Return of the Beverly Hillbillies Max Baer Jr. (the original Jethro) who declined to participate. The film was produced and written by original series creator Paul Henning and was intended as a pilot for a proposed revival of the series, but this never materialized. "Return of the Beverly Hillbillies" premiered as "The CBS Tuesday Night Movie" on October 6, 1981. Following the death of Granny, Jed Clampett returned to his roots to live in a backwoods cabin in the town of Bug Tussle rather than living alone at his Beverly Hills mansion after having voluntarily divided his massive fortune between daughter Elly May and nephew
The Beverly Hillbillies (film) the "Chicago Sun-Times" gave the film half a star out of a possible 4, arguing that it did not capture the appeal of the original, and did not improve the source material. Furthermore, wrote Ebert, "The Beverly Hillbillies" was a major disappointment for Spheeris after her surprising triumph with "Wayne's World" only two years before: When directors make a wonderful movie, you look forward to their next one with a special anticipation, thinking maybe they've got the secret. If it turns out they don't, you feel almost betrayed. That's how I felt after "The Beverly Hillbillies", one of the worst