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John Wayne

The Duke’s Finest: Best John Wayne Movies of All Time

It’s been nearly half a century since he died in 1979, and yet no actor has wholly embodied the role of cinematic cowboy quite like John Wayne. Getting his start in B-movies in the 1930s, Wayne eventually became one of Hollywood’s most bankable stars by the start of the ’40s.
For the next four decades, Wayne appeared in everything from war films to romantic comedies. Still, his single greatest contribution to pop culture was his starring roles in the dozens of Westerns he was featured in throughout his career.
From his breakthrough success with Stagecoach to some of his most famous collaborations with John Ford and Howard Hawks, here are some of John Wayne’s best films, ranked from best to worst.
The Searchers

The Searchers
Photo Credit: Warner Bros

When a party of Comanche kidnaps his young niece (Natalie Wood), a cynical Civil War veteran (Wayne) and his adopted nephew (Jeffrey Hunter) set out on a lengthy journey to rescue the girl.
The most iconic of Wayne’s many films, The Searchers is also considered by many film historians to be the finest American Western ever made. Likened to the tale of Odysseus by French New Wave director Jean-Luc Godard, it is as epic in scope as it is nuanced in its characters, action, and central narrative. It has continued influencing entire generations of aspiring filmmakers, with Wayne giving the greatest performance of his life as the embittered, hate-filled Ethan Edwards.
Rio Bravo

Rio Bravo
Photo Credit: Warner Bros

After arresting an influential land baron’s brother (Claude Akins) for murder, a small-town sheriff (Wayne), his past-their-prime deputies (Dean Martin and Walter Brennan), and a young pro gunfighter (Ricky Nelson) hole up in jail until U.S. Marshals arrive to relieve them.
Rio Bravo is unique among the top 10 entries on this list in that, unlike The Searchers or Red River, Wayne himself isn’t the definitive best thing about this movie. Instead, he’s one key player in an endlessly talented cast. All compliment each other unbelievably well in their performances — from Dean Martin’s recovering alcoholic to Nelson’s withdrawn, guitar-strumming gunslinger.
Stagecoach

Stagecoach
Photo Credit: United Artists

On a stagecoach barreling across the American frontier, a group of passengers defends themselves against raiding Native American parties led by the famous Apache leader, Geronimo.
Wayne worked as an actor in Hollywood for over a decade before Stagecoach’s release in 1939. But when Wayne enters halfway through the film, the camera pushing tight into a close-up as Wayne performs his signature finger-loop load action, it is like audiences were seeing him for the first time. The most important film in Wayne’s career, contemporary viewers fell in love with Wayne’s lethargic Ringo Kid, helping Wayne gain renewed exposure by the start of the 1940s.
Red River
Red River
Finally setting out on a cattle drive that he’s spent the last decade eagerly preparing for, a Texan rancher’s (Wayne) combative nature triggers animosity between himself and his hired hands, with even the rancher’s son (Montgomery Clift) turning against him.
Like most actors of his day, Wayne suffered from some mild typecasting not long after his ascension to stardom in the early 1940s. Helping break out of the preconceived heroic archetypes he’d established with Stagecoach was Red River, the first of several films Wayne would make with director Howard Hawks. Straddling a finer line between hero and villain, Wayne veers more heavily into the role of antagonist with this film, creating a complex but achingly realistic man driven by his Ahab-like obsession to succeed.
True Grit

True Grit
Photo Credit: Paramount Pictures

Wanting to find the man who killed her father, a strong-willed teenage girl (Kim Darby) hires a grizzled US Marshal (Wayne) and a suave Texas Ranger (Glen Campbell) to track down the murderer (Jeff Corey) in the remote Oklahoma wilderness.
In the film that won Wayne the Academy Award for Best Actor, Rooster Cogburn is the Duke at his most cantankerous. Swirling whiskey from the seat of his saddle and dual-wielding a repeater and six-shooter while riding full-speed into a gunfight, it was an Oscar that was very much overdue at this point in Wayne’s career.
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
Photo Credit: Paramount Pictures

Looking back at his life, an elderly U.S. senator (James Stewart) reveals the truth behind an incident involving a notorious outlaw (Lee Marvin) and a poor but strong-willed rancher (Wayne).
Jimmy Stewart is the main character of The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, but audiences’ eyes can’t help but immediately drift to Wayne every time he wanders on-screen. Never letting his failing ranch negatively affect his pride, Wayne’s surly frontiersman is the walking personification of the Western hero: noble and loyal to his friends, yet prickly and standoffish with his rivals.
The Quiet Man

