The villain in Bone Tomahawk (2015) standing in a dimly-lit cave and looking menacingImage via RLJ Entertainment
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Michael John Petty
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Michael John Petty is a Senior Author for Collider who spends his days writing, in fellowship with his local church, and enjoying each new day with his wife and daughters. At Collider, he writes features and reviews, and has interviewed the cast and crew of Dark Winds. In addition to writing about stories, Michael has told a few of his own. His first work of self-published fiction – The Beast of Bear-tooth Mountain – became a #1 Best Seller in "Religious Fiction Short Stories" on Amazon in 2023. His Western short story, The Devil's Left Hand, received the Spur Award for "Best Western Short Fiction" from the Western Writers of America in 2025. Michael currently resides in North Idaho with his growing family.
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When it comes to the Western genre, most often we look to the past to find the very best of the genre. Stars like John Wayne and Clint Eastwood come to mind as the most memorable, with films from the '50s, '60s, and '70s perhaps holding the most iconic horse operas that filmmaking has to offer. But when it comes to modern takes on the genre, several Westerns are worthy of praise, and several more that could easily become classics in their own right.
With that in mind, we've put together a list of the greatest Westerns from the past 25 years. While there are a few more pictures that, admittedly, could have made it on the list, these are some of the most critically acclaimed and beloved takes on the Old West (and the modern West) seen in the 21st century. So put on those spurs and ready your six-shooter, because these are the Westerns that you've just got to see from the last two-and-a-half decades.
10 'Appaloosa' (2008)
Image via Warner Bros. Pictures
When Ed Harris aims to make a traditional-style Western of his own, you get Appaloosa. Based on Robert B. Parker's novel of the same name, the film takes place in the titular town of Appaloosa, New Mexico, as Harris' lawman Virgil Cole and his deputy Everett Hitch (Viggo Mortensen) take on a corrupt rancher (Jeremy Irons) who has the whole town under his thumb.
This one is a mix between your classical Western fare and a buddy picture that thrives due to its impeccable performances and clear direction under Harris. As one film you need to check out after catching the Western classics, Appaloosa is perhaps one of the most underrated horse operas of modern day. Harris and Mortensen are incredible here, and the film is chock-full of action and adventure. In some ways, it felt like the end of an era.
9 'The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford' (2007)
Casey Affleck and Brad Pitt sitting together in The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert FordImage via Warner Bros.
A revisionist epic, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is often considered one of the best films that modern depictions of the Western have to offer. Featuring Brad Pitt as Jesse James and Casey Affleck as Robert Ford, this picture was based on the Ron Hansen novel of the same name that heavily dramatizes the complex and fascinating relationship between its leads. With breathtaking cinematography and performances that shock and awe, this one is a modern Western that deserves its extended runtime.
Full of gritty realism and a full-scope picture of the Wild West that makes other films look tame by comparison, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is the magnum opus of director Andrew Dominik. A slow-burn drama with precision that cannot be denied, this quiet and clinical Western features Pitt and Affleck at the top of their game here. Even if we know how it ultimately ends, it's the journey that's with the effort.
8 'Killers of the Flower Moon' (2023)
Some have debated whether Killers of the Flower Moon is a Western per se or if it's simply an American drama set in the West. Indeed, some have gone so far as to label it an anti-Western. Yet, this Martin Scorsese film is a distinct picture of how the West was ultimately conquered, serving almost as a 20th-century epilogue to traditional Old West tales. Leonardo DiCaprio, Lily Gladstone, and Robert De Niro simply kill it in this adaptation of David Grann's non-fiction book, which chronicles the real-life struggles between the Osage Nation and the greedy oil barons who would steal the black gold out from under them.
While DiCaprio's other 21st-century Western, The Revenant, deserves an honorable mention on this list, Killers of the Flower Moon has been universally praised for its performances and care for the subject matter. While not your traditional Western content, the film deals with the same themes as many horse operas of yesteryear, bringing the conflict into the 1920s with style. Besides, if Paramount's 1923 can be considered a Western, then Killers of the Flower Moon can certainly be as well.
7 'Django Unchained' (2012)
Schultz and Django outside, looking into the distance in Django Unchained (2012)Image via Columbia Pictures
After decades of being influenced by Spaghetti Westerns in particular, Quentin Tarantino aimed to finally make his own with Django Unchained. Taking direct inspiration (and the opening song) from the 1966 picture Django, Tarantino created his take on the genre's heroic protagonist in Jamie Foxx's Django Freeman, who aims to rescue his wife, Broomhilda (Kerry Washington), from slavery. The quest quickly becomes a whole bloody affair that pushes the limits of the genre.
Django Unchained was another modern, subversive take on the genre that was almost instantly praised by critics and audiences alike. While the film was still controversial due to its extensive use of violence and racial slurs, it's arguably Tarantino's best and certainly one of the most memorable Westerns of the past 25 years. For those who love The Hateful Eight, we'll give that one a shout-out here as well.
6 'Bone Tomahawk' (2015)
Kurt Russell as Sheriff Franklin and Richard Jenkins as Chicory in Bone TomahawkImage via RLJ Entertainment
Speaking of Westerns that push the genre to the limit, Bone Tomahawk is exactly that. A horror flick directed by newcomer S. Craig Zahler, the film follows small-town Sheriff Franklin Hunt (Kurt Russell) as he and a few good men come together to put an end to a group of inbred, cave-dwelling cannibals who attack their home — and save Samantha O'Dwyer (Lili Simmons) from a fate worse than death.
