mafia.
What most people miss about the cast's performance
A lot of viewers think the show is just a scene-for-scene remake of the Norwegian original. It’s not. The I Hate Christmas cast had to adapt the humor for an Italian audience. In the original, there’s a lot of "Scandi-noir" dryness—very deadpan.
The Italian cast leans into the physical comedy. Fogliati uses her whole body. She trips, she makes faces, she uses her hands. It’s a much more expressive version of the story. If you watch them side-by-side, the Italian cast feels much more "warm," even when they are being mean to each other.
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The "Nurse" factor
The show actually gets some praise from real medical professionals for the hospital scenes. Not for the medical accuracy—let’s not go crazy—but for the camaraderie. The cast members who play the nurses spent time observing real shifts to get the "tired but caffeinated" vibe right.
Actionable insights for your next watch
If you are planning to dive into the show or rewatch it to see the I Hate Christmas cast in action, here is how to get the most out of it:
- Watch in Italian with subtitles. Even if you don't speak the language, so much of the acting is in the cadence and the tone. The English dubbing often flattens the performances of actors like Pilar Fogliati and Nicolas Maupas. You lose the nuance.
- Pay attention to the background. The show uses a lot of local extras from Chioggia. It gives the series a grounded, authentic feel that you don't get in "studio" Christmas movies filmed in Vancouver.
- Look for the cameos. There are several small roles played by Italian influencers and minor TV personalities that add a layer of "meta" humor for local viewers.
- Follow the cast on Instagram. Most of them, especially Pilar and Nicolas, share a ton of behind-the-scenes footage from the set in Chioggia. It makes the show feel even more like a small-town project.
The real strength of the I Hate Christmas cast is that they don't treat the material like a "disposable" holiday flick. They treat it like a character study of a woman in her 30s trying to navigate a world that demands she be "finished" by a certain age. It’s funny, it’s frustrating, and honestly, it’s a lot more relatable than we’d like to admit.
Start with Season 1 to see the frantic dating search, then move to Season 2 to see the cast handle the "what comes next" fallout. It’s a complete arc that works because the actors aren't afraid to make their characters look a little bit desperate—and a lot bit human.
Next Steps for Fans: If you’ve finished both seasons, your next move is to track down the Norwegian original, Home for Christmas (Hjem til jul). Comparing the lead performances of Ida Elise Broch and Pilar Fogliati is a fascinating lesson in how culture changes a character's "vibe." After that, look into the filmography of the supporting cast on IMDb to find some of the grittier Italian dramas they’ve starred in, which will give you a whole new appreciation for their comedic timing here.