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Contemporary Western

Genre of fiction, primarily American, in various media

Wikipedia contributorsAdapted for Fathomly · View authors
5 min read
Source updated September 11, 2026
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Contemporary Western is a subgenre of the Western genre, in various media, that includes contemporary settings and uses Old West themes, archetypes, and motifs. These may include a rebellious antihero, open plains and desert landscapes, and gunfights, among others. This sub-genre includes the post-Western, neo-Western, and urban Western genres that include "the cowboy cult" in a modern setting that involves the audience's feelings and understanding of Western movies. A neo-Western can be said to use Western themes set in the present day. According to Stephen Teo in Eastern Westerns: Film and Genre Outside and Inside Hollywood, there is little difference between the neo-Western and post-Western, and the terms may often be used interchangeably.

01Development

As early as 1929, there was talk about the need for change in Western films in order to stay relevant in then-modern America ("Tom Mix, Hoot Gibson and Ken Maynard must swap horses for aeroplanes or go to the old actors' home."). However, the rise of the contemporary Western is credited to two specific reasons. First, contemporary setting enabled the use of a higher number of potential plot-ideas, which "included everything from modern crooks and evil Nazis to high-tech cars and machine guns". Second, Gene Autry, a famous Western film star, was also a famous singer and performer. In order to use his reputation as much as possible, Republic Pictures decided that it was best for Autry to play himself, thus moving the films from the Old West into a contemporary setting. Some earlier actors, such as Ken Maynard and Hoot Gibson, sometimes starred in the films featuring modern setting, but Autry was the first actor starring in such films on a regular basis. Autry's films were also described as "crime dramas in contemporary Western setting".

Other early examples of the genre were films starring Roy Rogers which included contemporary settings with heavy reliance on traditional western characters and imagery, such as Silver Spurs (1943). His films made after 1947 are described as "almost without exception, modern-day adventure films set in the American west". Republic Pictures, which distributed a significant number of Autry's and Rogers's films, soon specialized in the contemporary Western subgenre, an example of which is also Paramount's Texas Rangers Ride Again (1940).

Beginning in the postwar era, radio dramas such as Tales of the Texas Rangers (1950-1952), with Joel McCrea, a contemporary detective drama set in Texas, featured many of the characteristics of traditional Westerns. In this period, post-Western precursors to the modern neo-Western films began to appear. This includes films such as Nicholas Ray's The Lusty Men (1952) and John Sturges's Bad Day at Black Rock (1955). Examples of the modern "first phase" of neo-Westerns include films such as Lonely Are the Brave (1962) and Hud (1963). The popularity of the subgenre has been resurgent since the release of Joel and Ethan Coen's No Country for Old Men (2007).

The subgenre can also be seen in television in shows such as Breaking Bad. According to Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan, "After the first Breaking Bad episode, it started to dawn on me that we could be making a contemporary Western. So you see scenes that are like gunfighters squaring off, like Clint Eastwood and Lee van Cleef, we have Walt and others like that."

Many space Westerns and science fiction Westerns can be classed within the neo-Western genre, particularly if the science fiction elements are of secondary importance to the Western characteristics of the plotlines. Some well-known examples include the original TV series Star Trek (1966-1969) and Joss Whedon's series Firefly (2002). Other kinds of science fiction Westerns, such as the film Mad Max (1979), have also become popular.

02Setting, motif and themes

Some neo-Westerns still take place in the American West and reveal the progression of the Old West mentality into the late 20th and early 21st centuries. This subgenre often features Old West-type characters struggling with displacement in a "civilized" world that rejects their "outdated" brand of justice. However, the contemporary Western need not be limited to the traditional American West setting. Coogan's Bluff and Midnight Cowboy are examples of urban Westerns set in New York City. The neo-Western television series Justified is set in Eastern Kentucky.

The neo-Western has three identifying themes. First is the lack of rules, with morals guided by the character's or audience's instincts of right and wrong rather than by governance. The second is characters searching for justice. The third theme, characters feeling remorse, connects the neo-Western to the broader Western genre, reinforcing a universal theme that consequences come with actions. Other conventions of the genre include "virility and thus patriarchal rights... secured through public performances of competence; and competence, in turn, is measured and proven in (successful) acts of violence." Taylor Sheridan's filmography includes many examples of what being a neo-Western means.

03List of contemporary Westerns

This list is not exhaustive. It includes major films and television labelled contemporary Western, neo-Western, post-Western, or urban Western. The list highlights the media released to illustrate the development of the concept over time.

Novels

Films

Comics

Television

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Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Contemporary Western”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

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