Wallflowers was based on a novel by Temple Bailey. The central character, a scheming social climber played by Mabel Julienne Scott, intends to force her stepson Hugh Trevor into a marriage of convenience. But Trevor has developed a fondness for shy Jean Arthur, the "wallflower" of the title. How Arthur overcomes her shyness, and Trevor outmaneuvers his overbearing mother, was the dramatic crux of the film. Leading lady Jean Arthur was in 1928 shuttling from one inconsequential film to another; true stardom would not be bestowed upon her until the talkie era. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi