Arnold Schwarzenegger transforms into Santa in first photo from ...

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How celebrities are celebrating the holidays

From holiday movies and favorite meals to decorating their homes, USA TODAY has the scoop on how the biggest stars are celebrating the holidays.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is officially returning to the Christmas film genre. And this time, he's playing none other than Santa Claus himself.

The star of 1996's "Jingle All the Way" on Tuesday shared that he's started filming the Amazon MGM Studios film "The Man With the Bag" with co-star Alan Ritchson ("Reacher," "Fast X"). Schwarzenegger posted a photo of the two on set that showed him in full festive attire – a red coat, scarf and Christmas sweater. The action star's gray hair is swept back, and he sports a full gray beard.

"Santa Claus is coming to town," Schwarzenegger, 77, captioned the post. "It is fantastic to be shooting The Man with the Bag with @alanritchson. Our director @adamshankman is one of the funniest directors I’ve worked with, New York City is an amazing host, working with @amazonmgmstudios is a joy, and I can’t wait to share all of this Christmas cheer with each and every one of you."

The actors' casting was announced in March; Adam Shankman ("A Walk to Remember," "Hairspray") is directing, and Allan Rice ("Stuck in the Middle") is the screenwriter.

Details about the film are scarce while it's in production, but its summary reads: "When Santa’s magic bag is stolen, he turns to his naughty list to find Vance, a former thief, to help him get it back. Along with his daughter, Santa, and a group of misfit elves, Vance will have to pull off the greatest heist of his life to save Christmas."

Arnold Schwarzenegger's most recent film came out in 2019

The "Conan the Barbarian" and "The Terminator" actor's most recent film roles were in 2019's "Terminator: Dark Fate" and "Iron Mask," which released in the U.S. in 2020.

Aside from starring in the Netflix docuseries about himself, "Arnold," in 2023 and the streamer's action comedy "Fubar," the bodybuilder-turned-film star and two-term California governor has spent the past few years involved with environmental causes through the Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative.

In an interview with USA TODAY last year, Schwarzenegger opened up about filming action projects in his 70s, admitting his body's capabilities have changed since he was in his 30s.

Arnold Schwarzenegger on doing stunts in his 70s: 'Sore the next day'

"It's all about reps," Schwarzenegger said of the stunts. "It's rehearsing, rehearsing and more rehearsing. Nothing has changed. It's just harder to do some of those things than it was 40 years ago. You might be more sore the next day. Age definitely makes a difference."

Stunt injuries were more "forgivable when I was young," he said. "I've broken my fingers on stunts. But we worked around the injuries," Schwarzenegger added. "That's tougher to do when you get older."

"If I feel like something could really injure me, which would be a holdup to the show, then we stay away from it," Schwarzenegger said. "Other things I don't stay away from. I've always been a good judge of that."

Earlier this year, he took to his podcast, "Arnold's Pump Club," to reveal he'd undergone surgery to insert a pacemaker that would treat his arrhythmia following multiple procedures that addressed his bicuspid aortic valve, a heart condition he was born with.

Schwarzenegger joked that his medical team told him it was time for a pacemaker because they want "many more seasons" of his "Fubar."

Contributing: Bryan Alexander