The Waltons’ Homecoming: Did CW Movie Remake Evoke Enough Charm?
The CW this Sunday night commemorated the 50th anniversary of The Homecoming: A Christmas Story — the 1971 TV-movie that wound up siring The Waltons — with a remake. But did it evoke enough folksy charm?
As with the source material, and set in 1933, The CW‘s The Waltons’ Homecoming found the titular family readying for Christmas but also waiting… and waiting… for patriarch John Sr. (played by Ben Lawson) to come home for the holiday from his far-away job. (John’s already long bus ride was further slowed by a brewing snow storm, and is eventually derailed when the bus skids off an icy road.)
Along the way, we meet family matriarch Olivia (Scandal‘s Bellamy Young), eldest child John-Boy (Logan Shroyer aka This Is Us‘ Teenage Kevin) and eldest daughter Mary Ellen (Marcelle LeBlanc). There’s also a Jason, an Elizabeth, an Erin and a Jim Bob, but Ben got snipped from this remake. You also have Grandma and Grandpa, a Mr. Godsey running the general store, some nicely cast Baldwin sisters (gotta love Papa’s Recipe!), and minister’s wife Rose (Jacinte Blankenship), who invites Livy & Co. to their nearby Baptist church for Christmas Eve services.
Oh, and succeeding Waltons creator Earl Hamner Jr. as narrator is none other than the OG John-Boy himself, Richard Thomas!
All told, the production seemed a bit too “clean” for this Depression Era tale, with the Walton kids looking like they were sporting brand new J. Crew purchases. There were some modern “updates” — dungarees-wearing Mary Ellen says “ass” at one point, and repeatedly advocates for less gender-defined roles in society. And while she registers as feisty and John-Boy is clearly Wannabe Writer, none of the other kids is given a single character trait, unless you count Erin’s Hollywood dreams.
There’s also an oddly dark moment when John-Boy unwittingly gifts Elizabeth with a “dead doll,” and some seriously janky green screen in all of the driving scenes. (Like, someone legitimately made a mistake with the frame rates, and no one fixed it.) As with many a modern “period” project, everyone speaks a bit too contemporarily, and at one point Olivia is asked if she has heard from John yet. Well, he is on a bus, it’s 1933, and the telephone nearest the house is probably at the general store. So… how would that happen?
A radio report drums up some drama, suggesting that John was injured (or worse) in the bus accident, so Liv sends John-Boy out into the inconsistently treacherous storm to find his father and (hopefully) return with him in time for Christmas Eve at church. You can see where this is going, but the eventual reveal to Olivia, during a candlelit singing of “Silent Night,” is effectively emotional. That, followed by John playing Santa with many thoughtful gifts, made my Grinchy heart grow at least one size. (That said, the closing “Present Day” graveyard scene fell flat.)
But what did you think about this Waltons movie remake?
I feel like if I hadn’t grown up watching The Waltons it would have been a great TV movie. I didn’t love the changes they made and they completely left out Ben. The graveyard scene with elderly Elizabeth felt odd. The actress who played Mary Ellen was great though.
Logan –you are so right –that final graveyard scene with elderly Elizabeth was odd, like from some other show, maybe one of George Romero’s??
The scene was probably put in there to portray how the generations of the Walton family saga would continue on and that the next generation would definitely be told about John Boy. Makes sense to me that Elizabeth would go to the family grave yard as the show noted that she was still living in the house and wanted her great grandchild to know the history of the family and she and John Boy were close.
I loved the graveyard scene- it was so beautiful and had me crying.
Could of improved on the acting. Some of the actors and actresses could make the parts they are doing more believable. Work harder on their parts. No, don’t need all the cussing to make it a good show. Plus the car scenes, make it look more believable when they are moving.
Having watched the original series as a child, enjoy re-watching as a adult. I’ve repeatedly have watched the “71” Homecoming and “63” Spencer’s Mountain, enjoy them both. This CW version was different, but believe it was a hit. Your review comment on Mary Ellen was off, she was always a “tom-boy” in the show. Only thing I really question was the last scene with older Mary Ellen and her g-grandson onlooking John Boy’s headstone, dates are confusing. John Boy would have been born around 1916.
I think JB’s headstone indeed said 1916. And that was Old (90something) Elizabeth.
Yes it was Elizabeth, my mistake. It could have read 1916. (Middle aged eyes )
Richard Thomas says it is the Christmas of 1933 in his opening narration.
The TV series events took place between 1933 – 1946.
