The following article have spoilers for The Holdovers.

Summary

• The Holdovers is a heartfelt film set in the '70s, focusing on the relationship between Mr. Hunham and the "holdovers" at Barton Academy.
• Each holdover, like Jason, Alex, Teddy, Ye-Joon, and Angus, adds depth to the story and showcases different reasons for staying at the school.
• Despite the minor roles of the other holdovers, their interactions with Angus and Mr. Hunham help shape the characters and showcase their vulnerabilities.

The Holdovers follows a boarding school professor in charge of overseeing five students during the holiday break. Paul Giamatti's Mr. Hunham and Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa) continues to be beloved by audiences. Angus is one of the five students, known as the "holdovers," who are left on campus for various reasons while other students and faculty leave for the winter holidays.

The students, aside from Angus, are excused early from their holiday break at Barton Academy and though their roles are minor, they still play an important part in setting up The Holdovers' story. The four holdovers are crucial for demonstrating Angus' changed relationship with Mr. Hunham by the end of The Holdovers, and they're important for giving context behind Mr. Hunham's way of teaching. Mr. Hunham is a stringent professor who, unlike his fellow faculty, doesn't care about the wealthy backgrounds his students come from. Instead, he insists on playing by the rules, treating them fairly, and ensuring the holiday break differentiates very little from a regular school day.

The Holdovers is available to watch on Priome Video.

5 Jason Smith (Michael Provost)

He refused to cut his hair.

little information is given about his significance to Barton or his relationship with other students

Unlike Angus, whose reasoning for staying at Barton highlights his difficult relationship with his mother and stepfather, Jason Smith's reasoning is a bit more lighthearted. During the first moment the boys have to take themselves away from Mr. Hunham, they go around and ask one another why they aren't home for the holidays. Jason reveals that he was left behind during the break because he dismissed his parents' order to cut his hair. Otherwise, he would've left Barton to enjoy a skiing trip with his parents at Haystack.

Aside from Jason's stubborn personality and his refusal to cut his hair, even if it means he's not allowed home, little information is given about his significance to Barton or his relationship with other students. However, as the boys are getting to know one another, it's acknowledged that he does play for the academy's football team. Agitated by the rules set in place by Mr. Hunham, the students briefly discussed the possibility of getting in a car and leaving the academy. Here, Jason comments about there being enough space for a helicopter to land and rescue the boys from their torturous holiday break.

After surviving six days stuck at Barton, Jason's father arrives in his helicopter as the boys' ticket to freedom. Asking for permission for their departure from the academy, Hunham gets hold of every student's parents except Angus. Jason and the others happily leave Angus behind and enjoy the remainder of their break at Haystack.

4 Alex Ollerman (Ian Dolley)

His family is on a mission trip.

Alex Ollerman is one of the youngest of the holdovers and spends most of his time with another young holdover, Ye-Joon. Alex is at Barton during the holidays because his parents are on a mission trip in Paraguay. Before being abruptly invited on a skiing trip with Jason and his family, Alex mainly kept to himself. The only time he caused issues with the other students was when Mr. Hunham threatened the holdovers with detention.

Teddy and Angus got into an altercation and when Mr. Hunham demanded to know who was responsible for it, Alex cracked under pressure and itted it was Teddy. Alex, like many of the other boys, doesn't help push The Holdovers' overall story forward, but he does help shape the other characters. As a means of revenge against Alex for confessing the truth to Hunham, Teddy snatches one of Alex's gloves, leaving one of his hands exposed to the cold air. This interaction between the two paints a better picture of Teddy's character and further defines his tendency to tease others.

3 Teddy Kountze (Brady Hepner)

His parents are renovating their home.

Beyond his bullying towards Alex, Teddy Kountze's minor role consists of a similar pestering towards Angus. When Angus asks why Teddy's at Barton during the break, he explains how his room back at home is full of tools due to the home being renovated. Pointing out the illogical nature of his parent's statement, Angus questions why anyone would renovate their home during the winter and this causes the two to get into a fight.

Mr. Hunham angrily illustrates the lack of appreciation the students show for their lifestyle and the work others do for them

Throughout The Holdovers, Mr. Hunham and Mary Lamb (Da'Vine Joy Randolph), Barton's cafeteria manager, discuss their frustration with the entitlement the school's students show due to their privileged backgrounds, and Teddy's character acts as an embodiment of this sentiment. Hunham expresses his irritation fairly openly, but the first time audiences see him snap is when Teddy makes disrespectful comments about Mary's cooking. Mr. Hunham angrily illustrates the lack of appreciation the students show for their lifestyle and the work others do for them.

Unfortunately, Teddy leaves with the others after Jason's dad arrives in his helicopter, and he's unable to spend time overcoming his arrogance. However, when the students return from break, there is a slight moment of satisfaction for Angus and Mr. Hunham. Contrasting his smug attitude about leaving for the ski trip, Teddy returned to Barton with an acute sunburn across his face from the glare of the snow.

2 Ye-Joon Park (Jim Kaplan)

He's too young to travel alone to Korea.

Similar to the ways Alex helps in the exploration of Teddy's character, Ye-Joon Park gives further insight into Angus. Ye-Joon's family is in Korea, but he's unable to them because they believe he is too young to make the long-distance trip by himself. Ye-Joon doesn't have much dialogue, but an interaction between him and Angus explains his experience at Barton. During the night, everyone is asleep, but Angus is woken up by the sound of Ye-Joon crying. Ye-Joon explains that he had a nightmare and, even though he's aware of the academic opportunities provided by the school, he's lonely and misses his family.

Angus reassures Ye-Joon and relates to him by stating he feels "friends are overrated." Despite Angus' knack for sarcastic comments and rebellious sprints through Barton's hallways, this is the first time audiences get a peek into the isolation he experiences. The brief conversation between Angus and Ye-Joon hints at the start of a friendship or alliance during the break, but ultimately, this doesn't get explored as Ye-Joon leaves with the others the following day.

1 Angus Tully (Dominic Sessa)

His mother and stepfather are on their honeymoon.

After four of the holdover students have left Barton early, Angus is the only one who remains. At the beginning of The Holdovers, Angus is confident that he'll be leaving for Saint Kitts with his family during the holidays, but his excitement is swiftly crushed. Angus reluctantly s the other holdovers after getting a phone call from his mother in which he's told she's abandoning their initial plans to go on a honeymoon with Angus' stepfather.

Initially, Angus is seen as a smart student, getting the highest grades in Mr. Hunham's class, but is also someone who causes trouble occasionally. For example, Angus sends Mr. Hunham on a chase after him through the school and injures himself in the process. Yet, in addition to his disobedient antics, parts of Angus's past are revealed piece by piece. First, Angus tells the other students that he has been kicked out of three schools before Barton and worries that he'll be sent to a military academy if he continues to get in trouble.

Angus' vulnerability continues when he its he's lonely and has a habit of annoying others

However, Angus is his most vulnerable after becoming closer to Mr. Hunham. While on a trip to Boston, the truth about what happened to Angus' father is revealed and Angus openly confesses to Mr. Hunham his worries about ending up like his father. Angus' vulnerability continues when he its he's lonely and has a habit of annoying others. Through the time spent together during the break, Mr. Hunham and Angus find out they have more in common than they would have ever thought and this allows a genuine camaraderie to form.