Only Real Cowboy and Outlaw Fans Will Score Over 70%: Ultimate Western Movie Trivia Quiz!

Answers Below – No Peeking!

Saddle up for this thrilling trivia challenge on classic cowboy and outlaw Western films! These 20 questions range from easy warm-ups to tough tests of true fandom, covering iconic gunslingers, directors, and showdowns. Think you can outdraw the competition?

20 Trivia Questions on Cowboy and Outlaw Westerns

Question 1: In which 1969 film do Paul Newman and Robert Redford portray the legendary outlaws Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid?

A. The Wild Bunch
B. Cool Hand Luke
C. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
D. The Sting

Question 2: Who directed the 1956 epic Western The Searchers starring John Wayne as Ethan Edwards?

A. Sergio Leone
B. Sam Peckinpah
C. Howard Hawks
D. John Ford

Question 3: What nickname is given to Clint Eastwood’s character in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)?

A. The Preacher
B. The Man with No Name
C. Blondie
D. Josey Wales

Question 4: Which actor plays Marshal Will Kane in the 1952 classic High Noon?

A. James Stewart
B. Henry Fonda
C. Gary Cooper
D. Gregory Peck

Question 5: In Tombstone (1993), who plays the quick-witted gunslinger Doc Holliday and delivers the line “I’m your huckleberry”?

A. Kurt Russell
B. Michael Biehn
C. Val Kilmer
D. Sam Elliott

Question 6: John Wayne won his sole Best Actor Oscar for portraying which cantankerous marshal in True Grit (1969)?

A. Tom Doniphon
B. Hondo Lane
C. Rooster Cogburn
D. Ransom Stoddard

Question 7: What is the first instalment of Sergio Leone’s Dollars Trilogy released in 1964?

A. For a Few Dollars More
B. A Fistful of Dollars
C. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
D. Once Upon a Time in the West

Question 8: Clint Eastwood both directed and starred as retired gunslinger William Munny in which 1992 Best Picture winner?

A. Pale Rider
B. Unforgiven
C. The Outlaw Josey Wales
D. Hang ‘Em High

Question 9: The Magnificent Seven (1960) is a Western remake of which Akira Kurosawa film?

A. Yojimbo
B. Rashomon
C. Throne of Blood
D. Seven Samurai

Question 10: Which director helmed the groundbreakingly violent 1969 outlaw Western The Wild Bunch?

A. John Ford
B. Howard Hawks
C. Anthony Mann
D. Sam Peckinpah

Question 11: John Wayne made his breakout role as the Ringo Kid in which 1939 John Ford Western?

A. Rio Grande
B. Fort Apache
C. She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
D. Stagecoach

Question 12: Alan Ladd stars as the enigmatic stranger Shane in which 1953 film?

A. 3:10 to Yuma
B. Shane
C. Winchester ’73
D. The Gunfighter

Question 13: Howard Hawks’ star-studded Western Rio Bravo was released in which year?

A. 1948
B. 1959
C. 1965
D. 1946

Question 14: Ennio Morricone’s famous “Ecstasy of Gold” theme plays during the cemetery sequence in which film?

A. Once Upon a Time in the West
B. A Fistful of Dollars
C. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
D. For a Few Dollars More

Question 15: In the 2010 remake of True Grit, who plays the one-eyed U.S. Marshal Rooster Cogburn?

A. John Wayne
B. Tommy Lee Jones
C. Jeff Bridges
D. Josh Brolin

Question 16: Brad Pitt portrays infamous outlaw Jesse James in which 2007 film?

A. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
B. The Long Riders
C. I Shot Jesse James
D. The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid

Question 17: John Wayne and Montgomery Clift star in Howard Hawks’ cattle-drive epic Red River (1948). What role does Clift play?

A. Matt Garth (Wayne’s adopted son)
B. Cherry Valance
C. Tom Dunson
D. Groot

Question 18: The original 3:10 to Yuma starring Glenn Ford and Van Heflin was released in which year?

A. 1948
B. 1957
C. 1960
D. 1950

Question 19: Kris Kristofferson plays young outlaw Billy the Kid opposite James Coburn’s Pat Garrett in which 1973 Sam Peckinpah film?

A. The Getaway
B. Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid
C. Junior Bonner
D. Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia

Question 20: In John Ford’s My Darling Clementine (1946), Henry Fonda plays which legendary lawman?

A. Bat Masterson
B. Wyatt Earp
C. Wild Bill Hickok
D. Doc Holliday

Answers

  1. C. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid – This George Roy Hill film chronicles the duo’s real-life crimes and Bolivian demise; The Wild Bunch features different outlaws, Cool Hand Luke is prison drama, and The Sting is a con caper.
  2. D. John Ford – Ford’s masterpiece explores revenge and racism; Leone specialised in Spaghetti Westerns, Peckinpah in violent revisionism, and Hawks in ensemble adventures.
  3. C. Blondie – Eastwood’s character is dubbed “Blondie” by Tuco; the others are from his later films like Pale Rider and The Outlaw Josey Wales.
  4. C. Gary Cooper – Cooper won an Oscar for the role; Stewart starred in Winchester ’73, Fonda in My Darling Clementine, Peck in The Gunfighter.
  5. C. Val Kilmer – Kilmer’s portrayal is iconic; Russell plays Wyatt Earp, Biehn Curly Bill, Elliott Virgil Earp.
  6. C. Rooster Cogburn – Wayne’s grizzled performance earned the 1970 Oscar; the other roles were Oscar-nominated but didn’t win.
  7. B. A Fistful of Dollars – It launched Eastwood’s iconic persona; the others follow in the trilogy or Leone’s oeuvre.
  8. B. Unforgiven – Eastwood won Oscars for directing and producing this deconstruction of Western myths; the others are his acting vehicles.
  9. D. Seven Samurai – John Sturges’ remake transplants Kurosawa’s plot to the old West; the others are different samurai tales.
  10. D. Sam Peckinpah – His slow-motion bloodshed redefined the genre; Ford and Hawks favoured heroism, Mann psychological depth.
  11. D. Stagecoach – Wayne’s star-making role; the others are Ford’s Cavalry Trilogy films.
  12. B. Shane – George Stevens’ film is a cornerstone of the genre; the others feature different gunslingers.
  13. B. 1959 – Hawks’ response to High Noon emphasises camaraderie; other years match different Hawks Westerns.
  14. C. The Good, the Bad and the Ugly – The cue underscores Tuco’s frantic search; other Morricone scores define Leone’s films differently.
  15. C. Jeff Bridges – Bridges earned an Oscar nod; Wayne originated in 1969, others play supporting roles.
  16. A. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford – Pitt’s nuanced James anchors the slow-burn drama; others are earlier Jesse films.
  17. A. Matt Garth (Wayne’s adopted son) – Clift’s debut role contrasts Wayne’s authoritarian Tom Dunson; others are side characters.
  18. B. 1957 – Delmer Daves’ tense original; the 2007 remake stars Crowe and Bale.
  19. B. Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid – Peckinpah’s elegiac take; the others are his non-Westerns or different plots.
  20. B. Wyatt Earp – Fonda’s Earp avenges his brother’s murder at the O.K. Corral; others are different frontier figures.

How many did you get right? Share your score in the comments below and challenge your fellow fans to prove their cowboy credentials!