All 10 ‘The Waltons’ Movies (& Series) in Order
‘The Waltons’ started off with a TV movie that nobody thought would be a major hit. But then, it was, and out of that one single TV movie came a franchise consisting of nine movies and one nine-season series, each more beloved and successful than the other.
And for good reason – ‘The Waltons’ are heartwarming, deep, and depict strong family values people cherish to this day, despite the plot revolving primarily around the 1930s. If you enjoyed ‘The Waltons’ when you were younger or just want to take a look right now, you’re in the right place. Here’s everything you need to know about the proper watch order of ‘The Waltons’ movies (& series).
‘The Waltons’ movies (& series) in order by release date
As I’ve mentioned, ‘The Waltons’ started with a movie that didn’t really have the family name in the title, and it spun out an entire franchise. If you want to dive right into it, here’s a full list of all ‘The Waltons’ movies by release date, including the 9-season series:
- ‘The Homecoming: A Christmas Story’ (1971)
- ‘The Waltons’ (1972-1981)
- ‘A Wedding on Walton’s Mountain’ (1982)
- ‘Mother’s Day on Walton’s Mountain’ (1982)
- ‘A Day for Thanks on Walton’s Mountain’ (1982)
- ‘A Walton Thanksgiving Reunion’ (1993)
- ‘A Walton Wedding’ (1995)
- ‘A Walton Easter’ (1997)
- ‘The Waltons: Homecoming’ (2021)
- ‘A Walton Thanksgiving’ (2022)
The last two entries on the list are, in fact, a reboot, which was supposed to be only one movie, but it had great viewership numbers, so the producers decided to make another one – which then didn’t garner the same results.
Apart from the two reboot/remake movies, each entry on the list is connected to the others, revolving around the same characters and their lives. In the following chapters and paragraphs, we’ll get into more detail about how the movies are connected and what the best way to watch the entire series is. I have to warn you, though; there will be spoilers ahead!
Are ‘The Waltons’ movies (& series) connected? What’s the best order to watch them?
As we mentioned earlier in the article, all ‘The Waltons’ movies are connected to each other – including the 9-season TV show – except for the last two movies on the list. Those last two movies are a reboot of sorts, with essentially a brand-new cast.
The 2021 movie, ‘The Waltons: Homecoming’ is a remake of the first movie on the list – ‘The Homecoming: A Christmas Story’ (1971) – whereas the 2022 might be viewed as sort of a reboot of ‘A Walton Thanksgiving Reunion’ (1993). Still, it’s actually just a sequel to the 2021 remake.
We know that because the 1993 Thanksgiving film happened in 1963 – three decades after the ‘Homecoming’ storyline, whereas the 2022 Thanksgiving film happened in 1934 – the following year after the ‘Homecoming’ storyline.
As for the rest of the franchise before the reboots, all the entries are connected to one another and are chronologically ordered if you watch them by the release date. The story follows the Walton family since Christmas Eve of 1933 and progressively advances through time with each season of the series and with each movie that follows.
In the following subheading, we’ll dive deeper into that chronological order and give you more detail about each entry from the list above.
‘The Waltons’ movies (& series) in chronological order
As I’ve mentioned, the chronological order of the plots of each movie (and the TV show) is the same as the release date order. This means that if you watch ‘The Waltons’ by release date, you’ll also get the story chronologically ordered.
Here’s a little bit more about each movie and its plot to help you understand why ‘The Waltons’ were – and still are – so popular among fans.
1. ‘The Homecoming: A Christmas Story’ (1971)
‘The Homecoming: A Christmas Story’ was supposed to be a stand-alone TV movie, with no real plans for any sequels. However, the movie was incredibly well-received and became an instant Christmas classic, which in turn made the producers decide to go along with ‘The Waltons’ series, revolving around the same family.
In the film, the Walton family waits for the father, John, to return home for Christmas Eve in 1933. They grow worried as John is supposed to be home already, so his son, John-Boy, enters a blizzard to find him.
2. ‘The Waltons’ (1972-1981)
The idea to make a show about the Waltons came after the success of ‘The Homecoming’ movie. The show revolved around the life of the Walton family, who lived in the Virginia mountains through the time of The Great Depression and WWII (1930s & 1940s). The family drama series ran for over 200 episodes and nine seasons.
Many believed that would be the end of ‘The Waltons’ on TV, but only a year after the show’s finale came a trilogy of movies…
3. ‘A Wedding on Walton’s Mountain’ (1982)
The first of the three ‘Walton’ movies that aired in 1982 saw Erin Walton trying to plan a wedding with her long-time boyfriend, Paul, right after WWII. However, her ex-boyfriend Ashley – who went away to war and married somebody else – became a widower and now wants Erin back. Will Erin let Ashley back into her life, or is she going through with her wedding with Paul?
