Classic Westerns Lead Multiple Greatest-Ever Rankings

Recent rankings underscore the enduring influence and diversity of the Western genre, with critics and publications offering different choices for its greatest films. Robert Altman’s 1971 revisionist Western McCabe & Mrs. Miller was ranked No. 1 on Time Out’s 2026 list, despite Warren Beatty’s concerns that its deliberately murky dialogue would frustrate audiences. Sergio Leone and Clint Eastwood’s The Good, the Bad and the Ugly remains a dominant favorite, topping rankings from MovieWeb and Collider and continuing to be praised for its performances, visual style and expansive treatment of violence. Leone’s Once Upon a Time in the West also received recognition as one of the genre’s finest films and influenced the Russo brothers’ approach to the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday. Eastwood declined a role in that film to avoid repeating his Man With No Name persona, while later rankings have also highlighted The Great Silence for its unusually bleak, villain-triumphant ending.