Short film inspired by John Lennon & Yoko Ono’s classic holiday tune sets YouTube premiere

November 13, 2025

Yoko Ono and John Lennon December 1968. (Photo by Susan Wood/Getty Images)

The Oscar-winning short film War Is Over!, which was inspired by John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s classic holiday tune “Happy Xmas (War Is Over),” is set to premiere on YouTube.

The 11-minute film, co-written by the couple’s son, Sean Ono Lennon, follows a game of chess, with a heroic carrier pigeon helping the game continue across enemy lines. It ends with the classic tune playing over the closing credits.

Sean co-wrote the film with writer, director and animator Dave Mullins, and it was executive produced by Sean and Yoko. The film won the 2024 Oscar for best animated short film.

War is Over! Inspired by the Music of John & Yoko will premiere on John Lennon’s YouTube channel on Dec. 6 at 1 p.m. ET. It will include a link urging donations to the charity War Child.

In addition, John and Yoko’s “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” is being released as a 7-inch evergreen vinyl on Nov. 18. The replica of the original 1971 release will feature “Listen, The Snow is Falling” on the B-side. A limited-edition 12-inch zoetrope single of “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)”/“Listen, The Snow Is Falling” will be released Dec. 5.