Least Convincing Cowboys
AMC Movie List

Least Convincing Cowboys

John Wayne must be rolling over in his grave. Which actor makes the least convincing gunslinger?

rank title points votes your vote
1 James T. West (Will Smith), Wild Wild West
<p>This misguided flop has much bigger than the usually charismatic Smith's performance, but his miscast incongruity plays a big part.</p> 80 206
2 The Kid (Leonardo DiCaprio), The Quick And The Dead
<p>Being miscast is nothing new for this talented actor, but in Sam Raimi's post-modern story, he stands out, even alongside Sharon Stone.&nbsp;</p> 71 187
3 Jesse Lee (Mario Van Peebles), Posse
<p>Writer-director Peebles affects a grizzled anti-hero in the Eastwoodian vein -- and he's got the stare, but there's nothing behind it.</p> 44 118
4 Lilly Laronette (Drew Barrymore), Bad Girls
<p>It's not hard to laugh watching Barrymore roast rabbit on a campfire and say things like, "I don't let my friends get hung." </p> 41 129
5 Lee Clayton (Marlon Brando), The Missouri Breaks
Part of this movie's oddball charm is that Brando is woefully miscast and throughout the movie he demonstrates exactly why. 9 105
6 Jim Kincaid (James Cagney), The Oklahoma Kid
<p>Though he was an accomplished horse rider and Western enthusiast, Cagney's silly ten-gallon hat did the actor no favors.</p> 1 101
7 Gauch (Alain Delon), Red Sun
<p>French anti-hero Delon has no business donning spurs, but the movie does poke fun at the casting by giving him funny character tics.</p> -1 85
8 Nate Champion (Christopher Walken), Heaven's Gate
<p>Walken can pull out just about anything -- except Westerns, as his weird, unbelievable performance in this flop makes clear.</p> -8 102
9 Elliot Marston (Alan Rickman), Quigley Down Under
<p>Rickman is wonderfully hapless in the role of a sadistic Australian rancher who enlists an American (Tom Selleck) to teach him about the West.</p> -10 120
10 John Dunbar (Kevin Costner), Dances With Wolves
<p>The actor's unconvincing accent is one of the least authentic parts of his tale, and he doesn't look like he's last a minute on the frontier.</p> -13 159