Chad Michael Murray has revealed the outfits in his Christmas stripping movie The Merry Gentlemen were initially supposed to be much smaller.

In his new festive movie, the former One Tree Hill star plays a handyman who takes part in a Magic Mike-style dance revue to save a small-town performing venue.

Murray has revealed that he and his fellow strippers were meant to show much more skin until they realised they were pushing the boundaries of a holiday movie.

“Our original outfits were spandex and far smaller – like little mankinis. They were bejewelled, and some even had lights,” he told ELLE. “Our director, Peter Sullivan, came in one day and said, ‘Guys, this can’t be a holiday film when they’re running around in that.'”

The House of Wax star explained that they had to strike a fine balance between making a sexy Magic Mike-style film and a festive feature so they only went as far as taking their tops off.

“You have to thread the needle between Magic Mike and a holiday film,” he shared. “If you go too far, it’s not going to work. We don’t need grandma walking into the room, asking what you’re watching, and keeling over. It needs to be okay to have on in the background without getting judged for it, and we made a feel-good film with some spiciness.”

Murray also revealed that his character was initially supposed to be called Bob but he suggested the name Luke as “a wink and a nod” to his One Tree Hill character Lucas Scott.

The Merry Gentlemen, also starring Britt Robertson, is now streaming on Netflix.

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