Summary

Kevin Costner aims to revolutionize Western films by focusing on the underrepresented female characters in
Horizon: An American Saga
.
He believes Westerns often rely on lazy gunfight-heavy plots and aims to infuse
Horizon
with authentic scenes that appeal to a wider audience.
The success of
Horizon
at the box office will depend on its ability to stand out amidst a resurgence of Western content and compete with more universally appealing films.

Kevin Costner details what he believes most Western genre films get wrong and explains why Horizon: An American Saga avoids these issues. Costner is about to release the first two installments of his Horizon films, the first of which will be released at the end of the month on June 28. Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 2 will arrive just under two months later, coming out on August 16. Costner is in the lead role in both films, with a supporting cast including Sienna Miller, Sam Worthington, Jena Malone, Owen Crow Shoe, Tatanka Means, Ella Hunt, Giovanni Ribisi, and Tim Guinee.

Speaking with Jake Hamilton on Jake’s Takes, Costner details how his film, Horizon, stands out from other movies within the Western genre.

According to Costner, Westerns are too often inundated with “lazy” approaches and plot points that force gunfights. In his Horizon: An American Saga, he instead spends more time focusing on an underrepresented piece of the Western: the female characters. Costner says that “the strength in Horizon is in the women,” citing specific scenes featuring the women characters. He still has the gunfights and battles, but the women give Horizon heart. Check out the full quote from Costner below:

I think it’s hard to make a good Western. And I think that when people are lazy in their approach, that it’s just dirty, or somebody gets killed in the first minute so the hero gets to kill someone the rest of the movie. I guess if that’s done really well, it could be entertaining, but too often that’s just in a lot of people’s hands, what happens. So it’s no wonder that people rejected Westerns. Because they don’t see themselves in it. But, you know, the strength in Horizon is the women. I have seven women operating in Horizon that you just can’t believe their experience.
And the acting that’s going on. And how hard it was on women. And so, I have the gunfights, I have all the action, I have the stuff. But it comes up, it just comes up in a way that’s genuine. A way that it feels authentic. But in the meantime, I’m dealing with issues like a woman bathing. Just because she just feels so dirty from being where she’s at, and there’s not a woman in the audience that won’t relate to how that water is making her feel. And suddenly, the stage picture changes and something else happens. And so, that’s the kind of thing that I like to infuse a Western with. Is scenes that aren’t normally associated with Westerns.

Will Costner’s Western Stand Out Enough to Succeed At the Box Office?
The Movie May Be Able To Appeal To A Wider Audience

As it hits theaters,
Horizon
‘s success is benefited from the fact that the Western is already on the rise again, as TV shows such as
Yellowstone
and
Lawmen: Bass Reeves
have impressed audiences in recent years.

Implicit in Costner’s response is the fact that films in the Western genre have historically underestimated their female characters. This is even true in some modern Westerns. In Hell or High Water and The Power of the Dog, men are the story’s primary focus, with their wives and other supporting female characters taking a backseat. Women in Westerns have historically been treated like this, often just background characters in a male-centric story.

Costner’s Horizon could then draw a broader audience by focusing on women. As it hits theaters, Horizon’s success is benefited from the fact that the Western is already on the rise again, as TV shows such as Yellowstone and Lawmen: Bass Reeves have impressed audiences in recent years. That said, both Horizon films operated on high budgets, so they need to shine to make back this money and profit. The story’s improved scope is one way the films could bridge that gap, but it is not a sure-fire solution.

Related Kevin Costner’s Horizon Sequel Plan Has A Big Problem Before The First Movie Is Even Out Horizon: An American Saga has always been a big risk for star and creator Kevin Costner, but its most recent problem could threaten the entire saga.

The Horizon films will have to be transcendent so that they can compete against movies with a much more inherent universal appeal. Chapter 1 competes against A Quiet Place: Day One in its opening weekend, facing off against a major horror franchise film. In a similar vein, Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 2’s release coincides with that of Alien: Romulus during its August release.

Source: Jake’s Takes/YouTube

Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 is a Western film directed by Kevin Costner, and sees him in the starring role. The film explores multiple generations surrounding the expansion of the American West before and after the Civil War. Horizon is the first in a series of four films, all of which were greenlit by Warner Bros. Pictures.Director Kevin Costner Release Date June 28, 2024 Studio(s) New Line Cinema , Territory Pictures Distributor(s) Warner Bros. Pictures Writers Jon Baird , Kevin Costner Cast Kevin Costner , Sienna Miller , Sam Worthington , Luke Wilson , Giovanni Ribisi , Thomas Haden Church , Jena Malone , Abbey Lee , Michael Rooker , Danny Huston , Isabelle Fuhrman , Jeff Fahey , Will Patton , Tatanka Means , Ella Hunt , Jamie Campbell Bower Runtime 181 Minutes Expand