Those on the hunt for a gritty, character-driven Western not written by Taylor Sheridan should check out Netflix’s “Godless.”
A far cry from the contemporary settings of Sheridan’s “Yellowstone” and “Landman,” but a bit closer to his period “Yellowstone” prequels “1883” and “1923,” “Godless” takes place in late-1880s New Mexico. The seven-episode miniseries centers on the town of La Belle, where women have taken the reins after most of the men died in a mining accident. When on-the-run outlaw Roy Goode (Jack O’Connell) seeks refuge nearby, his former gang leader’s pursuit threatens the town’s survival.
When it dropped its lone season on Netflix in 2017, “Godless” received favorable reviews from critics and audiences, who praised its talented cast and its take on classic Western action and drama. “Godless” also won three Emmy Awards — two of which were for Merritt Wever’s performance as the sheriff’s sister Mary Agnes McNue and Jeff Daniels’ portrayal of the villainous outlaw Frank Griffin.
How Godless differs from most Westerns
Like Taylor Sheridan’s Westerns, “Godless” explores complex family dynamics, but it sets itself apart by placing the women of La Belle at the center of its story. The miniseries brings a fresh perspective to a genre historically dominated by male gunslingers, sheriffs, cowboys, and the like.
Series creator and director Scott Frank had wanted to write a Western for years, and “Godless” became his first. For the Netflix miniseries, Frank embraced the conventions of classic Western shows while drawing inspiration from real accounts of women left to sustain mining towns after deadly accidents.
In a 2017 interview with NPR’s “Fresh Air,” Frank explained how he approached the genre. “I love the Western so much,” he said. “Why not embrace every single cliche I can think of from the breaking of horses, to the train robberies, to the two guys facing each other in the street — all of that stuff? The mysterious loner — why not find a way to put them all in here and see if I can do it in some sort of different way?”
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