In this movie John Boy was 17 so he’d have been born in 1916, like his tomb stone said.
And he died in 1999 at the age of 83.
The original series ran for 9 Season | 221 Episodes between Sept 14, 1972 – June 4, 1981.
Yes
Earl Hamner Jr (John Boy) was born in 1916 and passed in 2016 in his 90s. I think it was his dad who may have passed in 1999.
My apologies, Mr Hamner was born in 1923 and passed in 2016. Here is something else I didn’t know; Mr Hamner ( John Boy) was not only the writer and creator of “The Waltons” but also another long running television series, “Falcon “Crest”.
Horrible. Awful. Disgustingly poor remake of a classic. A waste of time I’ll never get back. Good thing I have the original on DVD. I need to watch it pronto to wash this trash from my memory.
I agree… i tried really hard to try to like it, but it was just too fake and had none of the warmth of the original Walton show or movies. Just totally missed the mark to me.
Yeah it seemed like they were trying to modernize it and be all PC. I doubt if the Waltons would have allowed cursing. I haven’t seen it yet but PC didn’t exist then and racism was rampant.
I so agree with you.We have all the seasons and my two sons 17 and 14 love Walton’s and watch a episode every night.This was garbage !The acting was so bad.They didn’t behave like the Walton children did.How Richard Thomas gave his name to this I don’t understand.
A paycheck?
Keep on mind that this new movie followed fairly close to the original TV movie, but the kids weren’t supposed to act like the original Walton’s children. They are supposed to bring their own personalities and interpretation to their characters.
As for Richard Thomas giving his blessing to the show, I’m guessing he fits an early draft of the script. There are always rewrites, the director may change lines on the spot or the actors may be improvising.
Also, the filming schedule was a month long and Richard was only on set for two days (maybe 3-4 hours total) towards the end of production. He didn’t see much, if any, of the performances. He shot his own scene in less than an hour and was gone.
The thing is…if you went in watching the movie to compare it, then of course you won’t like it. If you watched it just to watch it, then it was a good movie. It had some really good parts to the movie. Some, mediocre. Overall, not bad. I personally liked it. 👍
Agreed! I’m looking forward to watching again.
A little over dramatic don’t you think?
Seek Help
I agree it was very cheesy …….. it all screamed fake.
Well said joe this remake made me sad
Not enjoying this remake. It’s all too fake. None of them dress like they are living in the depression era. The house doesn’t look like it’s in the depression era. Did they change the premise — The Waltons were fortunate during the depression era and could afford stylish clothes and shoes? And the upkeep of their house? Original theme was poor, worked hard and just got by.
The comment to Erin (I think it was to Erin) that she just wants breasts for Christmas is modern day’s world of tasteless talk. If you’re going to make a remake, heck stay with the original theme. If not, then make a new show. This remake is way off track. You should have just come up with some other family name and character names.
Remake failed miserably. This is NOT the Waltons on any level.
I agree! Especially with the gratuitous language thrown in. Not keeping with the Walton’s theme at all.
But is it realistic though for people too talk the way they do during that time period?
Does the novel it was based on scrubbed out any foul language?
I can’t quote the exact episode, but i’m pretty sure the original Mary Ellen used “ass” in the “non-donkey” sense at least once, so you could probably take that off your list of gripes. I’ve learned to my chagrin that remakes never measure up to the original characters/stories/memories, but i’m giving props for the attempt to honor such an integral part of my childhood. As good as the original? No. Better than a lot of stuff i’ve seen lately? Oh, you betcha!
After watching the classic Waltons for so long, it’s extremely hard to see these characters that don’t look anything like the original cast. I tried, but couldn’t watch it. Could have called it something else oh, and maybe it would have been fine, but you just don’t mess with a classic. It doesn’t work
The new Homecoming is so much better than the original.
I totally disagree! The original was fabulous! I was so disappointed with this remake…it just didn’t seem time appropriate… the house was too modern, the acting was mediocre at best 😢
Nope! She didn’t say ass, she said pissant…POOR acting, zero character chemistry, absolutely no believability
My wife and I watched the Waltons from 1971 and through many years up to day of repeats. Agree with sharyl whoever made this 2 hour remake must never have watched the Waltons ever ever. Example adding to critics. John boy bedroom with his fire place resembled a modern day rich boy room
Yes, I thought so too. Very rich house
The house itself was built before the Civil War. There is still a cabin standing in the property that was used for slaves (very depressing to see).
