This is a list of notable

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

films and TV series, ordered by year and decade of release. For a long-running TV series, the year is its first in production. The movie industry began with the work of

Louis Le Prince Louis Aimé Augustin Le Prince (28 August 1841 – disappeared 16 September 1890, declared dead 16 September 1897) was a French artist and the inventor of an early motion-picture camera, possibly the first person to shoot a moving picture sequ ...

in 1888. Until 1903, films had been one-reelers, usually lasting 10 to 12 minutes, reflecting the amount of film that could be wound onto a standard reel for projection, hence the term.

Edwin S. Porter Edwin Stanton Porter (April 21, 1870 – April 30, 1941) was an American film pioneer, most famous as a producer, director, studio manager and cinematographer with the Edison Manufacturing Company and the Famous Players Film Company. Of over ...

was a former projectionist and exhibitor who had taken charge of motion-picture production at

Thomas Edison Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventio ...

's company in

1901 Events January * January 1 – The Crown colony, British colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria (Australia), Victoria and Western Australia Federation of Australia, federate as the Australia, ...

. He fully realised the potential of motion pictures as an entertainment medium and began making longer films that told a story. As with the films of

Georges Méliès Marie-Georges-Jean Méliès (; ; 8 December 1861 – 21 January 1938) was a French illusionist, actor, and film director. He led many technical and narrative developments in the earliest days of cinema. Méliès was well known for the use of ...

, these required multiple shots that could be edited into a narrative sequence. The most famous work of early movies, '' The Great Train Robbery'' is credited with establishing the movies as a commercial entertainment medium. It was notable for rapid shifts of location, including action on a moving train. Although there had previously been short films that referenced the

Wild West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...

or paid homage to it, ''The Great Train Robbery'' marked the birth of the genre. Many movies and television programs and series were filmed at

movie ranch A movie ranch is a ranch that is at least partially dedicated for use as a set in the creation and production of motion pictures and television shows. These were developed in the United States in southern California, because of the climate. The fir ...

es, primarily in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

, often within the 35-mile limit to avoid

union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

travel stipends. Some were owned by the studios, but others were independent. In the 1960s,

Spaghetti Western The Spaghetti Western is a broad subgenre of Western films produced in Europe. It emerged in the mid-1960s in the wake of Sergio Leone's film-making style and international box-office success. The term was used by foreign critics because most o ...

s grew in popularity. These films were produced by Italians and Spaniards and shot in their countries with big American stars like Clint Eastwood or Henry Fonda. Films such as those of

Sergio Leone Sergio Leone (; 3 January 1929 – 30 April 1989) was an Italian film director, producer and screenwriter credited as the pioneer of the Spaghetti Western genre and widely regarded as one of the most influential directors in the history of cin ...

's ''

Dollars Trilogy ''Dollars Trilogy'' ( it, link=no, Trilogia del dollaro), also known as the ''Man with No Name Trilogy'' ( it, link=no, Trilogia dell'Uomo senza nome) or the ''Blood Money Trilogy'', is an Italian film series consisting of three Spaghetti Weste ...

'' spawned numerous films of the same ilk and often similar titles, particularly from the mid- to late-1960s and early 1970s.

Period lists

List of Western films before 1920 A list of the earliest Western films, by decade, released before 1920. 1890s 1894 * ''Annie Oakley'' * '' Bucking Broncho'' * '' Buffalo Bill'' * '' Buffalo Dance'' * '' Lasso Thrower'' * '' Mexican Knife Duel'' * '' Sioux Ghost Dance'' These e ...

List of Western films of the 1920s A list of Western films released in the 1920s. All films are silent unless otherwise designated as a "talkie". {{Filmsbygenre * 1920 Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a t ...

List of Western films of the 1930s A list of Western films released in the 1930s. {{Filmsbygenre * 1930 Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia ...

List of Western films of the 1940s A list of Western films released in the 1940s. TV series see, List of TV Westerns {{Films by genre * 1940 Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Cr ...

List of Western films 1950–1954 A list of Western films released from 1950 to 1954. TV series of 1950s see, List of TV Westerns {{DEFAULTSORT:List of Western films 1950-54 * 1950 Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western ...

List of Western films 1955–1959 A list of Western films released from 1955 to 1959. TV series of 1950s see, List of TV Westerns {{DEFAULTSORT:List of Western films 1955-59 * 1955 Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Weste ...

List of Western films of the 1960s A list of Western films released in the 1960s. TV series of the 1960s *List of Westerns on television References {{Films by genre * Western 1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the ind ...

List of Western films of the 1970s A list of Western films released in the 1970s. TV series of 1970s see, List of TV Westerns References {{Filmsbygenre * 1970 Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in ...

List of Western films of the 1980s A list of Western films released in the 1980s. See also * List of TV Westerns References {{Filmsbygenre 1980 Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Wes ...

List of Western films of the 1990s A list of Western films released in the 1990s. TV series of the 1990s {{Filmsbygenre * 1990 Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, ...

List of Western films of the 2000s A list of Western films released in the 2000s. TV shows of the 2000s see List of TV Westerns References {{Reflist * 2000 Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in th ...

List of Western films of the 2010s A list of Western films released in the 2010s. TV shows of the 2010s See: List of Western television series References {{Filmsbygenre * 2010 Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, Ne ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Western

Western films Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...