Western movies on Netflix bring together the grit, the glory, and the moral dilemmas of life on the frontier. From classic shootouts and desolate deserts to modern reimaginings of the cowboy myth, the Western remains one of cinema’s most enduring genres. It continues to captivate because it speaks to timeless struggles—justice, revenge, survival, and freedom. On Netflix, you’ll find a variety of Westerns: stylish new originals, Oscar-winning masterpieces, revisionist takes, and old-school tributes. Whether you’re new to the genre or a longtime fan, this list of the 25 best western movies on Netflix will give you plenty to saddle up for.
1. The Harder They Fall (2021)
- Runtime: 139 min
- Starring: Jonathan Majors, Idris Elba, Regina King
- Director: Jeymes Samuel
- Genre: Western, Action
- IMDb Rating: 6.6/10
This bold reimagining of the Western genre follows outlaw Nat Love as he reunites his gang to seek revenge against Rufus Buck, a ruthless enemy recently released from prison. The film is praised for its unique style, modern soundtrack, and visually stunning action sequences that inject new life into the traditional Western. With a stellar cast led by Jonathan Majors and Idris Elba, it combines sharp dialogue, stylish cinematography, and relentless energy. Unlike conventional Westerns, it embraces diversity while still paying homage to the roots of the genre, making it one of the most refreshing Western movies on Netflix. It’s loud, kinetic, and full of swagger, but beneath the bravado is a story about loyalty, identity, and the cost of vengeance.
2. Django Unchained (2012)
- Runtime: 165 min
- Starring: Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio
- Director: Quentin Tarantino
- Genre: Western, Drama
- IMDb Rating: 8.4/10
Tarantino’s bloody and stylish tribute to spaghetti Westerns and blaxploitation cinema tells the story of Django, a freed slave who partners with a bounty hunter to rescue his wife from a brutal plantation owner. The movie is filled with Tarantino’s trademark dialogue, dark humor, and graphic violence, balanced with moments of heartfelt emotion. Jamie Foxx delivers a commanding performance, while Christoph Waltz and Leonardo DiCaprio shine in vivid supporting turns. Its mix of historical commentary and pulp entertainment keeps it riveting. The soundtrack slaps, the set-pieces escalate with operatic intensity, and the finale hits like a cannon blast.
3. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018)
- Runtime: 132 min
- Starring: Tim Blake Nelson, James Franco, Liam Neeson
- Director: Joel & Ethan Coen
- Genre: Western, Anthology
- IMDb Rating: 7.3/10
The Coen brothers deliver a six-part anthology that captures the humor, brutality, and unpredictability of frontier life. Each vignette explores a different facet of the Old West, from a singing gunslinger and a bank robber with nine lives to bleak tales of itinerant performers and wagon trains. With breathtaking cinematography and the Coens’ signature blend of wit and darkness, the film meditates on fate, chance, and mortality. Some stories make you laugh; others leave you hushed. Together they form a mosaic of Western mythology that’s as playful as it is profound.
4. Hostiles (2017)
- Runtime: 134 min
- Starring: Christian Bale, Rosamund Pike, Wes Studi
- Director: Scott Cooper
- Genre: Western, Drama
- IMDb Rating: 7.2/10
Set in 1892, this intense and somber Western follows an Army captain tasked with escorting a dying Cheyenne chief and his family through hostile territory. The journey forces enemies to confront prejudice, grief, and the possibility of grace. Christian Bale gives one of his most internal performances, while Rosamund Pike’s arc from devastation to fragile resilience is quietly shattering. The New Mexico and Colorado vistas are painterly, but the violence is blunt and scarring. “Hostiles” isn’t about easy catharsis; it’s about the hard work of empathy on ground soaked with history.
5. The Hateful Eight (2015)
- Runtime: 187 min
- Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh
- Director: Quentin Tarantino
- Genre: Western, Mystery
- IMDb Rating: 7.8/10
Tarantino’s snowbound chamber piece strands eight suspicious travelers in a Wyoming haberdashery during a blizzard. Barbed monologues, poisoned coffee, and sudden eruptions of violence turn the cabin into a moral pressure cooker. The 70mm compositions turn cramped interiors into epic battlefields, while Ennio Morricone’s Oscar-winning score slithers with dread. It’s a Western filtered through Agatha Christie and Grand Guignol—nasty, funny, and operatic, with a final image that sticks like frostbite.
