‘Waltons: Homecoming’ brings back a classic ’70s family drama
A half-century ago,
CBS released a TV movie called “The Homecoming: A Christmas Story.” The wholesome, family-oriented film did so well it was turned into a series, “The Waltons,” in 1972.
The drama, which turned Richard Thomas (John-boy) into a major star, became a huge hit, lasting nine seasons and 221 episodes, spawning six more films through 1997 after its cancellation in 1981.
Now for the first time in nearly a quarter-century, “The Waltons” are back in a redo of that 1971 film. Dubbed “The Waltons: Homecoming,” the CW recently debuted the movie that will air again Dec. 11. It’s also available on the CW app and cwtv. com.
Set in Depression-era rural Virginia in 1933, the Waltons are a struggling family of ma, pa and seven kids. The mill near their home shut down, and John Walton (Ben Lawson) had to work 90 miles away at another mill to feed the family. The film focuses on his efforts to get home in time for Christmas ahead of a pending snowstorm.
The new version retains the sweetness and heart of the original series. Any arguments and conflicts are mild and resolved by film’s end. There is plenty of laughter, warmth and understanding spanning generations.
“We could never have predicted what was going to happen to this country as a result of the pandemic,” said Sam Haskell, the film’s executive producer. “I believe people looked inside themselves and rediscovered family. What I’m trying to do with the Waltons is not only bring back the parents and grandparents who know the show but have
the kids come to the TV set and watch this movie as well.”
This film is a departure for this incarnation of the CW, which mostly gears itself to younger viewers with fare like “Riverdale” and “The Flash.”
Haskell cast two of the bigger names in the ensemble because they were personal friends: “Scandal” star Bellamy Young (Olivia Walton) and Lawson (John Walton), who was part of Haskell’s Netflix show “Dolly Parton’s Heartstrings.” He saw Logan Shroyer on “This is Us” and nabbed him to play the key role of aspiring writer and eldest son John-boy.
Haskell said by pure coincidence, he later found out Shroyer was close friends with the grandson of Thomas, the original John-boy. “Six degrees of separation became two degrees of separation,” Haskell said. “They had even met before.”
He also convinced Thomas, now 70, to return as the narrator and open the movie.
Actor Christian
Finlayson, who plays the second eldest son and wannabe musician Jason, said the camaraderie you see on the screen is authentic.
“In the couple of weeks of production, we really became that family,” he said. “It wasn’t hard to pretend on camera to be one.”
Due to budgetary and time constraints, Haskell said they modified the ending of the movie from the original in a way that led the Walton family to celebrate Christmas at a Black church. Olivia’s friend, played by R&B singer and former “Solid Gold” host Marilyn Mccoo as the preacher’s wife, invites her to her church for Christmas.
“Seeing white and Black hands clasping, this is the way it should be,” Haskell said. “It is the way it needs to be.”
Haskell is not shy about saying he hopes to replicate history if the film does well: “I’m trying to plant seeds of a TV series, something we can share with the world for years to come.”