The line about Mary Ellen wanting breasts for Xmas is in the original movie as well. Only they say “boobs” I believe.
John Boy said bosoms, lol
John Boy said it in private. Not Jason. The grandparents left, stating that John afforded the house on his own, not a hand-me down. What’s next,, Christmas on Plum Creek?
Indeed he does. In the barn.
Right, John Boy said “Don’t worry, they’ll grow.” to Mary Ellen. We watch the original every Christmas, my kids (now 22, 27 & 30) love it!
I totally agree. Should have been another family
Yes Sheryl you are so right not at all what I expected.
I didn’t enjoy it at all. Olivia’s acting was so bad and the lingo was not used in 33 by children, like when Mary Ellen told Jason to “shove it” and she called Erin an ass and she looked to have slapped Jason in his crotch by his expression and where he held. Also John Boy and Mary Ellen used the words ragging on someone. Elizabeth could not act. Ben was missing and yancy from the original was known as Charlie and it was a poor substitute. The home on the Walton’s needs a lot of repair but they couldn’t afford it. The original front was paint chipped and showing much wear and this one didn’t. I just didn’t relate to it at all. Maybe too used to the good series of yesteryear.
Actually, in the original movie, it was Charlie that brought them the turkey he stole. Yancy wasn’t in the movie, he was only in the series.
Agree 100% I could only watch about 30 minutes and I was done.
I watched the remake with hopes of enjoying its original show.
The cussing from the children was way off!
The Walton’s were poor, as was the world during the depression.
The kids dressed very well, the furniture was very expensive looking too.
If they consider the bad words, and dressing more like the poor Family they are, I believe it has a chance at being a great series!
Breast talk was in the original between Mary Ellen and John Boy.
Jason said the boob comment to Mary Ellen in the barn.
Are you going to play the reboot of The Homecoming again? I missed the last half of an hour. What I saw was excellent. I remember watching the first one. Wasn’t it
Longer?
Dec 11 I think
It’s on the CW app.
Dec. 11th! Can’t wait to watch again- loved it!
You can also stream it now.
I thought the “dead doll” scene was uncalled for. To be clear, why was the dead doll a black doll with cracks in its face? Why couldn’t it be a white doll, like Elizabeth ultimately received the next day? What was the purpose of bringing in unnecessary, extra racism that was hidden? It was ok for John to mention a “colored” church for the time period. However, why did an innocent child like Elizabeth have to display negativity towards a black doll, but love the white doll she received for Christmas? Why did the black doll have to be included at all? There weren’t any black dolls made during that Era.
Unfortunately, there were black dolls created in the early 1900s but they were called mammy dolls.
There were some black baby dolls on the market at the time but they were usually portrayed in “jungle” outfits,etc and very unlikely to be sold where the Waltons lived. If anyone is interested in the subject home-made dolls, especially those hand-crafted by Leo Moss,a black handyman, out of papier-mache ,and based on real people in his community, are highly valued today. Also,”topsy-turvy” dolls with one face white and the other black (with a bonnet hiding the face not shown) were popular from late 19th to early 20th century.
Correction–the other figure was hidden under the skirt–not the bonnet.
Give it a rest already …
It would have been very great but they left out Ben
There was no real Ben in the Walton’s family. The character in the TV show was made up so maybe they just left it out this time and based the show on the real Waltons family that lived in Virginia.
There was a Ben in the 1971 movie this was a remake of.
There were actually 8 kids and they combined two brothers, Paul and Bill to make Ben because the cast would have been too heavy. In the original special and the series. So, if you go by the original family, they chopped 2 in this one.
I read another article which mentioned that Ben being left out of this “Homecoming” special was intentional only in that it felt like too many kids asking “where’s Dad” in a two-hour show was too much, i.e, they didn’t have enough time to give to every character as it was so they left Ben off; however, if a series happens, there WILL be a Ben in keeping with the original series. IT also mentioned that if a series happens, there are plans to incorporate some of the other original cast into it somehow. We’ll see.
That being said; I didn’t love it. I didn’t really hate it, but I didn’t love it; many flaws in this one.
My real feeling is The Walton’s is a classic and the characters and actors who played them live very strongly in the memories of those who loved the original series. Nothing they do to re-create this would be good enough for those who love the original show.
