Pictures via Netflix
The Western is back. After years of the genre languishing thanks to Yellowstone, there’s a gold rush to get into the space, and Netflix has a few projects of its own coming up. Below, we’ll look at Netflix’s current library of Westerns and what’s in the works.
Netflix doesn’t have many Western titles by any stretch. Only a handful of current titles fit that genre: The Harder They Fall, Godless, The Highwaymen, and The Ballad of Buster Scruggs.
For what it’s worth, every single one of those is absolutely worth your time, with critics and audiences mostly agreeing. Godless, in particular, is fantastic and ranks in our list of the best-limited series of all time.
If you’re outside of the US, you can also access the Tom Hanks movie News of the World. We should also probably count The Ridiculous 6 on this list too although I’d be hard-pressed to give it a recommendation. On the international front, Netflix has released The Killer from Brazil and Thar from India.
As mentioned, westerns are becoming more and more common across streaming. It really kicked off with Yellowstone (streaming in some Netflix countries), which spawned an entire universe, but Prime Video has gotten in on the action with Outer Range, and there’s a slew of other projects popping up, too.
While this list isn’t as exhaustive as some of our other genre previews (like fantasy movies, for example), it is the first time we’ve been able to put something like this together, which is progress in itself!
American Primeval
Coming to Netflix in 2024
Pictures: Netflix
American Primeval is one series coming up very soon, having already completed filming. It is a new series from Eric Newman and Mark L. Smith, with Pete Berg directing. Berg and Newman are no strangers to Netflix, having worked on many projects in the past, including Painkiller, which was released in 2023.
Per Netflix, the series “is a raw exploration of the violent collisions of cultures, religions, and communities as men and women fight and die for a land they truly believe is their destiny.”
Among the cast assembled for the series are Taylor Kitsch, Tokala Black Elk, Alex Fine, Derek Hinkey, Kip Weeks and Jeremy Gauna. We’ve only had a small glimpse of the series so far, courtesy of the 2024 Next on Netflix series reveals, but we’ve got high expectations.
We’ve got more on American Primeval, including all the production updates in our main preview.
Pedro Páramo
Coming to Netflix in 2024
Picture: Netflix
One of the most famous novellas from Mexico is being adapted into a feature-length film that crosses multiple genres but definitely has a bit of a Western feel. The plot revolves around a man who travels to Comala to meet his father for the first time, only to find the town populated entirely by ghosts.
Manuel García-Rulfo and Tenoch Huerta will play Pedro Páramo and Juan Preciado, respectively, in the new movie, which Rodrigo Prieto will direct.
The Abandons
Picture: Sutterink / Instagram
Just entering production shortly before the publishing of this preview is The Abandons, a new series coming from the creator of Sons of Anarchy and The Shield – Kurt Sutter. If that alone doesn’t get you excited I don’t know what will.
Here’s what you can expect:
“The Abandons follows a group of diverse, outlier families pursuing their Manifest Destiny in 1850s Oregon when a corrupt force of wealth and power, coveting their land, tries to force them out.
These abandoned souls, the kind of lost souls living on the fringe of society, unite their tribes to form a family and fight back. In this bloody process, “justice” is stretched beyond the boundaries of the law. The Abandons will explore that fine line between survival and law, the consequences of violence, and the corrosive power of secrets, as this family fights to keep their land.”
Among the huge ensemble cast put together for the series includes Lena Headey, Gillian Anderson, Nick Robinson, Lucas Till, and Michael Huisman, among many, many others.
Desert King
Picture: Netflix
New from Australia is a series that sounds very much like Yellowstone and even a bit like Sons of Anarchy.
Created by Ben Davies and Timothy Lee, the series sees an empire up for grabs after the Lawson ranch comes up for grabs with the owner not having an heir. It’s an all-out war between different factions in the Australian outback to gain control of the dynasty.
We’ve still got a lot to learn about Desert King given we haven’t had the official cast list yet but this one is high up our most anticipated list.
Ransom Canyon
Picture: Jodi Thomas
Based on the Jodi Thomas novels, this new drama romance is very much in the same vein as Virgin River but with a more Western vibe as it’s set in the Texas hill country.
Minka Kelly and Josh Duhamel are set to the lead the cast with the plot revolving around three ranching families.
We’ve got lots more on Ransom Canyon in our full preview for the upcoming series.
Untitled Tim McGraw Series (w/t Ragdoll)
Picture: Netflix
Just announced at the recent Netflix Upfront presentation, Netflix confirmed that it’ll be teaming with Tim McGraw, who recently headlined 1883 and featured in Yellowstone for a new bull-riding drama set in the heart of Texas.
Yet to be officially titled, McGraw will play the role of Aaaron Teeley, a bull rider who is a megastar champion who faces new competition in the form of a young hotshot that forces him to change his thinking.
Brandon Camp is writing the new series, and Taylor Elmore is serving as showrunner.
The Harder They Fall 2
Picture: Netflix
For full transparency, Netflix themselves haven’t confirmed this one yet, but given that the writer and director behind the first movie has said he’s currently writing it, we’re going to include it!
Directed by Jeymes Samuel, the 2021 Netflix Western featured an all-star cast following an outlaw who reunites with his gang to enact revenge.
While we’re here, we should mention a few other projects that were announced a while ago but may now be inactive, on the backburner or we just haven’t heard about them in a while:
- Yuba – Channing Tatum was on board to produce this period action Western feature film about two men who strike out on their own during the California Gold Rush and are haunted by their pasts in the most lawless lands of the Old West. Free Association and Vertigo Entertainment were producing. Netflix acquired the script in 2016 but it’s expected the project has been killed.
- The Hated – First announced in 2021, this series was set to adapt the David F. Walker comic book series that follows “a gun-slinging bounty hunter in a world where the Civil War ended differently.” Michael Starrbury was on board to write but since that initial announcement, all is quiet.