With a stacked cast that also includes Patrick Wilson, Matthew Fox, Richard Jenkins, and David Arquette, Bone Tomahawk is one of the most violent Westerns you'll ever experience. It's a straight-up horror-tinged adventure that cannot be rivaled in terms of suspense and thrills. Western icon Kurt Russell holds this picture together with a strong cast and a solid premise that is far better than it has any right to be. There's a reason it keeps appearing on "greatest of" lists since it hit theaters.
5 'True Grit' (2010)
Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges) kneels beside a wounded Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld), aiming his gun up into the snowy night in True GritImage via Paramount Pictures
The second major adaptation of Charles Portis' famed novel, the Coen Brothers' take on True Grit, not only better captures the spirit of the book, but is arguably a more well-rounded picture than the John Wayne film. With Jeff Bridges as the one-eyed lawman Rooster Cogburn and Hailee Steinfeld as Mattie Ross in her big-screen debut, this picture is without a doubt among the genre's very best. Full of clever dialogue, great action, and characters that really come into their own, it's hard not to love True Grit.
While the Coens have made more than one traditional Western over the years, True Grit is their best work in the old-school, Old West take on the genre. It's not often that remakes are actually better than the original, but this is one stand-out case. Matt Damon and Josh Brolin are also featured here, and among the film's main leads, there isn't a subpar performance in the bunch.
4 'Hell or High Water' (2016)
Ben Foster's Tanner standing with Chris Pine's Toby look at something off-screen in Hell or High Water.Image via Lionsgate
Although David Mackenzie's Hell or High Water is set in modern-day, it's a clear and profound take on West Texas that screenwriter Taylor Sheridan pushes it into classical Western outlaw territory. As brothers Tanner (Ben Foster) and Toby Howard (Chris Pine) rob a series of banks in the Lone Star State, they're pursued by a pair of Texas Rangers (Jeff Bridges and Gil Birmingham) who will stop at nothing to see the outlaws pay for their crimes. Despite its 21st-century setting, it feels more like a Western than most.
Not only is the film an excellent depiction of West Texas that manages to capture the aesthetic and the people of the modern West, but Hell or High Water is a thrilling modernization of the traditional horse opera that thrills lovers of both. Pine and Foster are perfectly cast as the Howard brothers, and Bridges and Birmingham are particularly delightful as the lawmen on their tail. It's movies like this one that make us wish Sheridan spent more time working on writing pulse-pounding features like this rather than more Yellowstone riffs.
3 'Hostiles' (2017)
Wes Studi as Chief Yellow Hawk and Christian Bale as Captain Joseph Blocker in a conversation in Hostiles.Image via Entertainment Studios Motion Pictures
For a more sobering take on the Old West conflict between white American and Native American peoples, Hostiles is a nuanced and incredibly well-made picture that speaks to the violent tendencies of both parties and the reconciliation that can be found between them. Directed by Scott Cooper, Hostiles thrives due to its leading men, Christian Bale and Wes Studi, who are truly exceptional on the screen. Truly an underrated Western, the 2017 film is everything you could ask for in a modern classic.
Bale plays Union Captain Joseph J. Blocker, a man who has spent many years fighting in the Indian Wars against Studi's Chief Yellow Hawk and his Cheyenne people. But when Blocker is directed to escort Yellow Hawk and his family to their new reservation home in Montana, the pair's hatred for one another bubbles to the surface, only to blow away when other conflicts arise. The harrowing opening sequence lives up to the film's name, and the shocking ending is one that will stick with you long after the credits roll.
2 '3:10 to Yuma' (2007)
Outlaw gunslinger Ben Wade (Russell Crowe) aims his revolver in a field in '3:10 to Yuma.'Image via Lionsgate
Another remake that surpasses the original, 3:10 to Yuma is often hailed as a triumph in the Western genre, and for good reason. Directed by James Mangold, the film is a masterclass in both action and tension as its opposing leading men, Christian Bale's rancher Dan Evans and Russell Crowe's outlaw Ben Wade, are forced to understand one another. With stellar editing, a masterful score, and memorable characters, this is one Western you've got to see to really believe.
From that initial stage robbery to the climactic final sequence where Dan and Wade find themselves under a hail of gunfire, 3:10 to Yuma is everything you could hope for in a modern take on the classical genre. The themes of good and evil, right and wrong, and duty and loyalty create just the right conditions for a redemptive work that embodies what the Western stands for. It really is that good.
1 'No Country for Old Men' (2007)
Sheriff Bell (Tommy Lee Jones) standing in a desert near an officer in 'No Country for Old Men'.Image via Miramax Films
Some may argue that this Coen Brothers adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's stellar novel is a bit of a cheat since, like Hell or High Water, it is not set in the Old West. And yet, No Country for Old Men feels so distinctly Western (though many label it a neo-Western) that you could easily replace the cars with horses and set the clock back a century, and it would hardly change a thing. No Country for Old Men is a breakout Academy Award-winning hit that helped usher the genre into the 21st century, reminding audiences that the West is still as wild as ever.
Following a trio of powerful characters in Sheriff Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones), Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin), and menacing hitman Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem), the Coen Brothers craft a powerful narrative that deals with issues of poverty, aging tradition, self-determination, and the future of the American West. Although not your typical horse opera by any means, No Country for Old Men is still a masterful exploration of the West that pulls no punches and highlights the strengths of the genre.
No Country for Old Men
R
Thriller
Drama
Crime
Release Date
November 21, 2007
Cast
Kelly Macdonald, Woody Harrelson, Josh Brolin, Javier Bardem, Tommy Lee Jones
Runtime
122 minutes
Director
Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
Writers
Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Genres
Thriller, Drama, Crime
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