Top 10 Walter Brennan Movies

Walter Brennan was a prolific actor best known for his 'old hayseed' roles. Brennan was often cast as a bumbling or grouchy old cowboy that played off of the straight roles of the leading men. However Walter Brennan was a serious actor receiving many best supporting actor awards. At times, Brennan even upstaged the big name lead stars that he appeared with (see The Westerner below).

While I can't say that I have seen every movie that Walter Brennan made, here are my picks for his top ten movies in no particular order. These are not necessarily great Brennan roles (but some are), but rather great movies in which he appeared. If you have other suggestions, feel free to place them in the comments section.

The Westerner (1940) This is perhaps Brennan's greatest role. Gary Cooper played the leading role and Brennan appeared as Cooper's protagonist. In my opinion, Brennan steals the show from Cooper which is quite a feat.

Support Your Local Sheriff (1969) This movie is a comedy that spoofs Westerns, yet is not offensive to fans of the Western. James Garner plays the sheriff and Brennan plays a sort of characterization of his usual roles.

Sergeant York (1941) Gary Cooper is definitely the star of this movie, but Brennan plays an important role as the small town shopkeeper / preacher.

The Invisible Man (1933) This movie freaked me out as a kid. I still like it today, you should read the book and watch the movie. Claude Rains stars.

The Pride of the Yankees (1942) Excellent portrayal of New York Yankee great Lou Gehrig.

How the West Was Won (1963) This huge star studded movie (actually 5 in one) casts Walter Brennan as crooked merchant preying on Jimmy Stewart and others. Other stars in this movie include John Wayne, Gregory Peck, Henry Fonda, George Peppard, and Eli Wallach.

Rio Bravo (1959) This classic Western stars John Wayne (the good guy) and Dean Martin (the bad guy). Walter Brennan plays one of his standard roles as John Wayne's sidekick.

Meet John Doe (1941) This movie is along the lines of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, but is certainly a good movie in its own right.