10 Actors Who Starred In At Least 5 Great Western Movies

SUMMARY

•  John Wayne defined the classic Western hero, appearing in 83 Westerns, including timeless classics like “Stagecoach” and “True Grit.”
•  Clint Eastwood subverted the traditional Western genre with morally ambiguous characters, setting a precedent for Spaghetti and Revisionist Westerns.
•  James Stewart brought his relatable everyman persona to Westerns, portraying both protagonist and antagonist characters, showcasing his versatility.

The Western genre was an enormous entity in 20th-century filmmaking, and many actors were known primarily for appearing in them. Several actors left a distinct mark on the genre by starring in at least five great Western films. Many qualities constitute a great Western, be it that they were massively influential for their era, like Stagecoach, stood the test of time as masterpiece films, like Once Upon a Time in the West, or were commercially successful, like How the West Was Won.

When considering the great Western actors, names like John Wayne and Clint Eastwood immediately ring a bell. However, many other movie stars made fantastic contributions to the genre, bringing the mythos of Wild West gunslingers, bounty hunters, and lawmen to life. The 1940s-1960s saw many of the best Westerns ever made in a Golden Age for the genre. In the mass production of films in America and Spaghetti Westerns in Italy, certain stars clung to them, like Wayne, who appeared in eighty-three Westerns in his career.

10. John Wayne

John Wayne appeared in 83 Westerns in his career, including all-time classics.

No actor is more synonymous with the classic Western than John Wayne. His extensive filmography of enduring and popular movies cemented Wayne’s legacy as an iconic screen legend. John Wayne helped define the archetypal Western hero, with tough, rugged characters like John T. Chance in Rio Bravo and Rooster Cogburn in True Grit, which earned him an Academy Award for Best Actor. Known primarily for his collaborations with director John Ford, Wayne’s impact on the Western genre is immeasurable.

9. Clint Eastwood

Clint Eastwood starred in iconic Spaghetti and Revisionist Westerns.

While he’s still making films at the age of 93, many of Clint Eastwood’s best movies are his classic Westerns. While John Wayne represented a hero of traditional American values, Eastwood represented a subversion of the classical Western genre, known for his morally ambiguous characters. Eastwood’s “Man with No Name” in Sergio Leone’s “Dollars Trilogy” set a precedence for Spaghetti Westerns, and movies like Unforgiven set a gold standard for the revisionist Western genre. Though for reasons different from John Wayne’s, Clint Eastwood’s impact on the Western genre is absolutely vital.

8. James Stewart

James Stewart brought his everyman persona to the Wild West.

While known primarily for It’s a Wonderful Life and the works of Alfred Hitchcock, James Stewart also had quite a career in Westerns. Like his other films, Stewart brought a relatable, everyman persona to many of his Western characters. In some of James Stewart’s best Westerns, he even portrayed some antagonist characters, which were rare in his filmography. Despite them not being his forte, James Stewart was one of the iconic actors of his era who could do it all, from Westerns like The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and How the West Was Won to classic thrillers like Rope and Vertigo.

7. Franco Nero

Franco Nero was one of the most iconic Spaghetti Western stars.

After Clint Eastwood and Sergio Leone set the tone for Spaghetti Westerns, Italian actor Franco Nero found stardom in the genre. Known primarily for his role as the titular character in Django, Nero was a recognizable face in the violent Italian Western films of Sergio Corbucci, like Compañeros and The Mercenary. Franco Nero was a star during the 1960s and 1970s who made several significant contributions to the Western genre. In Quentin Tarantino’s loose remake, Django Unchained, Nero even made a cameo appearance.

6. Henry Fonda

Henry Fonda delivered one of the best Western villain performances.

Like James Stewart, Henry Fonda’s iconic Hollywood career came from his everyman persona, best known for films like 12 Angry Men and The Grapes of Wrath. Fonda’s most outstanding contribution to the Western genre is enriched by its deviation from his usual character types. In Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in the West, Henry Fonda is unbelievable as the despicable villain, Frank. Aside from playing one of the great Western villains, Fonda starred in Westerns like How the West Was Won and My Name Is Nobody.

5. Gary Cooper

Gary Cooper played classic Western heroes.

With iconic classics like High Noon and The Westerner, Gary Cooper cemented himself as a Western movie legend. His characters were typically strong, stoic, principled heroes, much like the characters John Wayne portrayed. Cooper was capable of conveying Western heroes through quiet, often understated performances that distinguished him. Though he didn’t have as many classics as many of the great Western stars, Cooper’s characters were often more relatable and authentic.

4. Lee Van Cleef

Lee Van Cleef played iconic Western villains in Sergio Leone’s films.

While many great Western actors defined different aspects of the mythological hero, Lee Van Cleef was known for iconic antagonist characters. He’s best known for his roles in Sergio Leone’s films like For a Few Dollars More and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, playing cunning, morally ambiguous characters. There are several great Westerns where the villain stole the show, including Death Rides a Horse and For a Few Dollars More, where Van Cleef’s versatility allowed him to overshadow the likes of Clint Eastwood.

3. Charles Bronson

Charles Bronson starred in the ensemble Western, The Magnificent Seven.

Charles Bronson established himself as a Hollywood superstar as one of the seven gunfighters in the 1960 classic The Magnificent Seven. Later in the ’60s, Bronson starred in Once Upon a Time in the West opposite Henry Fonda. While he was the film’s protagonist, his work bore more similarity to the antihero characters of Clint Eastwood. He was known for his stoic demeanor and powerful physical presence on screen, playing roles in other films like Death Wish and The Great Escape.

2. Randolph Scott

Randolph Scott played classic Western heroes in the 1940s and 1950s.

During the 1940s and 1950s, Randolph Scott was one of the most prolific Western genre actors. Like many of the other early Western stars, Scott’s characters were known as honorable, principled men in the idealized version of the hero archetype. Movies like Seven Men from Now, Ride the High Country, and Comanche Station represent the best of his work, helping shape the genre in its earliest stages.

1. Robert Mitchum

Aside from starring in other famous films, Robert Mitchum had a great career in Westerns.

A movie star whose career included far more than just Westerns, Robert Mitchum appeared in classic noir films like The Night of the Hunter and the 1962 version of Out of the Past. As for his contributions to Westerns, he starred alongside John Wayne in El Dorado, playing the drunken Sheriff J.P. Harrah. In Blood on the Moon, Mitchum played one of his era’s more complex cowboy characters. With so many Western movies under his belt, Robert Mitchum was the perfect choice to narrate the movie Tombstone late in his career.