The Western That Never Was: Eastwood, Wayne, and a Lost Legend
Clint Eastwood and John Wayne nearly starred together in a western that was never made. Decades later, its script resurfaced in an unexpected place.
Had it ever reached the screen, The Hostiles would have been a landmark in the western genre, if only for uniting Clint Eastwood and John Wayne in leading roles. The mere idea of these two icons sharing the spotlight was enough to set imaginations racing and guarantee a box office sensation. Eastwood, then the genre’s new standard-bearer, had already made his mark with a string of darker, more complex westerns, while Wayne, though nearing the end of his career, remained a towering presence. The prospect of the old guard meeting the new was irresistible to both audiences and studio heads alike.
The script, written by Larry Cohen, was admittedly conventional, but the casting alone promised to elevate it. The plot revolved around Eastwood’s character, a down-on-his-luck gambler, who wins half the property of Wayne’s ageing rancher, forcing the two to join forces despite their mutual dislike. Eastwood was keen and sent the script to Wayne, hoping to secure his involvement.
Creative Differences and a Missed Opportunity
Wayne, however, was unimpressed. He had little time for Eastwood’s revisionist take on the western, particularly after seeing High Plains Drifter. That was enough to scupper the project. Despite several attempts to change his mind, Wayne remained unmoved. As his long-time secretary Pat Stacy recalled,
I remember one script sent to him, intended as a co-starring vehicle for him and Clint Eastwood. And Duke’s disgust when he told me, ‘This kind of stuff is all they know how to write these days; the sheriff is the heavy, the townspeople a bunch of jerks, someone like me and Eastwood ride into town, know everything, act the big guys, and everyone else is a bunch of idiots.’
With Wayne’s refusal, the project stalled. Audiences were denied the chance to see the two legends sparring, clashing, and ultimately teaming up in what would have been a classic tale of reluctant partnership and redemption. Predictable, perhaps, but the pairing alone would have made it unforgettable.
The Script’s Fate and a Surprising Revival
For Cohen, the collapse of the project was a bitter blow. He later described it as
one of the greatest disappointments of my career
, noting that Eastwood’s insistence on working only with Wayne sealed its fate.
Clint did not want to do The Hostiles with anyone else except John Wayne.
Without both stars, the idea was abandoned. The notion of replacing them with anyone else—let alone Dean Cain and James Tupper—was never seriously entertained.
Decades passed before the script was revisited. In 2009, Cohen’s original story was dusted off, reworked by Bob Barbash, and retitled The Gambler, the Girl, and the Gunslinger. It followed much the same storyline, but this time premiered on the Hallmark Channel—a rather dramatic change in fortunes for a script once intended for two of Hollywood’s biggest names.