Mario Lopez portrays the mayor of the fictional Long Grove – while filming in the actual Long Grove – in the film “Once Upon a Christmas Wish”. The film premieres December 7th on the Great American Channel.
Courtesy of Great American Channel

Get ready to see the suburb’s favorite movie setting back on the big screen next week when Once Upon a Christmas Wish, starring Mario Lopez, premieres next week on the Great American Family channel.

The film was largely shot in Long Grove and will premiere Saturday, Dec. 7, at 7 p.m.

In it, Lopez – alongside his wife Courtney Lopez and their son Dominic – plays the mayor of a small town called Long Grove, who rediscovers his childhood Christmas wish list and sees it magically come true.

Mario Lopez and his real-life wife Courtney Lopez film for “Once Upon a Christmas Wish” in front of Long Grove’s historic covered bridge. The film premieres December 7th on the Great American Channel.
Courtesy of Great American Channel

The film was shot on location in late March and April. Scenes featured the Sock Monkey Museum in Long Grove and local establishments such as home decor and art store Vintage Charm Homestead.

It’s the second holiday film filmed in Long Grove to premiere in recent weeks. Earlier this month, Hulu premiered “Christmas on the Ranch,” a romantic comedy also filmed in Mundelein and Hawthorn Woods.

“Christmas on the Ranch” is the third Christmas film produced by producers Chris Charles of Arlington Heights and John W. Bosher of Mundelein in and around Long, following 2023’s “Reporting for Christmas” and 2021’s “Christmas with Felicity.” Grove shot.

Mario Lopez walks by the Long Grove Bridge while filming “Once Upon a Christmas Wish” this spring. The film premieres December 7th on the Great American Channel.
Courtesy of Great American Channel