True Grit (film series)

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True Grit
Official film series logo, as released in 1969.
Starring
Production
company
Distributed bySony Pictures Entertainment
Release date
1969-2010
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget>$35,900,000
(Cumulative of 4 films)
Box office$297,936,828
(Cumulative of 3 theatrical films)[1][2][3]

The True Grit film series consists of American western dramas, including theatrical and made-for-television installments. The plot follows the adventures of Reuben J. "Rooster" Cogburn in the Old American West, and detail his role in bringing justice to outlaws and bandits who wrongfully terrorize small towns and villages. Each movie includes his voyages with women he is tasked with protecting, despite his apprehensions.

The 1969 original film proved to be a success with a positive response from critics,[4] and a profit at the box office.[1] Conversely the 1975 sequel however, received mixed reception from critics and audiences alike,[5] with commercial receipts earning a fraction of the income received through the first installment;[2] many referred to the movie as inferior its predecessor.[6] Similarly, the made-for-television third movie received muddled reception from critics and viewers alike, with critiques angled at its new cast and the story which was called "generic".[7][8] Despite this, the 2010 adaptation was met with positive reception both critically and financially.[9][3] It was later nominated for a total of 10 Oscars.[10]

Origin[edit]

Main article: True Grit (novel)

The 1968 American Western novel authored by Charles Portis, serves as the origin basis of the True Grit film series. Originally released as an ongoing serial in The Saturday Evening Post, the story was compiled and released as a novel later that year through Simon & Schuster publishing. Set during the American Old West, the plot centers around Mattie Ross who recounts the events from her past, when she with the help of a U.S. Marshal named Reuben J. "Rooster" Cogburn sought justice for her murdered father and pursued an outlaw. The novel was considered the book to be classic literature and categorically a Great American Novel.[11][12]

When the film rights were acquired by Paramount Pictures, filmmaker Henry Hathaway optioned to take a more fictionalized approach to the story stating that he viewed the novel as "a fairytale... a fantasy that I couched in as realistic terms as possible."[13]

Films[edit]

Film U.S. release date Director Screenwriter(s) Producer(s)
True Grit June 13, 1969 (1969-06-13) Henry Hathaway Marguerite Roberts Hal B. Wallis
Rooster Cogburn (...and the Lady) November 7, 1975 (1975-11-07) Stuart Millar Martin Julien
True Grit: A Further Adventure May 19, 1978 (1978-05-19) Richard T. Heffron Sandor Stern
True Grit December 22, 2010 (2010-12-22) Joel Coen & Ethan Coen Joel Coen, Ethan Coen and Scott Rudin

True Grit (1969)[edit]

Main article: True Grit (1969 film)

After an outlaw named Tom Chaney murders her father, Mattie Ross seeks the help of a U.S. Marshal named Reuben J. "Rooster" Cogburn to assist her in continuing her pursuit to avenge her father by following Chaney into Native American territory. Along the way the pair form an alliance with a Texas Ranger named LaBoeuf, who is conducting a manhunt of his own given that Chaney is wanted for the assassination of a U.S. senator. The trio of allies find that they have their differences, as they seek to receive an award for his capture.[14][15][16]

Rooster Cogburn (...and the Lady) (1975)[edit]

Main article: Rooster Cogburn (film)

When a small village is overtaken by a group of violent outlaws, "Rooster" Cogburn is hired to defeat or apprehend the bandits. After previously being removed from his position as a U.S. Marshal due to some unruly behavior, Cogburn is determined to regain his notability and determines to also recover their hijacked shipment of explosives as well. Upon setting out on his journey, to Rooster's dismay he is once again accompanied by a young woman named Eula Goodnight; who wants to also avenge the wrongs of her town and the murder of her father. Together, the unlikely pair must work together to bring the men to justice.[6][17][18]

True Grit: A Further Adventure (1978)[edit]

