When thinking of the most famous names in Western movie history, you might first think of John Wayne, Clint Eastwood, Henry Fonda, or James Stewart. The modern equivalent of the great stars of yesteryear is Kevin Costner, known as the face of many beloved Western projects, including John Dutton in Taylor Sheridan‘s hugely popular Yellowstone, Charley Waite in Open Range, and more. Although his time in Yellowstone might’ve ended in controversy, it doesn’t change the fact that Costner is the face of the genre for a new generation of fans.

But of his many performances in the genre, nothing can top Dances with Wolves, a film that stood tall during a turbulent time for Westerns when studios started seeing the genre as obsolete and became a huge commercial and critical success. At the box office, against a reported budget of just $19 million, Costner‘s three-hour epic returned an enormous $424 million, split between a domestic haul of $184 million and a further $240 million from overseas markets. At the time, the film broke the record for highest-grossing Western ever, a feat only eclipsed once since, courtesy of a $450 million run for Django Unchained, which was written and directed by Quentin Tarantino.

Not just a hit in theaters, Dances with Wolves also wowed critics, earning universal praise and making a huge splash during awards season. This was most evident at the March 1991 Academy Awards, where the film earned an eye-watering 12 nominations. Of these 12, Dances with Wolves won 7, including victories in the likes of Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, and more.

‘Dances with Wolves’ Is Set to Be Remastered

36 years after it dominated film discourse, Dances with Wolves is making a return, courtesy of a new 4K restoration that will launch at the upcoming Locarno Film Festival. On August 7, this special, nearly four-hour extended edition, which features over half an hour of previously unseen additional material, will premiere on the giant screen of the Swiss lakeside fest’s large outdoor Piazza Grande venue as part of its Histoire(s) du Cinema section. In a statement, the festival said:

“Costner’s Western epic, which won seven Academy Awards, including best picture and best director, helped redefine the Western at the turn of the 1990s and drew global attention to the historical plight of Indigenous peoples on the American continent.”

via Collider