The Return of the Pink Panther

The Pink Panther diamond has been stolen once more, and Inspector Clouseau is put on the case. Convinced that the notorious thief known as the Phantom is behind the theft, Clouseau pursues his suspicions while his long-suffering superior, Chief Inspector Dreyfus, plots against him. Sir Charles Litton, the retired gentleman thief long identified with the Phantom, sets out to clear his name by finding the real culprit, and Clouseau's investigation leads him toward Sir Charles's wife, Claudine.

Blake Edwards directed, produced and co-wrote the film with Frank Waldman, the twelfth of the twenty-seven features he directed in chronological order, arriving between Wild Rovers and The Pink Panther Strikes Again. Peter Sellers returns as Clouseau, with Christopher Plummer as Sir Charles Litton, Catherine Schell as Claudine, Herbert Lom as Dreyfus, Peter Arne as Colonel Sharki and Peter Jeffrey as General Wadafi among a credited cast of twenty-eight. Made for about five million dollars, it took roughly forty-two million worldwide.

Audience response has been favourable: on IMDb it holds 7 out of 10 from around thirty-two thousand votes, and on TMDB 6.8 out of 10 from seven hundred or so. A critics' rating of 6.9 out of 10 from twenty-three reviews places it close to the audience scores, indicating a broadly similar reception on both sides.