A 2014 Western comedy that struggled with critics and audiences is getting another chance with streaming viewers more than a decade later.
A Million Ways to Die in the West is currently one of the most popular movies on HBO Max worldwide, ranking No. 8 on FlixPatrol’s Oct. 31 chart. The movie is one of several older titles finding an audience on the service alongside newer releases.
The movie has a surprisingly stacked cast, too. Seth MacFarlane directed, co-wrote, and stars in the Western comedy alongside Charlize Theron, Amanda Seyfried, Neil Patrick Harris, Sarah Silverman, and Liam Neeson.
Liam Neeson Plays the Villain
MacFarlane stars as Albert Stark, a sheep farmer living in the Old West who isn’t exactly cut out for the dangers of frontier life.
After Albert loses his girlfriend, Louise, played by Seyfried, he meets Anna, a mysterious woman played by Theron who helps him find some courage. There’s just one problem: Anna is married to Clinch Leatherwood, a notorious outlaw played by Neeson.
When Clinch arrives in town, Albert suddenly has a very good reason to be afraid. The movie also features a lengthy list of recognizable stars in supporting roles and cameos, including Giovanni Ribisi, Wes Studi, John Aylward, and Christopher Lloyd.
The Movie Wasn’t a Hit With Critics
Despite its impressive cast, A Million Ways to Die in the West didn’t exactly receive a warm welcome when it hit theaters.
Rotten Tomatoes currently gives the movie a 33% Tomatometer score from 210 critics, while its audience score sits at 41% from more than 50,000 ratings. The site’s critics consensus describes the movie as overlong and scattershot despite its talented cast and occasional laughs.
The movie currently holds a 6.1/10 rating on IMDb as well.
That reception didn’t stop the movie from attracting plenty of recognizable names, however. The cast is arguably one of the movie’s biggest selling points, particularly for viewers who enjoy spotting unexpected celebrity cameos.
It Didn’t Make Back Much More Than Its Budget
The movie’s theatrical performance also helps explain why it’s often remembered as a box-office disappointment.
According to Box Office Mojo, A Million Ways to Die in the West made $43.1 million domestically and $44.1 million internationally for a worldwide total of about $87.2 million. The movie had a reported $40 million production budget.
It opened with $16.8 million domestically and finished its theatrical run well behind some of the year’s bigger releases.
So while the movie technically earned more worldwide than its production budget, that figure doesn’t account for marketing and distribution costs, making its theatrical run far from the breakout success Universal likely hoped for.