The Quiet Man
Photo Credit: Republic Pictures

Retiring from his boxing career in America, the withdrawn Sean Thornton (Wayne) returns to his Irish hometown, catching the attention of a poor woman (Maureen O’Hara) whose hot-headed brother (Victor McLagen) desperately tries to keep them apart.
The Quiet Man can make for a slow burn for anyone used to the usual fast-paced Westerns of Wayne and Ford. In this sense, it’s a major stylistic experiment on both men’s part and works incredibly well. Free to create a more withdrawn personality than his usual, fiery-tempered heroes, The Quiet Man may mark Wayne’s most subtly affecting performance.
The Shootist

The Shootist
Photo Credit: Paramount Pictures

Suffering from terminal cancer, an aging gunfighter (Wayne) searches for a faster, more honorable way to die while trying to dissuade an eager protege (Ron Howard) from following in his footsteps.
The final film of Wayne’s career, The Shootist is as fitting a goodbye to the Western as Clint Eastwood’s own genre farewell with Unforgiven. Embodying the same breed of characters as most other entries on this list, Wayne departs from the limelight with a wink and a tip of his hat. His character in this movie may be named J.B. Books, but at this point in time, John Wayne was essentially playing himself.
The Longest Day

The Longest Day
Photo Credit: 20th Century Fox

In 1944, the Allied Forces launched the largest amphibious invasion in military history. Landing on the beaches of Normandy, The Longest Day follows the various American, British, French, and German soldiers as they experience D-Day in its entirety.
The Longest Day belongs to the same category of war films as 1977’s A Bridge Too Far. Made up of numerous interweaving narratives and incorporating a massive ensemble cast, the movie features Wayne up against the likes of Henry Fonda, Robert Mitchum, Sean Connery, Richard Burton, Rod Steiger, and many, many more.

John Wayne

Why John Wayne Turned Down the Chance to Work With Clint Eastwood

Clint Eastwood and John Wayne are the two biggest legends in the history of Western movies, however, they never worked together. The duo did have the opportunity to work together once in the 1970s. Here’s why the film never came to fruition.

How John Wayne responded when Clint Eastwood tried to work with him

Firstly, a little background. According to the book John Wayne: The Life and Legend, it all starts with Larry Cohen. Though Cohen is not a widely known director like Steven Spielberg or Quentin Tarantino, he’s a huge name to fans of B movies. He directed famous B movies like The Stuff, Q: The Winged Serpent, It’s Alive, and God Told Me To. He also wrote a script called The Hostiles shortly after Eastwood released his classic High Plains Drifter.

The Hostiles was about a gambler who wins half of an estate of an older man. The gambler and the older man have to work together despite the fact that they don’t like each other. Eastwood optioned the screenplay with the intent of playing the gambler alongside Wayne as the older man.

Eastwood sent a copy of the script of The Hostiles to Wayne. Although Eastwood felt the script was imperfect, he saw its potential. However, Wayne was not interested. Eastwood pitched the film to Wayne a second time and Wayne responded with a letter. Wayne’s letter complained about High Plains Drifter. Wayne was offended by the film and its portrayal of the Old West as a cruel, violent place.

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John Wayne

Ann-Margret Refused to Call John Wayne ‘Duke’ While Introducing 1 of His Movies

Ann-Margret once starred in one of John Wayne’s lesser-known movies. However, she refused to call him by his popular moniker Duke. Here’s a look at the film they made together — and why she declined to call him by a nickname.

The one time Ann-Margret and John Wayne made a movie together

Ann-Margret is probably most known for her work in musicals, specifically Bye Bye Birdie, Viva Las Vegas, and The Who’s Tommy. However, she also dabbled in the Western genre. She starred alongside Wayne in the mostly forgotten movie The Train Robbers.

Wayne was also known as The Duke or just Duke. According to USA Today, the nickname was derived from his childhood dog. It stuck with him for many years. It continues to be used today — even on the box covers of the DVDs for his movies.

