The Western genre once reigned supreme in Hollywood, frequently dominating the box office with stars like Clint Eastwood and John Wayne headlining the likes of True Grit and the Dollars Trilogy. However, following the 1960s, the genre has steadily declined with audiences. In the 1990s, however, one of the finest films in its history was released and has remained an icon with modern audiences. The greatest Westerns have long attracted some of the best talent in Hollywood, both behind and in front of the camera. The stars of the genre are too numerous to count and worked alongside legendary directors like John Ford, Howard Hawks, and Sergio Leone.
Likewise, many of these stories were adapted from the works of talented writers, and practically every major novel dedicated to the genre was destined for a big-screen adaptation. However, as the years progressed and other genres took the lead, audiences became less enthusiastic about turning out for Westerns. In the ’90s, Hollywood managed to buck that trend of decline through an epic blockbuster, Tombstone. This spectacular Western assembled some of the film industry’s biggest stars, such as Kurt Russell and Val Kilmer, to tell the story of America’s most famous lawman, Wyatt Earp.
Updated on October 5, 2024, by Natasha Elder: Westerns have long been a staple in American media due to their gun-toting heroes and traditionally simplistic plotlines revolving around clearly defined good guys and bad guys. The Western genre has grown more complex over the years, and Tombstone is part of the reason why. While it doesn’t have the most intricate plot, Tombstone’s characters and unique take have cemented its place in Western film history. We wanted to return to better define what, exactly, makes Tombstone so special.
The 1990s Signaled a Turning Point for Westerns
Many Departed the Tropes of Older Westerns for Experimental Entries
- While Tombstone is not the most historically accurate, certain lines were inspired by historical records, such as Doc Holliday’s line during the shootout at the O.K. Corral, “You’re a daisy if you do.” In real life, Doc Holliday was recorded as saying, “You’re a daisy if you have.”
- Tombstone was filmed at Old Tucson Studios, which has also been used for such famous Westerns as Three Amigos!, the Little House on the Prairie television series, and The Quick and the Dead.
Western movies have undergone a series of changes throughout history. Where the bulk of movies between the 1930s and 1950s were classical, movies like High Noon and The Searchers started to turn the tide towards the revisionist Western. Ever since, these “anti-Westerns,” such as Unforgiven, have been the favorite among audiences, thanks to their commitment to realism and nuance. Today, it’s gritty movies like Bone Tomahawk, Hostiles, Django Unchained, and The Hateful Eight that please viewers and critics alike, while classical Westerns are viewed in hindsight as too cheesy and shallow. If the wave of Spaghetti Westerns in the ’60s didn’t cement the film industry’s turn to revisionism, the hits of the ’90s certainly did.
The ’90s were a period of experimentation in the genre, as it was blended with creature features in Tremors, science fiction in Back to the Future III, and animation in An American Tail: Fievel Goes West. However, just as some of the genre’s best films were released during the decade, so too were some of the worst, like the mess that was Wild Wild West. However, even this showed an attempt by Hollywood to try something new, bringing the buddy cop dynamic to the Old West in a steampunk adventure. This sudden embrace of the genre didn’t come out of nowhere, and can best be credited to the success of this key 1993 blockbuster Western, which adapted one of the most legendary chapters in the setting’s history.
Tombstone Became an Instant Classic
The Engaging Story of Wyatt Earp’s Life Immediately Captivated Audiences
One of the reasons that Tombstone remains so popular is due to its enthralling plot. The film follows the brothers Earp, who move to Tombstone, Arizona to build a new life there. Upon arriving, they encounter and begin a feud with the Cochise County Cowboys, a gang of outlaws and gunfighters who are practically untouchable in town. This immediately creates tension that draws viewers in as they wait to see how these two equally menacing groups are going to handle this dangerous situation. The dramatic nature of the conflict only increases when one of the cowboys guns down the town’s marshal and the eldest Earp, Virgil, takes his place and enforces an ordnance against carrying firearms in town. This results in the famous gunfight at the O.K. Corral, which results in the lawmen emerging victorious — and the group of cowboys dead, further captivating audiences who eagerly wait to see how the remainder of the group reacts.
Following the bloodshed at the O.K. Corral, tensions between the Earps and the cowboys immediately escalate, climaxing in the murder of Morgan, and the injury of Virgil. In response, a vengeful Wyatt organizes a posse and sees Virgil out of town, taking advantage of the cowboys’ desire to finish the job by staging an ambush of men sent to kill the disabled lawman. In one of the most iconic speeches of the Western genre, Wyatt exclaims, “The cowboys are finished, you understand me? I see a man wearing a red sash, I kill the man wearing it.” If the rest of the movie hadn’t already sealed the movie’s status as a modern icon, Kurt Russell’s delivery of the speech did, inspiring audiences just as much as he did the other lawmen.
The Cowboys are finished, you understand me? I see a man wearing a red sash, I kill the man wearing it. So run, you cur. Run! Tell all the other curs the law is coming. You tell ’em I’m coming and Hell’s coming with me, you hear? Hell’s coming with me!
The manhunt culminates in a long-awaited duel with Johnny Ringo, the best gunfighter the Cowboys have. A slowly dying Holliday emerges from the shadows to confront a quickly worried Ringo. After some taunting, the pair square off in a tense and memorable scene. Ultimately, Doc, who the film implies had secretly hoped would be killed by Ringo to give him a glorious death, handily kills his opponent. That Holliday took Wyatt’s place without telling him depicts without a doubt the close relationship between Wyatt and Holliday, which is one of the main draws of the film. With the Cowboys dead and Holliday slowly perishing in hospice, the film concludes with Earp embracing his new love interest, Josephine, and dancing in the snow as the narrator talks about Wyatt’s life following these events. The bittersweet ending of the film fits the tone of violence and loss that pervades Tombstone, as well as remains true to the historical events that inspired it in the first place.