Main article: True Grit: A Further Adventure

When Mattie Ross is once again in need of his assistance, "Rooster" Cogburn is hired to accompany her in the journey across the country to her grandfather's homestead. Unbeknownst to him, Mattie is determined to reform his ways and help him to become more proper along the way. Though he has apprehensions in yet again being tasked with the safety of a young woman, Rooster agrees to be her armed chaperone. Paid by the family's lawyer, the pair continue to voice their differences as they had before. Upon spending all of the money, Cogburn decides that they will make a stop at the home of the Sumner family; with intentions to in so doing complete one of the many tasks on his ever-growing list. After bringing the family the troubling news that Mr. Jake Sumner was killed, he sets out to find ways that he can assist the widowed Annie Sumner from losing the ranch, keep the Sumner boys from getting into conflicts, keeping Mattie safe, and earning more cash to assist them in their cross-country voyage.[7][8][19]

True Grit (2010)[edit]

Main article: True Grit (2010 film)

In March 2009, a new adaptation of the titular novel was in development. Joel and Ethan Coen were named as directors from a script of their own. The movie was described as more than a remake, serving as a more faithful adaptation of the source material. The plot would center around the character of Mattie Ross, and approach the story from her point of view as opposed to that of Reuben "Rooster" Cogburn. The project was announced to be a joint-venture production between Paramount Pictures, Skydance Productions, Mike Zoss Productions, DreamWorks Pictures, and Scott Rudin Productions.[20] Hailee Steinfeld, Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, and Josh Brolin lead the cast as Mattie, Rooster, LaBoeuf, and Tom Chaney, respectively.

The film was released on December 22, 2010.[21][22][23][24][25] True Grit received critical acclaim and was a success at the box office; and was later nominated for ten Academy Awards.[10]

Main cast and characters[edit]

List indicator(s)

This section includes characters who will appear or have appeared in more than two films in the series.

  • An empty, dark grey cell indicates the character was not in the film, or that the character's official presence has not yet been confirmed.
  •  C indicates a cameo role.
  •  V indicates a voice-only role.
Character Films
True Grit
(1969) 		Rooster Cogburn
(...and the Lady) 		True Grit:
A Further Adventure 		True Grit
(2010)
Reuben J. "Rooster" Cogburn John Wayne Warren Oates Jeff Bridges
Mattie Ross Kim Darby Lisa Pelikan Hailee Steinfeld
Elizabeth MarvelO[a]
TX Ranger LaBoeuf Glen Campbell Matt Damon
Tom Chaney Jeff Corey Josh Brolin
Emmett Quincy Jeremy Slate Paul Rae
"Lucky" Ned Pepper Robert Duvall Barry Pepper
Moon the Kid Dennis Hopper Domhnall Gleeson
Eula Goodnight Katharine Hepburn
Wolf Richard Romancito
Breed Anthony Zerbe
Hawk Richard Jordan
Judge Isaac Charles Parker James Westerfield John McIntire Jake Walker
Annie Sumner Lee Meriwether
Joshua Sumner James Stephens
Christopher Sumner Jeff Osterhage
Daniel Sumner Lee Montgomery

Additional production and crew details[edit]

Film Crew/Detail
Composer Cinematographer Editor Production
companies 		Distributing
companies 		Running time
True Grit Elmer Bernstein Carter Burwell Warren Low Paramount Pictures,
Hal Wallis Productions 		Paramount Pictures 2 hrs 8 mins
Rooster Cogburn
(...and the Lady) 		Laurence Rosenthal Harry Stradling Jr. Robert Swink Hal Wallis Productions,
Polyphony Digital 		Universal Pictures 1 hr 48 mins
True Grit:
A Further Adventure 		Earle Hagen Stevan Larner Jerry Lynn Young Paramount Television American Broadcasting Company (ABC) 1 hr 40 mins
True Grit
(2010) 		Carter Burwell Roger Deakins Roderick Jaynes Paramount Pictures,
DreamWorks Pictures,
Skydance Productions,
Scott Rudin Productions,
Mike Zoss Productions 		Paramount Picutures 1 hr 50 mins

Reception[edit]

For more details on the reception of each film, see the "Reception" section in each film's article.

