The Return of Peter Grimm

Peter Grimm is an elderly patriarch who insists his young ward, Katie, promise to marry his nephew Frederick before he dies. After Peter's death, Frederick's true selfish nature starts to unravel the household, leaving Katie and others in moral and emotional peril. Unable to accept the damage he believes will be done, Peter returns as a spirit to influence events from beyond the grave. He reaches out to a delirious young man, Jimmie, to relay warnings and guidance, aiming to correct greed and reward integrity without revealing future plot twists or the final outcome.

Directed by Victor Schertzinger and released in 1926, the film adapts material associated with stage producer David Belasco, with Bradley King credited for screen work. The cast includes Alec B. Francis as Peter Grimm and a young Janet Gaynor among the principals, reflecting its ties to notable theatrical and screen talent of the era.

Box office records for many silent era releases are incomplete, and there aren't reliable figures for this film's commercial performance. Like many 1920s productions, detailed financial documentation is scarce, so its market reach is hard to quantify today.

The movie sits within the period's fascination with spirit contact and moral melodrama, translating a popular theatrical premise to silent cinema. It also offers an example of Janet Gaynor in an early role before she became widely known, and it reflects stage-to-screen practices that studios favored at the time.

Contemporary critical reaction is not well preserved, but the story's clear themes are easy to spot: moral responsibility versus selfishness, the social weight of promises, and the use of supernatural means to restore order. The narrative leans on sentimental and ethical stakes more than action, aiming to reassure audiences that virtue will be recognized and selfishness exposed through emotional and spiritual intervention.