While Westerns have been an integral part of the cinematic ecosystem since the earliest days of the medium, the genre has seen just as much success on television. Classic Western shows like Rawhide and Gunsmoke brought the exciting, action-packed adventures often seen in Western films to the small screen and fleshed out their narratives in far more depth than what the parameters of a two-hour film allow. In the 21st century, western television has seen many novel reinventions, such as the Shakespearean tragedy of David Milch’s work on Deadwood and the science fiction twists of Jonathan Nolan’s reboot of Westworld. While Western television is often an exciting piece of escapism, the genre is rarely reflected in a historically accurate way in prestige shows. However, the brilliant 2017 Netflix miniseries Godless drew from historical facts about America’s frontier era to become the most accurate Western show of all time.

What Is ‘Godless’ About?

Set two decades after the ending of the American Civil War, Godless explores the remote colony of La Belle, New Mexico, a peaceful community largely disenfranchised from the larger conflicts within the frontier. As Marshal John Cooke (Sam Waterston) travels across the frontier in search of the notorious mercenary Frank Griffin (Jeff Daniels) and his gang, he discovers that the outlaw’s son-in-law, Roy Goode (Jack O’Connell), betrayed him and was left for dead. As the residents of La Belle nurse Roy back to health, he’s surprised to find that the town is entirely run by women. While Western archetypes like outlaws, gunslingers, and marshals play prominent roles in the series, Godless is a far less idealized version of history compared to other western television shows.

Series creator Scott Frank revealed that he began working on the idea because of his fascination with history, “creating that world, working in period, learning how people spoke.” While this level of attention to detail is common within Frank’s work, Godless’ immersive story structure allows it to give insight into the day-to-day lifestyle of its characters. While the mounting tension of Frank’s return to take vengeance on the citizens of La Belle adds tension to the narrative, a majority of Godless involves Roy being re-acclimated to society. As Roy’s freedom becomes a subject of debate between the rancher Alice Fletcher (Michelle Dockery) and the headstrong widow Mary Agnes McNue (Merritt Weaver), Godless gives explores how decisions are made in fringe communities.

While Frank was interested in incorporating recurring elements common within the westerns of John Ford and Preston Sturges, Godless was based on extensive research conducted on the development of small mining towns. Inspired by Robert Altman’s 1971 western classic McCabe & Mrs. Miller, Frank took an extended trip to New Mexico where he visited many of the historical sites that inspired La Belle. Rather than starting his script by conceiving his characters, Frank sought deeper knowledge of the reality these communities faced and created characters that could realistically survive the harsh living conditions. Calling it a “reverse adaptation,” Frank said that “there were a lot of characters I wanted to go deeper with and wanted to explore.”

‘Godless’ Is Loosely Inspired by a True Story

While characters like Frank, Roy, Mary, and Alice are fictional creations, the story of Godless is based on the real history of La Belle, New Mexico. The small settlement emerged in the 1890s during the Gold Rush and attracted a robust population of ambitious fortune seekers determined to strip the land of its resources. After the gold was discovered to be relatively low grade, La Belle was almost completely abandoned by the dawn of the 10th century. While the tragic mining disaster that claimed the lives of many of the men in La Belle did not occur within the actual town, Frank stated that similar accidents occurred within its sister communities. While mining accidents might not seem like an exciting plot point compared to the more fanciful narratives within popular period television westerns, it was a reality that many on the frontier had to deal with.

Although Frank’s experiences researching in New Mexico were highly informative within the creative inception of Godless, La Belle was also inspired by the town of Jackson, Wyoming. After the town was damaged by an influx of public waste, Jackson elected an all-female governing board to deal with its infrastructural issues. Frank saw this as evidence that frontier towns governed by female leadership were prosperous, as they were distanced enough from more socially conservative communities that they could reject discriminatory laws regarding women in government. Feminism is a recurring theme throughout Godless, as Weaver and Dockery portray characters that take on traditionally “masculine” roles of leadership and protection. The rise of women in positions of authority occurred throughout the Depression era.

‘Godless’ Has a More Realistic Villain

Although the series features many great characters, Godless stands out due to the brilliant performance by Daniels as the notorious outlaw Frank Griffin. While the character is fictitious, Griffin was inspired by real outlaws who justified their violent actions with religious principles. Griffin often cites scripture, and feels that he has the power to dispense with justice because of his strong faith; Frank said that he “believes that he’s been a good father” and “feels betrayed because he has always felt that he’s done right by the people around him.” The best villains are often those who see themselves as heroes, and Griffin’s determination to act in what he perceives to be a morally righteous way somehow makes him more terrifying.

While excessive research could have been a burden for most showrunners, Godless is more effective because of its authenticity. Rather than lionizing a highly idealized version of the West that has itself become a cliché, Godless challenges the notion that this was an exciting period in history by examining what the lived-in experience was actually like. It’s perhaps the greatest western of the 21st century because its strong characters, thrilling set pieces, and shocking plot twists are all rooted in historical fact.

Godless is streaming on Netflix.

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