6. 3:10 to Yuma (2007)
- Runtime: 122 min
- Starring: Russell Crowe, Christian Bale, Logan Lerman
- Director: James Mangold
- Genre: Western, Action
- IMDb Rating: 7.7/10
James Mangold’s taut remake pits an impoverished rancher against a charismatic outlaw in a race to catch the prison-bound train. Beyond the dust and gun smoke, it’s a moral duel: principles versus pragmatism, fatherhood versus legend. Bale’s decency bruises but doesn’t break; Crowe’s outlaw is both serpent and savior. The staging is muscular, the final sprint ferocious, and the last exchange bittersweet and unforgettable.
7. The Power of the Dog (2021)
- Runtime: 126 min
- Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons
- Director: Jane Campion
- Genre: Western, Drama
- IMDb Rating: 6.9/10
Jane Campion reframes the Western as a psychological x-ray. Phil Burbank, a brilliant but brutal rancher, torments his brother’s new family—until the balance of power shifts in subtle, devastating ways. Knotted with erotic tension and coiled cruelty, the film uses the vast Montana plains as a canvas for secrets. Ari Wegner’s cinematography and Jonny Greenwood’s score conjure a slow, needling dread. It’s a Western of glances, gloves, and ghosts.
Exploring the Best Western Movies on Netflix
If you’re searching for the best western movies on Netflix, this section highlights films that redefine the genre with fresh perspectives. From psychological dramas to action-filled tales, these movies show how the Western continues to evolve while staying true to its roots.
8. The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976)
- Runtime: 135 min
- Starring: Clint Eastwood, Chief Dan George, Sondra Locke
- Director: Clint Eastwood
- Genre: Western, Adventure
- IMDb Rating: 7.8/10
After guerillas murder his family, Missouri farmer Josey Wales turns outlaw and accidentally becomes the reluctant shepherd of a makeshift community. Eastwood’s direction balances myth with tenderness, folding in a wry humor and an unusual emphasis on found family. Chief Dan George steals scenes with quiet wisdom, and the film’s dusty plains feel as lived-in as a well-worn saddle. Revenge starts the tale; belonging finishes it.
9. Unforgiven (1992)
- Runtime: 130 min
- Starring: Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Morgan Freeman
- Director: Clint Eastwood
- Genre: Western, Drama
- IMDb Rating: 8.2/10
Eastwood’s revisionist epic dismantles the gunslinger myth with pitiless clarity. William Munny is a widower, a father, and a man trying to keep his worst self buried—until poverty and injustice dig it back up. Gene Hackman’s Little Bill is sheriff, sadist, and system embodied. Violence solves problems here while scarring everyone who survives it. In the end, the West isn’t a postcard; it’s a ledger of debts paid in blood.
10. The Magnificent Seven (2016)
- Runtime: 132 min
- Starring: Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke
- Director: Antoine Fuqua
- Genre: Western, Action
- IMDb Rating: 6.9/10
Fuqua’s glossy redo summons a starry posse to defend a terrorized town. The beats are comfortingly familiar—recruitment, training, sacrificial standoffs—but delivered with crackling banter and thunderous set pieces. Denzel’s gravitas anchors, Hawke’s haunted marksman intrigues, and Chris Pratt wisecracks like a card sharp. It’s popcorn Western done right: big, broad, and boisterous.
11. True Grit (2010)
- Runtime: 110 min
- Starring: Jeff Bridges, Hailee Steinfeld, Matt Damon
- Director: Joel & Ethan Coen
- Genre: Western, Adventure
- IMDb Rating: 7.6/10
This Coen brothers remake of the 1969 classic is a gritty, beautifully shot tale of vengeance and unlikely partnerships. Hailee Steinfeld shines as Mattie Ross, a determined 14-year-old who hires a grizzled U.S. Marshal, Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges), to track down her father’s killer. Matt Damon adds sharpness as a self-important Texas Ranger who joins the hunt. The film balances humor, heartbreak, and gunfights while highlighting themes of justice and resilience. With Oscar-nominated performances and breathtaking cinematography, this is a Western that feels timeless and modern all at once.
12. The Ridiculous 6 (2015)
- Runtime: 119 min
- Starring: Adam Sandler, Terry Crews, Taylor Lautner
- Director: Frank Coraci
- Genre: Western, Comedy
- IMDb Rating: 4.8/10
Though divisive, Adam Sandler’s Netflix original blends parody with Western tropes, following six outlaw brothers who team up to find their estranged father. Packed with slapstick humor, ridiculous scenarios, and plenty of tongue-in-cheek references to classic Westerns, the film doesn’t take itself seriously. While not critically acclaimed, it offers lighthearted entertainment for viewers who enjoy spoofs and goofy comedies. For audiences looking for something less intense than a traditional Western, this provides a humorous diversion while still delivering cowboy hats, dusty towns, and a parade of quirky characters.
