Anthony Hopkinshas been acting in Hollywood since the 1960s. During this long, prolific career,he’s appeared in some iconic films, such asThe Elephant Man, The Remains of the Day, Amistad, Meet Joe Black,and many others. His performance as the brilliant but insane Hannibal Lecter inSilence of the Lambsis one of the greatest, most legendary performances in cinema. Hopkins' second Oscar win, for playing a man with dementia inThe Father,made him the oldest Best Actor winner in Academy Awards history. He’s also appeared in epic television series including the likes ofWestworldand, most recently, Peacock’sThose About to Die.
At this point, everyone knows that Anthony Hopkins is one of the best actors of all time. But what many people may not know is that the American Western is one of the actor’s favorite genres. In an interview withPop Entertainment,Hopkins listed two of his favorite Westerns:ShaneandLawman.
Shane (1953)
Based on the novel of the same name,Shaneis a Western classic. It follows its titular character, Shane (Alan Ladd), a mysterious, former gunfighter who’s hired to defend homesteaders against a ruthless cattle baron. Interestingly, it was the first movie to be projected in a widescreen 1.66:1 ratio, a format that’s rarely used in film today. Paramount created this format to give audiences a wider panorama than television could provide at the time.
Shaneis what’s considered a psychological Western, a Western subgenre that began in the 1940s and became popular throughout the 1950s and 1960s. The psychological Western contains many of the Western’s usual elements, though it prioritizes character development over action.
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Anthony Hopkins calledShane “one of my all-time favorite Westerns” in his interview withPop Entertainment.And he’s not the only one who holds this movie in high esteem.Shaneholds a 97% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, a score that only the very best movies manage to secure. With its Oscar-winning landscape cinematography and notable performances,Shanegreatly influenced the Western genre.
The movie has also been referenced in pop culture over the years; there’s a scene in the 2017 superhero filmLoganwhere characters are watching this movie.Shaneisn’t just considered to be one ofthe greatest Westerns of all time; it’s regarded as one of the best movies ever made, appearing in the American Film Institute’s most recent edition of100 Years…100 Movies,a list of the 100 best American movies as determined by AFI.
Lawman (1971)
As censorship restrictions were relaxed and removed in the 1960s, the psychological Western morphed into what became known as the revisionist Western.Lawmanfalls into the category of revisionist Western, a subgenre that subverts the myth and romance of the traditional Western. Traditional Westerns present characters in simplistic terms, as good or evil, and offer minimal character development. In revisionist Westerns, there’s no clear good vs evil, as is the case withLawman.
Lawmanfollows, well, a lawman named Jared Maddox (Burt Lancaster) who pursues a group of drunken cowhands that accidentally kills an old man in their reckless celebrations. In typical revisionist Western fashion, it follows a strong male lead character, who takes action on behalf of supposedly civilized people against those who are deemed to be uncivilized – a line that’s sometimes blurry.
Lawnmanhas a solid score of 73% on Rotten Tomatoes. Some critics bashed it for its “confused plotting” and unconventionality. Others, however, enjoyed the dusty, coarse harshness that’s reflected in the movie. Anthony Hopkins happens to be one of those people and is a big fan of this movie. “There’s a wonderful film calledLawman…with Burt Lancaster; a great movie about rival factions,” he toldPop Entertainment.
Hopkins Has Dabbled in Westerns Too
You may not expect Anthony Hopkins, a Welsh, Shakespearean performer, to appear in an American Western, but the actor has dabbled in one of his favorite movie genres over the years. In 1994, Hopkins co-starred with Brad Pitt in the Western epicLegends of the Fall,though the film is set in the mid-20th century rather than the 19th century, which is usually associated with the American Western.
He also co-starred inThe Mask of Zorro,the 1998Western swashbuckler film that partially whitewashed Zorro and cast Hopkins as the original masked hero. And more recently, Hopkins played Dr. Robert Ford, the creator of a Wild West-themed amusement park,in HBO’sWestworld,a series that interestingly combines the Old West with the sci-fi, dystopian genre.
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As his most legendary performances are celebrated to this day, it is clear that the 10 Westerns on this list still ride as powerfully as ever.
At age 86, Hopkins seems to be showing no signs of slowing down. He recently performed in the first two movies of Zack Snyder’s polarizing Rebel Moon film series. In 2024, he appeared in the thriller Locked alongside Bill Skarsgård and in a film called Mary, where he will play a character named King Herod. His latest film is a sci-fi epic called Eyes in the Trees, which is a reimagining of the H.G. Wells 1896 novel The Island of Dr. Moreau. Hopefully, Hopkins will soon find himself cast in another Western, since the man is still pumping out movies left and right.
