She's Making A List ending explained: Did Isabel convince Santa to rethink the Naughty or Nice list?

Hallmark’s holiday rom-com She’s Making A List gives the familiar Christmas formula a surprising twist, blending romance, corporate satire and a fantasy storyline about the real Naughty or Nice List. Directed by Stacey N. Harding and starring Hallmark favorites Lacey Chabert and Andrew Walker, the film follows Isabel Haynes, a top inspector at the Naughty or Nice Group, a consulting firm now responsible for evaluating children on Santa’s behalf. With 20 years of experience and a near-perfect record, Isabel believes in the system, the algorithm and the rulebook that guides every decision.

But her newest assignment sends her into uncharted emotional territory. Tasked with evaluating 11-year-old Charlie Duncan, Isabel unexpectedly grows close to Charlie’s widowed father, Jason, which complicates both her investigation and her long standing belief in a rigid, formula driven system. As Isabel witnesses firsthand how grief shaped Charlie’s behavior, she begins to see the flaws in the Naughty or Nice criteria and realizes the enormous consequences of relying on questionable data to judge millions of children.

The ending delivers a message that stretches beyond romance, turning She’s Making A List into a story about empathy, systemic change, and redefining what “naughty” really means at Christmas.

Charlie and Jason convince Isabel to reshape the Naughty or Nice system

By the final act of She’s Making A List, Isabel’s worldview has shifted dramatically. She starts the film as a rule-following employee who strictly adheres to the Naughty or Nice manual, believing the algorithm is almost always right. But her experience with Charlie forces her to reevaluate everything. Charlie’s mischief, stealing money for magic tricks, pushing boundaries, and acting out, makes sense once Isabel discovers the truth: the young girl is still grieving the loss of her mother.

Those messy behaviors aren’t “naughtiness” in the moral sense; they’re symptoms of pain. Isabel sees that the system is not designed to understand context, trauma, or emotional nuance. When her assistant Heidi points out that the algorithm’s supposed 99.9% accuracy still leaves millions of children mislabeled each year, Isabel realizes that the “perfect system” she trusted is fundamentally broken.

Her moral dilemma intensifies when she learns her boss, Rudolph, is preparing to eliminate human inspectors altogether. The company wants to rely solely on the algorithm, removing the human element that could understand why a child behaves the way they do. For Isabel, this becomes the breaking point. She resigns, admitting she can’t continue contributing to a process that harms children in the name of efficiency.

With Jason and Charlie by her side, Isabel travels directly to the North Pole to plead with Santa. This final sequence shifts the film’s tone from romantic holiday comedy to a mythic moment about accountability and compassion. Isabel explains that children aren’t inherently naughty; it’s their circumstances that shape their actions. Jason adds that kids need guidance, love, and second chances, not punitive labels they may never recover from. Charlie, speaking for herself and countless other misunderstood kids, insists that being on the Naughty List doesn’t help anyone feel seen or supported.

Santa listens. Though the change will mean more work and more stops on Christmas Eve, he agrees that the old system no longer serves its purpose. The Naughty or Nice List will be reimagined, no more coal, no more binary labels, just a more thoughtful, human (and humane) approach. Santa even offers Isabel a new remote role to help reshape the entire process.

And yes, the romance still lands where Hallmark fans expect. Isabel and Jason share a final kiss, not under mistletoe but because they genuinely want to, signaling a future grounded in connection rather than convenience. But the real triumph of She’s Making A List isn’t just the couple’s chemistry; it’s the moment a woman stands up to a flawed system and actually changes it.

Recap of She’s Making a List

The story of She’s Making a List begins with Isabel at the top of her game, competing with fellow inspector Giuseppe for a promotion. She lives by the book, literally reciting rules, citing policy, and making snap judgments based strictly on behavior. Early cases show her rigidity in action, whether she’s marking down boys for accidental damage or mislabeling a student who may have made an honest mistake. These scenes establish both her strengths and the system’s weaknesses.

Everything changes when Isabel is assigned to Charlie. Immediately, Charlie’s behavior raises red flags, but Isabel’s connection to Jason complicates her objectivity. As the relationship between Isabel and Jason grows warmer, she spends more time with Charlie and begins to see shades of vulnerability beneath the chaos. The closer she gets, the more she questions her long-held belief that naughty children stay naughty.

Meanwhile, Rudolph pushes for full automation of the list. Isabel realizes that the algorithm has been failing countless children and will fail even more without human oversight. After learning that Charlie received coal the previous year despite her grief, Isabel can no longer defend the system.

This leads to the climactic North Pole visit, where Santa hears the trio’s plea. The system changes, Isabel gets a new purpose, and the film ends with a romance that complements, but does not overshadow, the story’s message: compassion must come before judgment.

She’s Making A List is now available to stream on Hallmark+.