Summary
- John Wayne's final Western movie, The Shootist, is considered one of his best due to its honest portrayal of a dying cowboy.
- The Shootist also marks Wayne's last collaboration with James Stewart, who played Dr. E.W. "Doc" Hostetler, adding to its significance.
- Aside from The Shootist, Wayne, and Stewart worked together in How the West Was Won and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.
John Wayne is considered one of the greatest Wayne was best known for Westerns and war movies, like True Grit and The Sands of Iwo Jima, he acted in a variety of different projects that ranged in genre. Although the concept of a movie star has changed over the years, Wayne remains an unforgettable name in Hollywood.
Considering how long his career was, it is incredibly difficult to rank John Wayne's best movies. Wayne appeared in his first-ever movie in 1926 and acted consistently until 1977. One way to make the comparisons easier is by ranking his projects by genre. Wayne certainly has a handful of films that are considered his best war movies or his best Westerns. In fact, one of his best Westerns is a particularly monumental film. Not only did it reunite Wayne with a former colleague, but it was his last Western ever.
10 Best John Wayne Movies That Aren't Westerns Or War Films
John Wayne is widely known for his iconic roles in classic Westerns and war movies, but his acting talents actually extend to all genres in Hollywood.
The Shootist Was John Wayne's Final Ever Western - What It's About
J.B. Books Decides To Go Out In Style
In many ways, it is appropriate that one of John Wayne's greatest performances was in The Shootist. It follows a cowboy at the end of his life. More specifically, the 1976 Western tells the story of J.B. Books, an aging cowboy who has a reputation for violence, having committed over thirty killings. However, when Books is diagnosed with cancer, he travels to Nevada to wait out his end. Unfortunately, due to his renown, he is followed by criminals with suspicious intents. Therefore, Books decides to take matters into his own hands and end his life on a high note.
The Shootist is based on Glendon Swarthout's 1975 novel of the same name.
Aside from being Wayne's last-ever Western, The Shootist is notable because James Stewart also starred in it. Though Wayne and Stewart only collaborated a handful of times throughout their careers, when they did work together, it was a significant occasion. Like Wayne, Stewart was a very important name in Hollywood. He became a symbol of the ideal American lead at the time and starred in 80 films during his decades-long career. Therefore, putting him alongside Wayne made The Shootist incredibly notable. In the movie, Stewart played the helpful physician, Dr. E.W. "Doc" Hostetler.
Why John Wayne's Performance In The Shootist Is One Of His Best
The Shootist Reflects On John Wayne & His Career
Though John Wayne gave many amazing performances, The Shootist is one of his best. This is because The Shootist parallels John Wayne's life and career. While making the film, Wayne was an actor at the end of his career with a powerful reputation behind him, which mirrored the character's journey. Books wanted his life to end with a great, bloody adventure, while Wayne got to conclude his career on a high note. Wayne often embodied his on-screen characters, but The Shootist takes it to the next level.
While Wayne gave rousing performances in movies like True Grit, there is a sense that these characters are not quite realistic.
There are countless John Wayne movies that critics and audiences consider to be his best, but The Shootist has something they do not: honesty. While Wayne gave rousing performances in movies like True Grit, there is a sense that these characters are not quite realistic. It is too dramatic, and too movie-like. However, The Shootist does not suffer from that problem. In that movie, Wayne's J.B. Books is more nuanced and more dynamic. J.B. Books was a dying man who had nothing to lose, which allowed the actor to give a more vulnerable performance.
John Wayne's final performance was actually as the voice of a background character, Garindan ezz Zavor, in the original Star Wars.
Which Other Westerns John Wayne Made With James Stewart & How They Compare
Wayne & Stewart Made Amazing Movies
Aside from The Shootist, John Wayne and James Stewart made two other movies together. Their first collaboration came in the first half of 1962 in an ensemble film called How the West Was Won. This three-hour Western brought together John Wayne and James Stewart, along with some of Hollywood's biggest stars, into one epic film following generations of a single Western family. Though Wayne and Stewart both appeared in this movie, their characters never interacted.
Movie |
Box Office |
Rotten Tomatoes Score (%) |
|---|---|---|
How the West Was Won |
$50 million |
87 |
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance |
$8 million |
95 |
The Shootist |
$13 million |
81 |
That same year, the actors worked on a second movie together called The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. Arguably, this movie sees the most of Wayne and Stewart together. The film follows the complicated and dangerous friendship between a Senator and a local man who stands up to an evil outlaw named Liberty Valance. Both How the West Was Won and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance saw great success, and like The Shootist, have gone down as some of John Wayne's best performances.
