‘Holiday Mismatch’ Movie Ending Explained & Recap: Did Barbara And Kath Reunite Their Children?

Christmas movies are here, which means the holiday season has begun. Holiday Mismatch is a trademark Hallmark Channel film that has sugar, spice, and everything nice. There is love, dating, misunderstandings, and a happy ending. The movie has two mothers in the lead, who want their children to meet their potential matches. Whether the two grown-up children of these two women will fall in love or part ways is what the film is all about. 

Spoilers Ahead

How did Barbara and Kath meet?

Holiday Mismatch began with Barbara looking forward to a life of retirement. She planned to keep herself busy by joining the Christmas committee at the town chamber of commerce. As an ex-accountant, she was excited about taking care of the Christmas celebration. She was surprised to find out she would have to work with Kath and her team, who had taken care of Christmas celebrations every year so far.  Barbara found their style of work chaotic and was vocal about it, which Kath did not take well. Their work for the Christmas celebration got off to a bad start, and it only got worse from that point on. Kath and Barbara would have a conflict over every activity related to the upcoming celebration in town. While Kath was more easygoing, Barbara was more organized about everything and had immense knowledge about how to get things done under budget and stretch the money allotted. Barbara and Kath were never on the same page, but thankfully it didn’t overly affect the work they were assigned to do.

Were Shane and Lauren interested in dating each other?

Barbara and Kath were also concerned mothers who wanted their children to find perfect partners. Barbara’s son Shane owned a theater company that was going through a rough patch, and he was thinking of selling the space and starting a new venture. Kath was a single mother whose daughter, Lauren, co-owned an architectural firm with her best friend. Shane and Lauren were busy individuals who had no time to date, as they wanted to establish themselves in their professional careers, respectively. Kath had matched Lauren with a guy through a matrimonial app and requested that she give the man a chance by meeting him. Barbara did the same for Shane, and he agreed to meet the woman. Shane and Lauren were the respective matches their mothers chose. 

Shane and Lauren were honest about their overbearing mothers trying to protect them and making decisions for them, assuming their children were alone during the holiday season. Both knew their mothers wouldn’t stop showing them more and more matches unless they hit off. They decided to pretend to date in front of their families till Christmas and break up soon after to avoid being hounded by their mothers.

What made Barbara and Kath interfere?

Shane and Lauren did not know their mothers were on the way to become bitter rivals at the Chamber of Commerce Christmas committee. Both of them met their mothers at a pre-Christmas event organized by them. The mothers were shocked and were already regretting the matches they’d picked. Barbara and Kath decided to team up and break Lauren and Shane’s relationship. The kids should not learn of their manipulation, and the breakup should seem organic. Barbara knew her son’s nature and she shared his flaws. Kath did the same in the hope Shane and Lauren could find a deal-breaker that would lead to them ending their relationship. 

Usually parents play cupid in these situations. But instead, Barbara and Kath were playing the Grinch, eager to end the relationship because both older women could not stand the thought of being related to each other if Lauren and Shane’s relationship turned serious and they started considering marriage. The mothers believed they had made a mistake and wanted to rectify it. Barbara and Kath orchestrated the incidents that could lead to Shane and Lauren breaking up, but it only brought them closer. Shane and Lauren were not aware of their mothers planned sabotage as they were keen on sticking around each other till Christmas

What was the confusion caused by Barbara and Kath?

Shane and Lauren began to enjoy each other’s company. Shane confessed to his brother his feelings for the woman whom he was faux-dating to keep their mother at bay. His brother, a realtor like their father, pushed him to confess his feelings instead of bottling them up. His brother let his mother know about Shane and Lauren’s faux dating to keep Barbara at bay. Barbara assumed her son was not serious about Lauren and promptly shared this detail with Kath.

Shane, who was known to be commitment-phobic, took a bold step during one of the Christmas events organized by his mother, and confessed his feelings to Lauren. She reciprocated even though she claimed she had a hectic work life. Both decided to date for real to find out how they would fit into each other’s lives. Shane and Lauren kissed, which was witnessed by Kath and Barbara, who wondered what their children were up to.

Did Barbara and Kath reunite their children Shane and Lauren?

Barbara and Kath were confused as to how to end their children’s relationship. Amidst the discussion about this, a concerned Barbara was confronted by her husband, who asked her not to interfere in their son’s life. He also mentioned Shane was planning to sell his theater group and the space but had backed away from the idea by giving it another chance. Barbara felt her motherly instincts made her act in the hope her son would be happy. The same could be said about Kath’s intentions as well.  Barbara let Lauren know during a party that her son was not serious about her. To her surprise, Lauren admitted that was how things had started, with their mutual consent, but they’d changed their minds. Kath also swooped into the conversation and began to redirect it towards making Shane look like an unworthy man for Lauren, as he was an actor. Kath and Barbara decided not to sugarcoat anything at this point and were honest about what they wanted for their children.

Shane and Lauren learned their mothers had tried to break them up by manipulating the whole situation. Lauren and Shane freaked out and broke up immediately. Their anger was justified as both had met because of their mothers, but it had shocked Barbara and Kath when they fell in love. This confusion and drama was too much for Shane and Lauren to bear, as they had a lot going on in their professional lives. Both decided it was right for them to break up, as they could not let their mothers control their lives anymore. Barbara and Kath also had a falling out since their children refused to speak to them. Both blamed each other for the plan blowing up in their faces. They had not expected the situation would go out of control and their kids would probably not want to talk to them. 

Barbara and Kath, after a few days, reconciled. It was Barbara’s husband whose efforts brought them to the table and made them admit they liked each other’s company, which made them unconsciously want to spend time with each other. Barbara and Kath apologized to each other for their silly moves that had cost their children a potential stable long-term partner. Both realized they should have been proper guardians, but instead they became their children’s worst enemies by pulling off a stunt of this kind. Since Barbara and Kath orchestrated the breakup, the only way they could redeem themselves in the eyes of their children was to patch things up for them. This was the only way for them to gain Shane and Lauren’s trust. They wanted their children to be happy at the end of the day, and by making Shane and Lauren reunite, the mothers would feel content. 

Barbara and Kath met Shane and Lauren separately after the breakup and apologized for messing up. They could not continue being angry or upset at their mothers for long because they knew they’d only been trying to protect their children. The mothers did go overboard by influencing the situation, but this time Barbara and Kath learned their lesson. The mothers got Shane and Lauren to meet to discuss their future. Barbara and Kath chose not to stick around to hear what their children would decide. This was their way of growing up and not repeating their mistakes from the past. Since Holiday Mismatch was a Christmas film, it had to have a happy ending. Shane and Lauren discussed their flaws and how they had affected their previous relationships. Despite the setbacks they faced in the early stages of their courting, Shane and Lauren wanted to be in a relationship. This was a win for everyone involved, including Barbara and Kath, who wanted to continue working with each other for the next event, the Valentine’s Day celebration. Since the movie began with Barbara and Kath not wanting to work with each other, them coming back to each other as friends is a completion of the circle.