13. Appaloosa (2008)
- Runtime: 115 min
- Starring: Ed Harris, Viggo Mortensen, Renée Zellweger
- Director: Ed Harris
- Genre: Western, Drama
- IMDb Rating: 6.7/10
Directed by and starring Ed Harris, “Appaloosa” tells the story of two lawmen hired to protect a small town from a ruthless rancher. Viggo Mortensen plays Harris’s loyal partner, while Renée Zellweger complicates matters with her presence as a mysterious love interest. The film is slow-burning, focusing on loyalty, friendship, and the complicated moral codes of the West. It shines in its character-driven storytelling, where quiet standoffs and whispered dialogue carry as much weight as gunfire. Fans of classic-style Westerns with strong performances will find this a rewarding watch.
14. The Salvation (2014)
- Runtime: 92 min
- Starring: Mads Mikkelsen, Eva Green, Jeffrey Dean Morgan
- Director: Kristian Levring
- Genre: Western, Action
- IMDb Rating: 6.7/10
Set in the 1870s American frontier, this Danish-produced Western stars Mads Mikkelsen as a settler who takes vengeance after his family is brutally murdered. His quest for justice unleashes violent repercussions, especially when he finds himself targeted by a local gang leader. With intense performances and striking visuals, “The Salvation” captures the bleak and unforgiving nature of frontier life. Eva Green is especially captivating as a silent yet powerful presence. The film combines the raw energy of European filmmaking with traditional Western grit, making it a unique addition to Netflix’s library.
15. Slow West (2015)
- Runtime: 84 min
- Starring: Kodi Smit-McPhee, Michael Fassbender, Ben Mendelsohn
- Director: John Maclean
- Genre: Western, Drama
- IMDb Rating: 6.9/10
A coming-of-age Western with lyrical beauty, “Slow West” follows a young Scottish boy searching for the woman he loves across the dangerous American frontier. He teams up with a mysterious drifter played by Michael Fassbender, whose motives aren’t always clear. The film is less about shootouts and more about the surreal, often tragic experience of life in the West. Its stunning cinematography, combined with quirky humor and haunting tension, sets it apart from traditional Westerns. It’s a smaller film, but one that lingers long after the credits roll.
16. Godless (2017 – Limited Series)
- Runtime: 7 episodes (~70 min each)
- Starring: Jack O’Connell, Michelle Dockery, Jeff Daniels
- Director: Scott Frank
- Genre: Western, TV Drama
- IMDb Rating: 8.2/10
Jeff Daniels weaponizes scripture as a ruthless outlaw pastor hunting his protégé across New Mexico. The trail leads to a town run mostly by women, still rebuilding after a mining tragedy. With cinematic scope and novelistic sprawl, “Godless” delivers shootouts, horse chases, and quiet reckonings in equal measure. It’s the Western as prestige epic—addictive, brutal, and humane.
More of the Best Western Movies on Netflix
For fans who crave even more variety, Netflix’s collection of the best western movies on Netflix extends to heartfelt dramas, historical epics, and modern reinterpretations. These films balance gunfights with emotional depth, ensuring there’s something for every type of viewer.
17. News of the World (2020)
- Runtime: 118 min
- Starring: Tom Hanks, Helena Zengel
- Director: Paul Greengrass
- Genre: Western, Drama
- IMDb Rating: 6.9/10
A Civil War veteran ferries headlines to remote towns for a dime a head until he’s charged with returning an orphan to her surviving kin. The journey is perilous, the bond unexpected. Greengrass trades shaky-cam for lullabies of wind and dust; Hanks radiates decency without sanctimony. It’s a road movie on horseback about stories that hold us together.
18. Tombstone (1993)
- Runtime: 130 min
- Starring: Kurt Russell, Val Kilmer, Sam Elliott
- Director: George P. Cosmatos
- Genre: Western, Action
- IMDb Rating: 7.8/10
“I’m your huckleberry.” With that purr, Val Kilmer’s consumptive Doc Holliday saunters into legend beside Wyatt Earp’s grim crusade. Gunfights crack like thunder, mustaches twirl like banners, and the O.K. Corral showdown becomes operatic inevitability. For sheer quotability and swaggering heroes, few Westerns ride taller. Justice here wears a black duster and a death wish.
19. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)
- Runtime: 160 min
- Starring: Brad Pitt, Casey Affleck, Sam Shepard
- Director: Andrew Dominik
- Genre: Western, Biography
- IMDb Rating: 7.5/10
Andrew Dominik slows the Western to a hypnotic drift and watches celebrity curdle into murder. Brad Pitt’s Jesse is magnetic and malevolent; Casey Affleck’s Ford is need, envy, and fear in human form. Roger Deakins photographs winter wheat and bedroom shadows like haunted memory. It’s less a shootout than an elegy for the myths we build and the men crushed beneath them.
20. The Sisters Brothers (2018)
- Runtime: 122 min
- Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, John C. Reilly, Jake Gyllenhaal
- Director: Jacques Audiard
- Genre: Western, Comedy-Drama
- IMDb Rating: 6.9/10
Two infamous assassins chase a prospector with a secret formula while contemplating an exit from the killing life. Phoenix is volatility; Reilly is bruised kindness; Gyllenhaal is the dream of a gentler West. Audiard laces deadpan humor through bursts of brutality and arrives at a tender, strange hope. It’s a left-handed Western that still hits the heart.
21. The Homesman (2014)
- Runtime: 122 min
- Starring: Hilary Swank, Tommy Lee Jones, Meryl Streep
- Director: Tommy Lee Jones
- Genre: Western, Drama
- IMDb Rating: 6.6/10
Hilary Swank’s Mary Bee Cuddy undertakes a harrowing mission: escort three women broken by prairie life back East, with a loutish drifter as unwilling help. The film centers women’s suffering and endurance, refusing to romanticize hardship. It’s laced with dark humor, jagged turns, and a mournful humanity. The West here isn’t freedom; it’s a frontier that takes as much as it gives.
22. Open Range (2003)
- Runtime: 139 min
- Starring: Kevin Costner, Robert Duvall, Annette Bening
- Director: Kevin Costner
- Genre: Western, Drama
- IMDb Rating: 7.4/10
Free-grazers clash with a monopolist cattle baron, and the slow fuse burns toward one of the great modern shootouts. Duvall dispenses gravelly wisdom; Costner wrestles with a violent past; Bening offers the promise of stillness after the storm. The gunfire is shockingly loud, the choreography clean, the consequences heavy. Honor earns a home—at a price.
23. Meek’s Cutoff (2010)
- Runtime: 104 min
- Starring: Michelle Williams, Bruce Greenwood, Paul Dano
- Director: Kelly Reichardt
- Genre: Western, Drama
- IMDb Rating: 6.5/10
Kelly Reichardt pares the pioneer trek down to thirst, doubt, and the sound of wagon wheels. A dubious guide leads families into a desert that may not forgive them; a captured Native man may be their only hope—or not. The boxy frame and hushed soundscape trap you inside the uncertainty. Leadership, faith, and fear blur in the shimmering heat.
24. Dead Man (1995)
- Runtime: 121 min
- Starring: Johnny Depp, Gary Farmer, Lance Henriksen
- Director: Jim Jarmusch
- Genre: Western, Surreal
- IMDb Rating: 7.5/10
Jim Jarmusch drifts through a black-and-white limbo where an accountant named William Blake becomes an outlaw and perhaps a spirit already halfway gone. Guided by a poet-sage called Nobody and scored by Neil Young’s electric lament, the film is funny, violent, and reverent toward nothing but mystery. It’s a peyote-trail Western that leaves footprints in smoke.
25. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
- Runtime: 110 min
- Starring: Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Katharine Ross
- Director: George Roy Hill
- Genre: Western, Adventure
- IMDb Rating: 8.0/10
Two charmers rob trains until modernity—and a relentless posse—chase them clear to Bolivia. Newman and Redford define effortless chemistry; William Goldman’s script crackles; Conrad Hall’s images glow like nostalgia itself. It’s jaunty, melancholy, and finally mythic, a buddy movie that understands even legends run out of road. Few finales are as famous; fewer feel so inevitable.
Conclusion: Why Western Movies on Netflix Still Captivate Audiences
Western movies on Netflix prove the genre is far from a relic. These stories endure because they stage human dilemmas on the widest possible canvas: freedom against order, mercy against wrath, community against chaos. Whether you prefer revisionist morality plays, lyrical road odysseys, or barn-burner shootouts, there’s a saddle that fits. Streaming has widened the corral, pairing studio classics with indie experiments and international riffs that enrich the myth. And while lineups rotate, the appetite for frontier tales doesn’t. From swaggering gunfighters to stubborn homesteaders, these films remember that courage can be quiet, justice can be messy, and redemption rarely rides alone. Queue up a double feature, dim the lights, and let the spurs sing—there’s still gold in them thar hills.
