Coen Brothers' 'True Grit' Named Best Western of the 21st Century
The Coen brothers have made films spanning a huge variety of genres, whether it's comedies such as Fargo, dramas like Inside Llewyn Davis, or even Shakespearean epics like The Tragedy of Macbeth. One genre that the filmmaking duo has always been interested in, however, is Westerns.
Whether it's obvious neo-Westerns, like No Country for Old Men, or more comedy-forward movies that simply use Western tropes, like The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, it's clear that the Coens have an ongoing fascination with the genre.
True Grit continued this trend. Released in 2010 and starring Jeff Bridges, Hailee Steinfeld, Matt Damon, and Josh Brolin, the film was an immediate success that proved Western movies weren't quite as out-of-fashion as most audiences believed.
The Coens' movie is an adaptation of Charles Portis' 1968 novel, which had previously inspired Henry Hathaway's Western classic of the same name starring John Wayne. That movie had been an enormous success, dominating the box office, pushing Wayne to his first and only Academy Award victory, and developing a legacy as one of the greatest Western movies ever made.
Needless to say, there was a lot of pressure for the Coens' movie to live up to these expectations. To distinguish their movie from Wayne's classic, their version was told from the perspective of Mattie Ross, the 14-year-old girl played by Steinfeld, who hires a lawman to go after the outlaw who killed her father.
This simple decision to shift the story's central perspective transformed True Grit entirely, giving even the most dedicated John Wayne fans a new lens through which to experience the narrative. This originality, paired with the enduring reputation of the Coens as filmmakers, made True Grit a massive success.
The film pulled in an incredible $252 million worldwide against a reported production budget of roughly $38 million, turning a huge profit for the studio and proving that the Coens weren't just "auteur" directors whom critics loved, but also reliable box office draws.
True Grit was one of the most popular films of the year, ultimately landing 10 nominations at the Academy Awards-including Best Picture-though it didn't win any. It was defeated in several categories by The King's Speech.
Today, True Grit is credited with reviving the Western genre in a time when many audiences considered it to be outdated and passé. The performances, direction, soundtrack, and editing all received immense acclaim, with many critics even arguing that it was better than Wayne's original. It was ranked No. 1 on SWDB's recent ranking of the best Western movies released this decade, beating modern classics like The Revenant and Hell or High Water.
This story was originally published by Men's Journal on Jun 13, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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This story was originally published June 13, 2026 at 10:09 AM.