COSTNER, Kevin

(1955– )

   Born in California, Kevin Costner is an actor and director who is never satisfied with just one film on a given subject, whether it be sports, political issues, or Westerns, and his three Westerns have been hugely influential. Dances with Wolves (1990) helped shift the emphasis of Westerns from merely replaying the traditional Western myths, instead providing an alternative view to the ways we have thought of Native Americans in the West. Wyatt Earp(1994) set out to document precisely and objectively the life of this historic lawman and his family. Costner’s most recent Western, Open Range (2003), attempted to be a classic Western in the traditional sense, and thus proved disappointing—but only when compared to Dances with Wolves, an unfair comparison. Occasionally some critics worry about the demise of the Western genre, but Kevin Costner has done as much as anyone to keep Westerns alive.