Top 10 Worst Western movies of all time
Western films have long been beloved for their unique style, gunfights, heroes and anti-heroes.
This genre is uniquely American playing on themes of fearless exploration, the legends of American expansion, hostile environments, and unique individuals. The western characters have also blended with other genres: "Star Wars" is often considered a space western.
But for every classic Western, there's a failure—for every film that lasts, many soon go stale or lose relevance. Whether they have a star-studded cast or are well funded. Some that were classics in the '50s and '60s now seem silly; others were flops right away.
Here are ten westerns that are in the worst category…
#10. September Dawn (2007)
Based loosely on the actual events of the Mountain Meadows massacre, this film focuses on the fictional romantic relationship between the son of a Mormon religious leader in Utah, and the daughter of a pastor in the Baker-Fancher wagon party traveling through Utah to California.
#9. The Pale Door (2020)
This horror/Western mashup kicks off with a botched train robbery attempt by two brothers and their gang when they discover that their promised bounty is not a chest of gold, but a girl hidden inside. She convinces the group to take her back to her home, but instead of the reward they were promised, the gang finds themselves trapped in a town full of witches determined to kill them.
#8. Texas Rangers (2001)
After the Civil War, a group of young men—made up of a cast including Ashton Kutcher, Dylan McDermott, R&B singer Usher, and James Van Der Beek—form the Texas Rangers and are charged with keeping the peace on the Mexican border.
#7. Diablo (2015)
This story of a Civil War veteran who is on a mission for revenge after his wife is kidnapped and their home is burned down is not entirely what it seems.
The film's "hero," played by Scott Eastwood, is actually a brutal murderer who kidnapped the woman he believes is his wife and only sets out after her as the result of a split-personality crisis after the woman is rescued by her real husband and brothers.
#6. Jonah Hex (2010)
Jonah Hex, part Western, part superhero movie. Based on the DC Comics series centered on a bounty hunter who formerly served in the Confederate army before he was betrayed by his commanding officer, the film seemed to barely qualify for theatrical release, clocking in at 1 hour 21 minutes.
#5. Scorched Earth (2018)
Former MMA fighter Gina Carano plays a bounty hunter named Attica Gage who goes after an outlaw with a large price on his head. Despite Carano's then-rising star—just a year after this film, she went on to star in Disney's Star Wars series, The Mandalorian.
#4. The Villain (1979)
An outlaw by the name of Cactus Jack, played by Kirk Douglas, is hired to rob a woman who's just collected a large sum of money from her father. Unfortunately for Cactus Jack, the woman is escorted by Handsome Stranger—played by none other than Arnold Schwarzenegger—and the two foil his plans every step of the way.
#3. Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1993)
When director Gus Van Sant brought this Tom Robbins novel to the screen. The story of Sissy Hankshaw (Uma Thurman) and her unusually large thumbs made little sense to anyone and lacked the flourish of Robbins' expansive descriptions and storytelling.
Critics found the film cold and caricaturish for no discernable reason other than to present itself as offbeat.
#2. Disturbing the Peace (2020)
Here, Guy Pearce plays a former Texas Ranger who must do battle with the leader of a biker gang called—wait for it— Diablo.
Pearce is no stranger to Westerns, having starred earlier in "Lawless," set in Depression-era Virginia, and "The Proposition," which set him as an outlaw in the outback of Australia, critics were quick to point to his performance as this film's lone saving grace. Beyond that, the consensus was a poorly scripted, poorly edited, repetitive series of standoffs with little redeeming cinematic quality.
#1. The Ridiculous 6 (2015)
The Ridiculous 6, tells the story of six men who learn that they all share the same father. Sandler plays a man who is visited by his long-lost outlaw father and after he is kidnapped, sets out to come up with the money for his ransom, recruiting his newly found half-brothers to help him.