4. ‘Mother’s Day on Walton’s Mountain’ (1982)
Mary Ellen married Jonesy, but soon after, she had an accident that left her unable to have kids. It devastates her, so she decides to go to Arizona to find solace with her mother – the only person she believes could understand her struggles. Meanwhile, Ben is upset, believing that Cindy’s mother wants to spoil what Cindy and Virginia have after she put Cindy up for adoption.
5. ‘A Day for Thanks on Walton’s Mountain’ (1982)
We’re approaching Thanksgiving in 1947. However, most of the members of the Walton family have their own lives and live far from each other. John-Boy decides to return home to Walton’s Mountain to get over writer’s block. Jason and John also get back, with the latter trying to get everyone together.
Will the family eventually get together for Thanksgiving despite each of them dealing with their own issues?
6. ‘A Walton Thanksgiving Reunion’ (1993)
For about 11 years, it seemed that the ‘The Waltons’ era on TV was over – but then came ‘A Walton Thanksgiving Reunion.’
The plot takes us to 1963 – 16 years after the plot of the last film – where the Waltons get together on Walton’s Mountain to celebrate Thanksgiving together. John-Boy arrives with his girlfriend, Janet, but soon after their arrival, he’s sent back to Washington to cover the devastating news about President Kennedy’s assassination.
Janet stays in Virginia with the family to get to know them, but tensions rise due to Corabeth’s anger at Ike for inviting Aimee home for Thanksgiving…
7. ‘A Walton Wedding’ (1995)
A year after the Thanksgiving reunion, John-Boy and Janet announce their marriage. They invite everyone to New York, where the wedding should be held. Still, they eventually decide to flee and have the wedding at Walton’s Mountain due to Janet’s Aunt aggressively taking over the wedding plans and preparations.
Meanwhile, John-Boy is writing an article on his grandma. At the same time, John is elected as County Supervisor, which causes problems because he and Ben stand to profit if John accepts a proposed subdivision…
8. ‘A Walton Easter’ (1997)
We’re in 1969 – five years after we last saw the Waltons – and John-Boy is now a big TV anchorman in New York. He’s also in the middle of writing a new book. He and a pregnant Janet plan their return to Walton’s Mountain to celebrate John and Olivia’s 40th anniversary.
It sparks John-Boy to dream of returning to Walton’s Mountain to settle down, focus on his writing, and raise a family there. It causes an argument with Janet, who wants to stay in New York. Meanwhile, Elizabeth announces she’s returning home for good from her travels, only to discover that Drew didn’t wait for her and now has a new girlfriend…
9. ‘The Waltons: Homecoming’ (2021)
Originally titled ‘The Waltons’ Homecoming,’ this was a remake of the first movie on this list – ‘The Homecoming: A Christmas Story’ (1971). The plot was essentially the same – John-Boy went out to find his father, who was late home for Christmas, as a blizzard raged through Walton’s Mountain.
The cast was new, naturally, and although the 5.1/10 IMDb rating wouldn’t suggest so, the movie had great viewership numbers – or at least good enough for the producers to decide to make another film.
10. ‘A Waltons Thanksgiving’ (2022)
Although it might seem like another remake of one of the previous Walton movies based around Thanksgiving, the plot for this one was completely new and took place the very next year after Christmas when the Waltons waited for John Sr. to come home.
In this film, the family prepares for the annual Harvest Festival Fair, but everything is turned upside down when a young boy arrives on Walton’s Mountain…
This particular movie has a better IMDb rating than the previous one (5.9/10), which is ironic considering the viewership numbers dropped significantly, so they never decided to make another film in the franchise. At least for now, I guess.
Where to watch ‘The Waltons’ movies (& series)?
You can now watch all ‘The Waltons’ movies and series by buying/renting them on platforms such as Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, and Vudu. When writing this article, Seasons 8 and 9 of the ‘The Waltons’ series are airing on the Hallmark Drama channel despite ‘The Waltons’ being a CBS show.
Some movies, such as ‘The Waltons’ Homecoming,’ are available for streaming on Peacock, but as far as all the movies and series collectively, you’ll likely have to buy/rent them on the platforms as mentioned earlier.
Will there be more ‘The Waltons’ movies?
As of now, there are no plans or official announcements about more movies being made within ‘The Waltons’ franchise. However, seeing that over a decade passed between the 1982 movies and the three 90’s movies, and then over two decades until the remakes/reboots happened, we can never say for sure that new Walton movies won’t be made somewhere in the future.
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