In the course of his 50-year career, John Wayne appeared in 169 feature-length films, headlining many of them. He’s widely regarded as one of the most prominent actors in the heyday of the western, and considering how many of his movies appear on “best of” lists, it’s not surprising. While the western might be the genre with which he is most often associated, it is also true that he appeared in numerous others, including comedies and war movies.

The proliferation of streaming services has rendered many of his important movies available for an entirely new generation of audiences.
The Green Berets (1968) – HBO Max

Throughout his career, John Wayne was associated with a certain sort of American male identity, one predicated on rugged masculinity and a belief in the country. Thus, it’s not surprising that he appeared in The Green Berets, a war movie that takes a pro-military stance regarding the Vietnam War.
While it might over-simplify the war and its causes, there’s no question that John Wayne’s character of Mike Kirby exhibits the traits that are most often associated with him and that he possesses a sinister and stern sort of charisma.
Stagecoach (1939) – HBO Max & Prime Video

One of John Ford’s most famous westerns, Stagecoach was John Wayne’s breakout role. Although he was in earlier lower-budget movies, Ford’s decision to cast him in the big budget Stagecoach almost scuttled the film before it was made, since no one wanted to take a chance on it.
Wayne plays Ringo Kid, an outlaw who ends up under guard on a stagecoach braving its way across the plain, surviving attacks and falling in love. Even at this early stage in his career, Wayne showed that he had the sort of charisma that would make him a star.
The Long Voyage Home (1940) – HBO Max

This is one of the rarer Wayne films that isn’t a western or a World War II or later war film, instead being set at the beginning of World War I aboard a tramp steamer. Directed by the ever-present John Ford, it shows a crew of motley seamen as the ship they’re on carries explosives against their wishes across the Atlantic through the war zone to aid in the European war effort.
The film’s brooding, noirish style is a different move for Ford, though Wayne still shows his signature tough-as-nails persona.
The Alamo (1960) – Prime Video

There are few incidents in American history quite as famous as the battle at the Alamo, and it has made many appearances in movies. In this movie, he plays Davy Crockett (earlier played by Fess Parker in a number of movies for Disney, which are now available on Disney+), one of the key defenders of the doomed fort.
As is so often the case with movies from this period of Wayne’s career, it is very much an expression of his own personal politics, particularly as these relate to the themes of individual freedom and the right to fight for what one believes in.
The Sons Of Katie Elder (1965) – Prime Video

Dean Martin is Wayne’s co-star in this movie, playing a gambler to Wayne’s gunman. The two play brothers, who along with their two other brothers meet up at their mother’s funeral to talk about how they were all disappointments to her- not least because they left her alone to live in poverty.
Like the best westerns, it utilizes the conventions of the genre to raise broader questions about family, individual responsibility, and the loyalty one owes to a legacy.
McLintock! (1963) – Prime Video

Though a western, this movie has more comedy than is usual with Wayne. Based on The Taming of the Shrew, Wayne plays the titular McLintock, a rich man who has interests in practically every industry in the west.
Notably, it is more complex in its engagement with the familiar issues of the western genre, making it slightly less jarring to modern sensibilities. It’s also full of laughs and slapstick and, as such, is an ideal watch even for those who aren’t fans of the western. It remains one of Wayne’s best movies.
Hondo (1953) – Hulu & Paramount+

Wayne is a rider for the US Calvary and is the only survivor of his troop after an attack that wiped them all out. As is usual in movies of this type, Wayne is a very violent and brutal sort of western figure, but his rough edges are slowly sanded away by the love of a woman.
Moreover, the movie is surprisingly nuanced in the way that it addresses the plight of Native Americans and the fact that their way of life is being inevitably pushed aside by White settlers.
True Grit (1969) – Hulu & Paramount+

True Grit is the first adaptation of the book with this name (the other being by the Coens, which remains one of their best movies). As was the case with many movies in this stage of Wayne’s career, it has a comedic edge, especially as his character of Rooster Cogburn is at times difficult to take seriously.
While he can be a bit foolish and is something of an antihero, the movie is nevertheless a testament to Wayne’s skill as an actor and his willingness to poke fun at his own heroic movie persona.
The Quiet Man (1952) – Hulu & Paramount+

Even though Wayne is most associated with westerns and war movies, The Quiet Man is an exception to this, falling squarely within the traditions of romantic comedy. In this movie, Wayne portrays a boxer who returns to Ireland and falls in love.
It shines because it features beautiful shots of the Irish countryside. More notably, however, it is also one of the several pairings of Wayne with Maureen O’Hara, and there is no denying the profound chemistry that existed between these two stars of classic Hollywood.
The Shootist (1976) – Hulu & Paramount+

The Shootist is rightly regarded as one of the best westerns of all time, and it also has the distinction of being John Wayne’s last movie. It articulates many of the themes that were constants in Wayne’s career, and though it’s clear that he was ill during the shooting of the movie, he nevertheless still manages to exude the power and charisma that he always had.
When, in the end, he is killed, it seems like the fitting conclusion to a giant star’s fabled career.
Honorable Mentions:
On Amazon Prime: The Horse Soldiers and Blue Steel; Paramount+ has many of his earlier western roles.