For those who are young (as I think a lot of The CW’s audience is), this might be a nice series if they can improve on its obvious flaws. For those of us who have a History with The Walton’s… not sure any true fans want to see that classic show messed with any more than they have already messed with it. I watched it mainly for Richard Thomas and the kid who played John Boy because I love “This Is Us”. Not sure I care to see any more of this effort to re-make a classic. The need to leave the classics alone and come up with some new and fresh ideas.
There was absolutely a Ben in the TV Walton’s family. There was no “Ben” in the Hamner family, which the TV show is based on, so they combined two Hamner brothers to make 7 Walton children instead of 8. There is NO real Waltons family that lived in Virginia. It was the Hamner family that lived in Virginia. The family that the show was based on. There is no Walton’s Mountain here. The Hamner’s original house is in Schuyler, Virginia at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
It was so engaging- did not miss him.
You missed an entire child. The whole thing was so fake. Not heart warming and down to earth as the original.
I enjoyed this one so much more!
I was very disappointed in this remake.
I watched The Waltons for years. It is shameful what was done to this brilliant series.
Very poor actors. None of them shared a slight resemblance to the character they portrayed. None of them were skillful enough to come close to acting as their character did. Didn’t appear to look like the days of The Great Depression. They were a struggling family in that era. Not according to this remake.
I sincerely doubt that Olivia Walton would have sent John Boy out to look for his Father in such treacherous weather. He probably would have brought the idea up himself. And went on his way with Olivia trying to stop him.
This was just a very bad remake. To all parties involved.j
Did you ever watch the original “Homecoming”? Because Olivia Walton did send her son out to look for his father.
F
So dramatic….. Nobody did anything to the original or the series. It’s still there for you to watch. Some of us love the new movie better than the original and we will keep watching it as well. Life goes on.
They had black police officers in Virginia? In 1933?
I said same thing even today in rural applichia it’s rare to see a black officer
Where is Ben?
I was excited to watch the remake but was let down. I’m sure there will be enough viewers to keep the series going though.
Very disappointed. Couldn’t even get through the whole show.
The movie to me was a flop.To many changes.Not true to the Walton’s persona.
No Ben .Cutting out the father .And they were supposed to be poor.Looked to me like
nothing of the Walton’s.The essence of the Walton’s and the charm that made the Walton’s was destroyed.I rate it a pure flop .
From the writer’s down to the director to casting.Just did not feel the whole Walton vibe.
The remark about the “J Crew”-like wardrobe was spot-on.The original show ,although fictionalized ,was obviously a nostalgic look back and homage to the real struggles of a poor but proud depression era family.It was OK but it did not seem like the production really took the time to do justice to the heart of the original IMHO.
This was a fail on a lot of levels. It was all too neat and clean for Depression era. Mom and Dad looked far too young.
Specifically let’s talk about how bad the green screen was when John Boy was driving his dad home after the crash. So bad my wife and I laughed about it.
This looked like a Jr High production.
I enjoyed THE WALTONS’ HOMECOMING for what it was — a STAR TREK-like reboot taking place in a similar but vastly different universe. Just as the original Walton kids were surely somewhat different from the Hamner siblings they were based on, some of the new Walton kids will end up in a different place, according to the coda featuring Elizabeth in the present day.
My biggest gripes about the new production are the forcing of 2021 themes into a story set in 1933 and how well-dressed the kids were. The kids’ clothes were, as someone else pointed out, too clean.
Not a gripe, but worthy of mention, is just how much better the broken doll scene was in the original HOMECOMING movie. Kami Cotler nailed the horror of seeing the doll with its broken face.
Would I watch a new series featuring these Waltons? Yes, but I’ll always prefer the original.
I did not like that they left Ben out of the remake and the part about an older Elizabeth visting John Boy’s grave either.
I saw this article and had to make a few comments. I was a member of the film crew (not saying what dept. I want to keep working) for Waltons Homecoming and I have to agree with everything said here.
I’m just a crew member, I’m not above the line. But I mentioned to costumes a few times that the cast was overdressed. Also, when outside they were never dressed for really cold weather. I mean it was June in Georgia, but still not dressed right. Also, set dec made the home too nice. They should’ve spent a few hours watching the og show for a few tips. And yes, the language was too modern, something I mentioned to Lev, our director.
Still, we worked damn hard on this. We had almost no budget & Covington Georgia in June is miserably hot. I hope this goes to series, I think it could be a great show if we had a bigger budget.
Wishing you the best—-as someone who has had some background in set design and props,including some wardrobe, I’m a bit surprised the costume department did not go to the easiest and cheapest source for old/distressed clothing in theatre—thrift/Goodwill stores.