Box office and financial performance[edit]

Film Box office gross Box office ranking Total home
video sales 		Budget Worldwide net
total income 		Ref.
North America Other territories Worldwide All-time
North America 		All-time
worldwide
True Grit (1969) $31,132,592 $6,527,308 $37,659,900 #2,879 #5,744 Information not publicly available $900,000 ≥$36,759,900 [1][26][27]
Rooster Cogburn (...and the Lady) $8,000,000 — $8,000,000 #5,734 #8,266 Information not publicly available Information not publicly available ≤$8,000,000 [2][28]
True Grit: A Further Adventure — — — — — Information not publicly available Information not publicly available Information not publicly available —
True Grit (2010) $171,243,005 $81,033,923 $252,276,928 #323 #1,334 $41,928,353 $35,000,000 $259,205,281 [3][29]
Totals $210,375,597 $87,561,231 $297,936,828 x̄ #2,234 x̄ #3,836 >$41,928,353 >$35,900,000 ≥$303,965,181

Critical and public response[edit]

Film Rotten Tomatoes Metacritic CinemaScore
True Grit (1969) 88% (56 reviews)[4] 83/100 (17 reviews)[30] —
Rooster Cogburn (...and the Lady) 45% (11 reviews)[5] — —
True Grit: A Further Adventure TBD[31] — —
True Grit (2010) 95% (279 reviews)[9] 80/100 (41 reviews)[32] B+[33]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Ruth Morris, a real-life amputee served as the body-double during various scenes depicting the character at an older age.

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "True Grit (1969)". The Numbers. Nash Information Services LLC. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c "Rooster Cogburn (...and the Lady)". The Numbers. Nash Information Services LLC. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c "True Grit (2010)". The Numbers. Nash Information Services LLC. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  4. ^ a b "True Grit". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  5. ^ a b "Rooster Cogburn". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  6. ^ a b Ebert, Roger (January 1, 1975). "Rooster Cogburn". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  7. ^ a b Leland, Jedadiah (February 7, 2022). "True Grit: A Further Adventure (1978, directed by Richard T. Heffron)". Through the Shattered Lens. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  8. ^ a b "True Grit (1978)". The Movie Scene. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  9. ^ a b "True Grit". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  10. ^ a b "The 83rd Academy Awards (2011) Nominees and Winners". Oscars. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  11. ^ Lehmann, Chris (June 2, 2006). "Pelecanos on the Enduring Power of 'True Grit'". NPR. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  12. ^ Jones, Malcolm (December 9, 2010). "True Lit". Newsweek. Archived from the original on 2010-12-11. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  13. ^ Eyman, Scott (September–October 1974). "'I made movies' an interview with Henry Hathaway". Take One. p. 12. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
  14. ^ Ebert, Roger (July 1, 1969). "True Grit". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  15. ^ Walsh, Moira (July 19, 1969). "'True Grit,' Reviewed: From July 19, 1969". America Magazine. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  16. ^ Tobias, Scott (June 11, 2019). "True Grit at 50: the throwback western that gave John Wayne his only Oscar". The Guardian. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  17. ^ Canby, Vincent (October 18, 1975). "Screen: A Recycled 'Rooster Cogburn':Wayne and Hepburn in 'True Grit' Spin-Off Eccentric Chase Turns Into Cheerful Comedy". The New York Times. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  18. ^ DeWelles, Orson (March 28, 2014). "Rooster Cogburn (1975) with John Wayne and Katharine Hepburn". Classic Film Freak. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  19. ^ Castagnera, Jim (December 28, 2010). "True Grit". The History Place. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  20. ^ Fleming, Michael (March 22, 2009). "Coen brothers to adapt 'True Grit'". Variety. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
  21. ^ McCarthy, Todd (December 1, 2010). "True Grit: Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  22. ^ Ebert, Roger (December 21, 2010). "You'd want Mattie Ross guarding your back". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  23. ^ Travers, Peter (December 22, 2010). "True Grit". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  24. ^ Errigo, Angie (March 23, 2009). "True Grit Review". Empire. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  25. ^ Debruge, Peter (December 1, 2010). "True Grit". Variety. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  26. ^ "True Grit (1969)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  27. ^ "True Grit - Investing Media". News Education Investing. Pinterest. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  28. ^ "Rooster Cogburn (...and the Lady)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  29. ^ "True Grit (2010)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  30. ^ "True Grit". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  31. ^ "True Grit: A Further Adventure". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  32. ^ "True Grit". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
  33. ^ "CinemaScore". CinemaScore. Archived from the original on April 13, 2022. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
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