A remake of one of the best western movies ever made is finding renewed success on streaming. The western genre is filled with all-time greats, like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, True Grit, The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, The Searchers, The Wild Bunch, and so many more. But, to many, the definitive classic western has to be The Magnificent Seven. Inspired by Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai, the story of seven gunslingers joining together to defend a small town is still being retold in various forms today. Many interpretations of the story take a new form, like the anime, Samurai 7, which added in mech robots and magic. But, in 2016, Hollywood attempted to give The Magnificent Seven a fresh coat of paint. It might not have been the modern classic fans were hoping for, but it was still a decent modern western, and it has become a big hit on streaming.
The 2016 remake of The Magnificent Seven is currently streaming on MGM+. At the time of writing, it is the 10th most popular movie on the platform. Directed by Antoine Fuqua (The Equalizer), the film starred Denzel Washington as Chisolm, the leader of the ragtag group of cowboys who are hired to protect a small mining town. Joining Washington for the remake was an A-list supporting cast that included Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Vincent D’Onofrio, Lee Byung-hun, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Haley Bennett, Peter Sarsgaard, and the late Jonathan Joss. The official synopsis reads:
“Looking to mine for gold, greedy industrialist Bartholomew Bogue seizes control of the Old West town of Rose Creek. With their lives in jeopardy, Emma Cullen and other desperate residents turn to bounty hunter Sam Chisolm (Denzel Washington) for help. Chisolm recruits an eclectic group of gunslingers to take on Bogue and his ruthless henchmen. With a deadly showdown on the horizon, the seven mercenaries soon find themselves fighting for more than just money once the bullets start to fly.”
The Magnificent Seven was a modest hit when it was released in 2016. Critics thought it was entertaining enough and bestowed it with a 64% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, although audiences enjoyed it a lot more, as it holds a 71% audience rating. That being said, the film failed to make an impact at the box office. The Magnificent Seven remake earned $162 million worldwide, against a budget of $90 million. While it was by no means a failure, it wasn’t much of a success either.
Why Was ‘The Magnificent Seven’ Remake Divisive?
The penultimate word in the above headline should give away why 2016’s The Magnificent Seven was divisive upon its release. While the film has been mostly forgotten now, aside from by those who really enjoyed the modern interpretation, many felt that remaking The Magnificent Seven was completely unnecessary.
Released in 1960, John Sturges’ The Magnificent Seven is often hailed as one of the all-time greats of the western genre. Yul Brynner as Chris Adams, Charles Bronson as Bernardo O’Reilly, and Steve McQueen as Vin were iconic in their respective roles, and the film went on to inspire a whole generation of filmmakers.
