Country stars Trace Adkins and Rascal Flatts' Jay DeMarcus are spending this Christmas season acting in a feel-good Christmas movie that's set for release for late next year.

Another country connection: The movie, Saving Santa, has Kix Brooks as executive producer. But there are some higher-profile Hollywood types in the movie as well, including Joey Lauren Adams (Big Daddy and Chasing Amy) and actor/comedian Kevin Pollak (A Few Good Men and The Wedding Planner).

In the movie, Santa comes under attack by a jaded U.S. senator, and Santa and his posse end up stuck on a ranch for a while where a couple of kids save the day!

Trace plays a small-town sheriff in the movie, and he was on set last week, where he earned praise from producers via Facebook: "Had a great time filming with Trace Adkins. Wait until you see how funny this scene is. Trace was awesome!"

Up next on the country front is Jay DeMarcus, who tweeted late Monday night (Dec. 12): "Heading to film #secretsanta should be a blast! Great script, good people!"