How the foul-mouthed wedding singer from Old School ended up in Netflix's first gay holiday rom-com

Did you hear the one about how Single All the Way found its Kevin?

The goofy crooner in the Netflix holiday film is played by Dan Finnerty, and we have his wife, Kathy Najimy, to thank for that. Najimy plays Carole, the mother of Michael Urie's Peter in the movie, and wanted her husband Dan to join in her Canada for filming. COVID restrictions made crossing the border impossible for anyone not working, so they cast him in the film as Kevin.

"I was like, 'Wait a second. Her husband is Dan Finnerty of the Dan Band,'" writer Chad Hodge says. "They're amazing, and they've been around forever." The Dan Band is a musical comedy group created by Finnerty known for its obscenity-filled covers of pop songs.

Single All the Way stars Urie and Philemon Chambers as best friends Peter and Nick, respectively, who spend Christmas with Peter's family. While they hatch a plan to pose as boyfriends to avoid Peter spending another family holiday as a single man, Carole takes it upon herself to set her son up on a blind date. The hilarious, gay holiday rom-com centers on the antics of Peter's eccentric family as the pair of best friends begin to see their romantic potential.

In the film, Kevin sings "Mrs. Claus" and an original song named after the movie that plays over the ending credits. Not only did he perform "Single All the Way," but Finnerty also wrote the track for the movie. "He wrote [the song] just for the movie, which is pretty cool," Hodge says. "Then [his casting] also hugely benefited the movie."

This is not the first time Finnerty has brought his comedic music stylings to film. His breakout role was opposite Will Ferrell in 2003's Old School, where he performed a version of "Total Eclipse of the Heart" by Bonnie Tyler. Finnerty went on to do the same in films like The Hangover before delivering another humorous hit in the holiday film.

Netflix has a musical gift for those who enjoy the new track. "It's super fun, and they're releasing it as a single soon," Hodge says. "It's really funny when you look at the lyrics."

Single All the Way is streaming on Netflix.

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