Tombstone Is Ultimately Held Together by Its Cast
The Many Impressive Actors in the Film Bring It Life
Some films garner criticism for dubious casting decisions, but Tombstone managed to find a consistently perfect match between actor and character across the board. From Kurt Russell leading as Wyatt Earp and Val Kilmer turning in a career-defining performance as Doc Holliday to Michael Biehn as the hot-tempered Johnny Ringo, the cast remains legendary to this day. To top things off, Sam Elliott sported perhaps the finest mustache ever to grace the big screen as the hat-tipping Virgil Earp. In essence, everything about the movie just worked, and it’s become as significant to modern Westerns as A Fistful of Dollars was for those of the 1960s and ’70s.
- Richard Gere was considered to play Wyatt Earp, as he was very popular due to his success in Pretty Woman only three years before Tombstone’s release.
- Willem Dafoe had originally been cast as Doc Holliday but was replaced by Val Kilmer due to the other actor’s greater popularity.
Since the release of Tombstone, Hollywood has consistently leaned into the lawman versus outlaws trope of the genre, though with notable exceptions. However, the remake of True Grit, 3:10 To Yuma, and originals like Open Range all felt as though they were influenced in some way by the Kurt Russell film, especially his performance as Earp. Since then, it’s hard to dispute that the actor has become the modern face of Westerns, returning to the genre in films like The Hateful Eight and Bone Tomahawk, with his iconic mustache making a comeback in both. The ’93 hit became such an instant classic that it doomed the success of Kevin Costner’s role as Earp in 1994’s Wyatt Earp, which was a slower biopic dedicated to the full life of the lawman. Costner himself has lamented that his movie was compared to Tombstone, which was a tough act to follow.
The film stands both in contrast to and alongside Clint Eastwood’s Unforgiven, which was released one year prior. Where Eastwood’s style of revisionism aims to subvert the legend of the gunfighter, Tombstone embraces it. Both films add depth to their characters and shed light on the harsh realities of life in the Old West that even great classical Westerns often overlooked. Where Unforgiven hammered home the idea that the West (as audiences knew it) was heavily overblown with machismo, this was an idea that Tombstone embraced. The Earps effectively became the new face of Hollywood masculinity, and almost every shoot-em-up Western since has tried to match the energy of Tombstone’s various shootouts, especially the O.K. Corral.
The Characters’ Dynamics Made the Film Even More Distinct
The Witty One-Liners and Dedicated Friendships Made the Characters More Memorable
The chemistry between the characters wouldn’t have been possible without the impressive acting of the performers, but it is worth noting that the interactions between the characters are a significant part of what makes the film so memorable. When Doc Holliday reunites with the Earp brothers, audiences can immediately see the long history between them without needing to be told. From the first greeting, the warm exchange says more than mere words could. This sense of brotherhood only continues throughout the film as they each put their lives on the line for the others without hesitation.
This camaraderie is something that should be emulated. While the gunfights that define the latter half of the film are a direct result of Wyatt taking revenge for Virgil’s injury, there are also moments of care that soften the machismo. Wyatt’s visits to Holliday while he is suffering from his illness depict the importance of standing by friends in a more spiritual sense. The scenes aren’t overwhelming displays of emotion, but they portray a subtler care outside violent revenge that was rarely seen in Westerns before Tombstone. Emphasizing Wyatt Earp’s interpersonal relationships is one of the reasons why Tombstone is not only one of the best Westerns about Wyatt Earp but also one of the best Westerns in general.
Moreover, the comedic moments in between Doc Holliday’s slow demise and the gunfights (and sometimes even during the gunfights) bring a fun levity. Doc Holliday in particular has many memorable one-liners, such as “I’ll be your Huckleberry” or “Wyatt, I am rolling.'” These memorable quotes are another reason this movie is so fondly remembered over thirty years later. The exchanges between various characters, whether between the Earp brothers and Holliday or the protagonists and the antagonists, have helped cement the film as a standout among other Western movies.
Tombstone Blended Westerns With Blockbuster Action
In Doing So, the Film Rejuvenated the Genre
Tombstone, despite being a Western epic, also matches the energy of the rising action genre of the time. Where many films in the genre from years before took a notably slower pace, often reserving gunfights for the final act of their stories, Cosmatos’ masterpiece embraces action and gunfights. While the film doesn’t bombard viewers with shootouts, it also ensures that conflict is a running theme throughout, and builds tension in the lead-up to the O.K. Corral showdown. After the killing of Morgan, the film effectively becomes non-stop action as Wyatt and his men hunt the cowboys down to the very last man.
Despite once leading the film industry, Westerns made between the late 1970s and early 1990s saw a decline in box office draw and critical acclaim. While the likes of The Outlaw Josey Wales, Pale Rider, and The Shootist do stand out from this era, it’s clear by the quality of investment in the genre, the relatively lackluster casts, and the low hype that studios became less enthusiastic about. This was especially true as science fiction, horror, and ’80s action became dominant. Some Westerns made in the ’80s in particular would often resemble the picture quality of movies made a decade prior, while other genres were on the cutting edge. In both Tombstone and Unforgiven, this sharply changed, as some of the most talented people in Hollywood started signing on to a new age of revisionist Westerns.