Kelce appears in the new Hallmark Christmas movie that takes place in Kansas City — and costume designer Keith Nielsen gave PEOPLE all the details
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It wouldn’t be a Kansas City Chiefs movie without a cameo from Mama Kelce herself.
Donna Kelce, whose son Travis Kelce plays for the Chiefs, appears in the new Hallmark Christmas movie Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story, starring Hunter King and Tyler Hynes.
In the film, Donna plays a caricature of herself — she’s the manager of Norma & Nic’s restaurant, but she’s also still a football mom.
The movie’s costume designer, Keith Nielsen, tells PEOPLE that Donna’s wardrobe was a mix of things from her own closet, as well as pieces he put her in. And he confirms that there are plenty of Easter eggs that nod to her famous family — and famous friends.
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“She has the iconic jersey that’s 50/50,” Nielsen notes of the Chiefs and Eagles jersey that Donna wore to support both Travis and her eldest son Jason Kelce, who used to play for the Philadelphia Eagles before retiring earlier this year.
Also to support both sons, Nielsen says that Donna, who “loves bling” wore a necklace in honor of both of her boys.
“Her necklace is custom with the initials ‘J’ and ‘T’ for Jason and Travis — if you look really closely!” he says, adding that he likes to let actors wear their own jewelry for projects, especially when it “works for the character.”
“It’s basically what I did with her,” he adds.
Also a part of her jewelry collection was her Tortured Poets Department bracelet in support of son Travis’ girlfriend Taylor Swift. Fans spotted the Kelce matriarch wearing the chainlink bracelet in a promo for the film back in July during filming and quickly made the connection. Donna has continued the wear the piece for months, since Swift released the album earlier this year.
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Beyond those nods, Nielsen notes that Donna wears a No. 87 Chiefs jersey for Travis, which is signed by her son, and he also made her a pair of sparkly red sneakers, that he’s not sure you can even see in any of the scenes — but he knows they’re there. He says they’re a fun nod to The Wizard of Oz and Kansas City.
And, of course, he did actually do some wardrobe with her, in addition to letting her wear her own Chiefs gear.
“We got to do that black sparkly sweater on her, which was cute,” he says. “I was like, ‘I want to put something on her!'”
Holiday Touchdown: A Chiefs Love Story premieres Nov. 30 on Hallmark Channel.