I was surprised as well. Goodwill is always used by costumes. But a lot of the wardrobe was sourced from other Warner Brothers shows being filmed in Georgia.
I wish you the best!
We all need to work. I believe that because the airs on the CW you stand a good chance!
Also, thank you for your honesty. I hope that you was not the only person to mention “something to Lev”, your director!
*this airs on the CW
The show itself was produced by Warner Brothers. And they are usually a little cheap on their budgets. Not to mention they just aren’t a fun company to work for. Fortunately there is a lot of work in Georgia, but no one wants to get a reputation badmouthing any production.
I know of a few people though that thought things were a bit off as far as wardrobe and set dec, etc. The art director would definitely need to be replaced if they brought this to series.
I have to say this, besides a bigger budget, they need better actors. None of them were believable at all.
Another puzzling difference not yet mentioned is: why did the grandparents not live in their home? Never in the original series did Grandma and Grandpa live in a different house.
Because it’s not an identical remake? I think that’s the point everyone is missing. Richard Thomas said as much in his interviews. It’s a new interpretation.
After reading the comments and recap I just deleted this version from my dvr. No need to ruin the memories I have of the original.
LOL, too bad. You should have watched it. There is NO way this reboot could ruin your memories of the original.
Oh, the drama!
Could not locate the show using The CW app on TV or my phone. A search pulled up a trailer, but the show was MIA. Very disappointing after so much advertising.
The show isn’t available on the CW app until sometime later today.
Any tried and true Walton’s fan was mortified last night, including me. I lasted 15 minutes, got up and put the original dvd in just to cleanse myself…
I agree it lacked the charm of the original. But it’s also only the first crack and there was potential if they smooth out what didn’t work.
A lot of the criticisms I see here are carried over from the original production. (i.e. Olivia sending JohnBoy out in bad weather to look for John) I agree everything looked a bit too clean, but that’s a problem in general with Hollywood today. I think a lot of the whining about Ben not being there is purism more than any practical critique since absolutely nobody can tell me one thing Ben contributed to the plot of the original Homecoming that was somehow missing from this.
Yes, the effects budget was shamefully low on this, but I felt the actors did okay with the jobs they were given. As for Livvy and John looking too young, Olivia is supposed to be about 34/35. Bellamy Young is 51. She is older than Patricia Neal was in the original and much older than Michael Learned in the series. It’s criticisms like these which make people’s legitimate criticisms feel pettier, because it feels like complaining for the sake of complaining, even if the facts aren’t quite lining up.
Like I predicted, reboots rarely work because people expect the exact same show put on with different actors and flail at even the slightest changes. I think they probably should’ve changed even more to make this an entirely new story away from the shadow of the original. We need family dramas in this Tv era and there are so few. This Is Us was sort of a “last of a breed.” It came at a time when there was already a drought of family dramas and now it too is going into TV History. We need stuff like this to be tried, even if they don’t work as well as they should.
I think the reason people are saying Bellamy Young is too young to play Olivia, even though she’s actually older than Olivia would be, is because of her youthful appearance. She has a baby face, and looks much younger than her real age. People expect Olivia to have a more haggard look (old before her time) because of all the struggles she’s gone through. Bellamy Young certainly doesn’t look like a woman who’s had to work hard all her life. She’s flawless. While I get that you think people are just being petty, I can say that I was surprised by the casting. She’s a good actress, but she’s more Jessica Whitley than Olivia Walton.
Yes, I agree with you. Thank you for saying.
The original Homecoming had no charm. This one is much better. Loved the series though….
The storyline could have used more story. I found it difficult staying connected to the storyline with 5 min of show and 5 min of commercials throughout the program. I would give it a 6 on a 10 point scale.
Couldn’t agree more about the struggle with watching live. The amount of commercial breaks certainly messed with the pacing – I’m curious how much better it would have been with limited commercial interruptions (certainly still not perfect , but a relatively easy fix that could potentially make a big impact).
This tv movie was really bad. As others has stated, the clothing was way off for the time frame. The acting and story line was equally off. What was the justification for not having all 7 children from the series? They should have shown the original “Homecoming” episode from 50 years ago. If the producers were going to do a remake, they should have done a better job.
I watched less than 10 minutes of it & could not continue. There were so, so many things wrong with it. Richard Thomas must be desperate for money to have agreed to be part of this disgrace.
Disgrace?! So dramatic. It was a beautiful remake.
This is not a well put together movie. They didn’t even put Ben in this one.