All they wanted was their chance to be men... and he gave it to them.
When his cattlemen abandon him for the gold fields, rancher Wil Andersen is forced to take on a collection of young boys as his cowboys in order to get his herd to market in time to avoid financial disaster. The boys learn to do a man's job under Andersen's tutelage, however, neither he nor the boys know that a gang of cattle thieves is stalking them.
The Cowboys (1972) is a western, adventure, drama and action film directed by Mark Rydell, released on January 13, 1972 with a runtime of 2h 14m. It stars John Wayne, Roscoe Lee Browne, Bruce Dern and Colleen Dewhurst. Viewers rate it 7.1 out of 10 across 275 ratings.
Watch the official trailer for The Cowboys before you stream it.
Official trailers, teasers, clips and featurettes for The Cowboys.
Trailer
Clip
Featurette
John Wayne
as Wil Andersen
Roscoe Lee Browne
as Jebediah Nightlinger
Bruce Dern
as Long Hair
Colleen Dewhurst
as Kate
Alfred Barker Jr.
as Cowboy Fats
Nicolas Beauvy
as Cowboy Dan
Steve Benedict
as Cowboy Steve
Robert Carradine
as Cowboy Slim Honeycutt
Norman Howell
as Cowboy Weedy
Stephen R. Hudis
as Cowboy Charlie Schwartz
Sean Kelly
as Cowboy Stuttering Bob
A Martinez
as Cowboy Cimarron
Directed by Mark Rydell, written by Irving Ravetch, William Dale Jennings and William Dale Jennings, produced by Mark Rydell.
Average viewer score of 7.1/10 from 275 ratings.
The Breaking of Boys and the Making of Men. The Cowboys is directed by Mark Rydell and adapted from the novel written by William Dale Jennings; who co-writes the screenplay with Irving Ravetch & Harriet Frank Jr. It stars John Wayne, Roscoe Lee Browne, Bruce Dern and Colleen Dewhurst. John Williams scores the music and Robert Surtees is the cinematographer. Plot sees Wayne as tough cattleman Wil Andersen, who after…
Reviewed on May 29, 2019
“Anderson” (John Wayne) is left short-handed by a gold rush and with his herd to get to market has to resort to engaging the services of a class of school boys who are offered $50 each if they help out. None of those lads are much over fifteen and few have any experience wrangling, so it’s going to be a tough challenge. Fortunately the veteran “Nightlinger” (Roscoe Lee Brown) happens by and agrees to bring along…
Reviewed on February 26, 2025
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The Cowboys (1972) is available to stream on Howdy Amazon Channel, and to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube and Fandango At Home. Streaming availability is checked against JustWatch data and can change by region.
The main cast of The Cowboys (1972) includes John Wayne, Roscoe Lee Browne, Bruce Dern, Colleen Dewhurst and Alfred Barker Jr.. The film was directed by Mark Rydell. You can see the full cast and crew list, with character names, further up this page.
The Cowboys was released on January 13, 1972 and runs for 2h 14m.
The Cowboys (1972) holds an average rating of 7.1 out of 10 from 275 viewer votes, and is a good pick if you enjoy western, adventure and drama films. Read the viewer reviews on this page to decide for yourself.
Yes. The official The Cowboys trailer is embedded in the trailer section of this page and plays instantly, no download or sign-up required.
