‘The Waltons’ Homecoming’ on The CW

Category: Television and Streaming

The cast and Executive Producer Sam Haskell met virtually with the media to discuss this film. Fans of the series will notice the character of Ben is absent in this movie. As Haskell acknowledged, it was because of time constraints in doing a single movie. If it does become a series, the executive producer is planning on bringing back all the family members. There are also some differences between this TV movie and the beloved series. The grandparents do not live in the same house. And speaking of the house, that one we all know and love is no longer standing. As Haskell explained, “It was on the backlot here at Warner Brothers and it, it no longer exists and we were shooting in Atlanta because of the tax incentives and, and the business side of the, of The Waltons’ Homecoming. And we tried to find a house as close to it as we could that had the upstairs, because I knew I wanted to end it with the good night mamas and daddies turned into Merry Christmas, of course. And we wanted to try to honor the family.”

The hope of everyone connected with this film is that it will be turned into another series. Should that happen, Haskell said,  “I want to bring every original cast member in as a guest star to play a teacher or a nurse or a doctor, or I want to integrate the original cast into the series and future movie.”

In these days of chaos in the world, the political divide and the pandemic, it seems as though this is the perfect time to return to Walton’s Mountain. Sure, it doesn’t have the power punch of today’s high-tech shows, but it does bring out the warm fuzzies and we can use some good old-fashioned family love. There is enough stress in our lives and violence and sex on TV. This show reminds us that we don’t need those to have good entertainment.

The Waltons’ Homecoming premieres November 28, 2021 on The CW. It is a good holiday family film. As they would say on Walton’s Mountain, “Merry Christmas, John Boy.”

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for over 25 years. She also writes about products and travel. She has been published in national and international newspapers and magazines as well as Internet websites. She has written her own book, Beyond the Red Carpet The World of Entertainment Journalists, is the entertainment correspondent for Good Day Orange County, and has her own TV show, Beyond the Red Carpet, on Village Television in Orange County. She is a longstanding member of the Television Critics Association, was a longstanding member of the Los Angeles Press Club, and is accredited by the MPAA. Follow her on Twitter.

 

Courtesy photo