John Wayne | Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images

During an interview with Interview Magazine, Ann-Margret explained why she didn’t refer to the Rio Bravo star by this famous name. “When I came to this country, first of all, mother and I didn’t know English,” she said. “I would curtsey, then say, ‘Thank you,’ and then when I was leaving, curtsey. For example, we went to Dallas to introduce a film I did with John Wayne. And I never called him Duke. I just couldn’t. That’s the way I was raised. When you meet someone, you say either Mr. or Mrs. or Miss. You stand up.”

Ann-Margret revealed she treated other famous people in much the same way. For example, she worked with director George Sidney on Bye Bye Birdie and Viva Las Vegas. She always called him Mr. Sidney.

What Ann-Margret thought about John Wayne

Ann-Margret refused to use Wayne’s most famous moniker. However, she had a positive view of the actor. During an interview with Fox News, she was asked what she expected when she met Wayne. “Oh, I didn’t know what to expect,” she revealed. “But when he hugged me, it’s like the world was hugging me. He was so big and wide with that booming voice. 

“We were shooting in Durango, Mexico and my parents came down to visit me,” she added. “He was so great with my parents. So absolutely welcoming and gentle with them. And anybody who was great to my parents was on a throne in my eyes.”

How the world reacted to ‘The Train Robbers’

Wayne starred in many classic Westerns, including The Searchers, Stagecoach, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. However, The Train Robbers is mostly forgotten. It didn’t gain a cult following like Once Upon a Time in the West or Dead Man. It wasn’t a critical success either, garnering a 33% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. However, Ann-Margret had some fond memories of making the film — even if she refused to call Wayne by his famous nickname.

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John Wayne

True Crime on Amazon Prime: ‘Lorena’ Reexamines a 90s Tabloid Sensation

True crime might not be the first type of show that comes to mind when you think of the offerings on Amazon Prime Video. The perpetually buzzy genre is usually more associated with the likes of Netflix and HBO.

However, the streaming service boasts at least one standout docuseries from 2019. It’s one that can scratch the true crime itch for fans, but also give them a much needed new perspective on a well-worn tabloid sensation from the 1990s.

‘Lorena’ was produced by Jordan Peele of ‘Get Out’ fame

Jordan Peele, Head of Amazon Studios Jennifer Salke, and Lorena Gallo attend the 'Lorena' Premiere during the 2019 Sundance Film Festival.Jordan Peele, Head of Amazon Studios Jennifer Salke, and Lorena Gallo attend the ‘Lorena’ Premiere during the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. | Rich Fury/Getty Images

Lorena, as the simple, to-the-point title suggests, chronicles the sordid story of Lorena and Jon Bobbit. The series was produced by Jordan Peele, the comedian-turned-director best known for Get Out and Us, and released on Amazon Prime Video in early 2019 following a premiere at the Sundance Film Festival.

In 1993, Lorena Bobbitt infamously cut her husband, John Wayne Bobbitt’s penis off in his sleep with a kitchen carving knife. She drove off with it, tossed it out the car window into a field, and eventually called 911 to report the incident. After a search followed by 9.5 hours of surgery, John Bobbitt was able to get his penis reattached and functioning normally.

Thanks in large part to the salacious and sexual nature of the Bobbittss story, it quickly became a tabloid and late-night talk show sensation. Sadly, as one might expect from a male-dominated culture, the media spectacle largely focused on John Bobbitt as a sympathetic victim and cast Lorena as a hysterical victim. John Bobbitt went on to become something of a cult figure for a time, even starring in two pornographic films.

Part of the mission statement of Lorena, the series, was to use the true crime format to recontextualize the Lorena Bobbitt story. Despite the prevailing perception of the incident beforehand, in reality, John Bobbitt had subjected Lorena to years of domestic abuse and rape, up to and including the night of her attack.

John Bobbitt was eventually acquitted on rape charges. Lorena Bobbitt was found not guilty by a jury for reasons of insanity.

“25 years later, Lorena is a groundbreaking re-investigation of the deep moral issues and painful human tragedies buried at the heart of this infamous American scandal,” Amazon’s official description of the series reads, as reported by Deadline. “Lost in the tabloid coverage and jokes was the opportunity for a national discussion on domestic and sexual assault in America.”

Lorena saw a positive reaction upon its release, currently boasting an 82% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It was the biggest project yet from director Joshua Rofé, who previously helmed Lost for Life, a documentary about juvenile offenders sentenced to life in prison.

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