- Details
- By Rich Tupica
The 2019 western Badland only saw a limited theatrical release, but the six-shooter flick featuring Native American film legend Wes Studi has since found a second life on Netflix.
Released late last year to little buzz, the old-school style indie-western (which stars the likes of Kevin Makely, Mira Sorvino, Jeff Fahey, Trace Adkins and Bruce Dern) has now reached the Top 10 list on the popular streaming service. Watch the trailer here. Makley, who both produced and starred in Badland, said he was surprised by the support it received from at-home viewers. “It’s unreal,” Makely told the Albuquerque Journal late last week. “When it came out to Netflix, there wasn’t any advertising. The fact that it has organically grown throughout the entire country and peaked at No. 3, it’s mind-blowing. I have so much gratitude, and I still don’t know how to process it.” In the film, detective Matthias Breecher (Makley) is hired to track down the worst of the Confederate war criminals. As he roams the Old West, he is further tested when he meets a determined, mysterious pioneer woman. Upon its release in fall 2019, a Variety review by Joe Leydon called Badland “a solidly crafted piece of work that, despite its leisurely pacing, manages to infuse a respectable amount of fresh vigor into clichés and conventions common to shoot-’em-ups set during the post-Civil War era.” Studi, 72, who portrays Harlan Red in Badland, is also set to star in a string of other upcoming projects While still in pre-production—and on-hold due to the COVID-10 pandemic—his future workload includes spots in these films: Into the Fire, Mountain Summer, Candles, Duke City, Nothing, Arizona, Terra Infirmaand The Pipeline.
Movie poster for 2019’s “Badland”
While he’s enjoyed Hollywood success since the 1980s, in a candid 2018 NPR interview, Studi recalled his humble upbringing in the Cherokee Nation of eastern Oklahoma, where he was born and raised in the Nofire Hollow valley.
“In the beginning, we were pretty much subsistence farmers and hunters," he told NPR’s Steve Inskeep. “As a child, I remember going into town by wagon one time and it was an all-day journey. “We didn’t have electricity, but we did have relatives who lived above and beyond the hollow that we lived in,” he added. “They were one of the first families in the area, in the Cherokee Nation, to have electricity. And that was the first time I ever saw television, was when I was maybe 4 years old or thereabouts … That was the first that we ever encountered electricity and television and what we consider, you know, part of the modern world these days.”
More Stories Like This
Native News Weekly (August 25, 2024): D.C. BriefsUS Presidents in Their Own Words Concerning American Indians
Native News Weekly (August 4, 2024): D.C. Briefs
Seattle Seahawks Tackle Preservation Projects at Daybreak Star Indian Cultural Center for Annual Day of Service
Native News Weekly (June 15, 2025): D.C. Briefs
Help us tell the stories that could save Native languages and food traditions
At a critical moment for Indian Country, Native News Online is embarking on our most ambitious reporting project yet: "Cultivating Culture," a three-year investigation into two forces shaping Native community survival—food sovereignty and language revitalization.
The devastating impact of COVID-19 accelerated the loss of Native elders and with them, irreplaceable cultural knowledge. Yet across tribal communities, innovative leaders are fighting back, reclaiming traditional food systems and breathing new life into Native languages. These aren't just cultural preservation efforts—they're powerful pathways to community health, healing, and resilience.
Our dedicated reporting team will spend three years documenting these stories through on-the-ground reporting in 18 tribal communities, producing over 200 in-depth stories, 18 podcast episodes, and multimedia content that amplifies Indigenous voices. We'll show policymakers, funders, and allies how cultural restoration directly impacts physical and mental wellness while celebrating successful models of sovereignty and self-determination.
This isn't corporate media parachuting into Indian Country for a quick story. This is sustained, relationship-based journalism by Native reporters who understand these communities. It's "Warrior Journalism"—fearless reporting that serves the 5.5 million readers who depend on us for news that mainstream media often ignores.
We need your help right now. While we've secured partial funding, we're still $450,000 short of our three-year budget. Our immediate goal is $25,000 this month to keep this critical work moving forward—funding reporter salaries, travel to remote communities, photography, and the deep reporting these stories deserve.
Every dollar directly supports Indigenous journalists telling Indigenous stories. Whether it's $5 or $50, your contribution ensures these vital narratives of resilience, innovation, and hope don't disappear into silence.
The stakes couldn't be higher. Native languages are being lost at an alarming rate. Food insecurity plagues many tribal communities. But solutions are emerging, and these stories need to be told.
Support independent Native journalism. Fund the stories that matter.
Levi Rickert (Potawatomi), Editor & Publisher