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Summer of 2024 is all about Kevin Costner. His passion project, Horizon: An American Saga, is delivering two installments of the four-part drama. The first movie arrives on June 28 and the second film will be released on Aug. 16. This is a big-stakes franchise because the 69-year-old actor mortgaged 10 acres of his $145 million Carpinteria, California estate to make movie magic.
It’s a financial move that is not for the faint of heart and Costner knows it. “I was going to build my last house,” he explained to Deadline in a 2023 interview with director Francis Ford Coppola. “But I did it without a thought. It has thrown my accountant into a f**king conniption fit. But it’s my life, and I believe in the idea and the story.” Costner has bet on himself before by financing the Oscar-winning Dances With Wolves in 1990, The Postman in 1997, and Black or White in 2014, but we all know the theater-going landscape has changed after the pandemic and two entertainment industry strikes. Can Costner beat the house this time around?
If you take a look at his storied career, Costner had a stellar run at the box office in the late 1980s into the 1990s. He was a global sensation, from Field of Dreams to Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, and fans lined up to see his movies. But he wasn’t just a movie star, the critics loved his performances, too. He drew raves for his sexy role in Bull Durham and leaned into Americana with rich portrayals of historical figures, including Jim Garrison in JFK and Western lawman Wyatt Earp.
“My dad really loved John Wayne. And he said to me, ‘You can do that,’” he told Yahoo Canada of his love of the cowboy genre of films. “And of course, I can’t be John Wayne. But I have personally taken an interest in the American Western.” The subject matter defined his career and won him plenty of awards, but he occasionally threw in a comedy like Tin Cup or gave us the romantic drama of a lifetime with Whitney Houston in The Bodyguard (we will always love you).
Costner may be betting on his career in a big way this summer while promising that he’s “never putting my f**king money in another movie after these four,” but his films stand the test of time. If you’ve only seen a sprinkling of his work over the last four decades, dive into some of the essential movies that made him famous — and we promise you that two of them live up to the old Hollywood adage that there are “no small parts, only small actors.”
‘Night Shift’ (1982)
Look hard in the background behind Henry Winkler at the guy in the green shirt. Yep, that’s Kevin Costner in his first big feature as Frat Boy #1 in the movie about a white-collar guy who gives up his corporate job to work in a New York City morgue. He has director Ron Howard to thank for his first role.
Watch on Apple TV+ here!
‘The Big Chill’ (1983)
A group of college friends reunite after the funeral of one of their pals. It’s a stacked cast with Glenn Close and Jeff Goldblum, but guess who plays the dead friend? Costner’s flashback scenes were cut, but you will see his body during the funeral.
‘Silverado’ (1985)
Director Lawrence Kasdan, who helmed The Big Chill and cut Costner out of the movie, made it up to him with this crime drama about a bunch of misfits, who decide to right the injustices in a small town.
‘No Way Out’ (1987)
This thriller follows a Naval officer who is wrongly accused of murdering a woman with powerful connections. Costner has to prove his innocence before time runs out.
‘The Untouchables’ (1987)
Kevin Costner played Bureau of Prohibition agent Eliot Ness in this American crime drama with an A-list cast. He has to stop Al Capone’s network in the city of Chicago — it’s the perfect mob movie.
‘Bull Durham’ (1988)
The quintessential American sports rom-com with Costner playing “Crash” Davis, a AAA baseball player who is trying to get a rookie pitcher into the majors. And of course, Susan Sarandon steps in to make a mess of the men’s friendship.
‘Field of Dreams’ (1989)
“If you build it, he will come.” That line is probably one of the most famous movie quotes ever. Costner plays an Iowa farmer, who built a baseball diamond on his land. Soon enough, the ghosts of great players, including “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, start showing up to play ball.
‘Dances With Wolves’ (1990)
A Civil War soldier strikes up a relationship with a band of Lakota Indians and adapts to their living-off-the-land lifestyle. He soon finds love and trouble as the Union soldiers arrive. Costner won Best Picture and Best Director at the Oscars for his first passion project.
‘Robin Hood’: Prince of Thieves’ (1991)
After breaking out of prison, Robin Hood, played by Costner, finds his family estate in ruins upon his return home. He and the other outlaws step up to save the kingdom from the villainous sheriff.
‘JFK’ (1991)
Oliver Stone’s film will have you thinking about the conspiracy theories surrounding John F. Kennedy’s assassination and the real-life events of New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison as he investigates his death. Costner nailed his role as the steely lawyer which elevated him to superstar status in Hollywood.
‘The Bodyguard’ (1992)
We can still hear the soundrack to this soulful movie and see Costner’s magical chemistry with Whitney Houston — it’s what made this gem a box-office hit. It’s the age-old tale of an A-list star falling in love with her bodyguard while protecting from a stalker.
‘A Perfect World’ (1993)
It’s not often Costner takes on the role of a bad guy, but this movie proves why he has the chops to do any genre. An escaped state prisoner is on the run with a young boy he kidnapped, but the dynamic duo forms as bond as law enforcement closes in on them.
‘Wyatt Earp’ (1994)
Costner teamed back up with director Lawrence Kasdan to play the titular role as the Western lawman, who became the respected sheriff in Dodge City and Tombstone.
‘Waterworld’ (1995)
This might be a controversial movie to have on the list, but the sci-fi aquatic adventure bombed at the box office and provided the tabloids with plenty of piping-hot Costner tea.
Watch it on Hulu here!
‘Tin Cup’ (1996)
This breezy love-triangle rom-com has Costner playing the bad boy while trying to woo Rene Russo into his arms. Does the bad-boy golf pro win her heart and the U.S. Open?
‘The Postman’ (1997)
A dystopian drama about a traveler, known as The Postman, who delivers old mail and makes people believe that order has been restored to the government after a global conflict. This was Costner’s second passion project that he financed with his own money, but it did not have the same success as Dances With Wolves.
‘For the Love of the Game’ (1999)
The movie was probably the frothiest of Costner’s baseball movies, but his romantic chemistry with Kelly Preston was sweet. The film tried hard to take a dramatic turn as his character nears the end of his baseball-playing days, but we loved his scenes with Preston the most.
‘Open Range’ (2003)
Still in his Western era, Coster and Robert Duvall are forced to take up arms after their cattle crew is threatened by a corrupt lawman. Costner, who directed the film, still loves the “final shootout” in the movie. “A lot of people say that they really enjoy that,” he told Yahoo Entertainment in 2023. “That’s been ranked as maybe the top shootout. So I’m very proud of that.”
Watch it on Prime Video here!
‘The Upside of Anger’ (2005)
Costner jumped in to comfort his neighbor after her husband runs off with his secretary in this decent rom-com. Joan Allen eventually hits rock bottom, but guess who is there to save her? It’s predictable, but cute!
‘Mr. Brooks’ (2007)
We wished Costner dove into the psychological thriller genre more often. He tackled the role of a businessman who is harboring a secret about his murderous alter ego, played by William hurt. It’s a quirky, offbeat movie that deserved more attention.
Watch it on Prime Video!
‘Man of Steel’ (2013)
While this isn’t the best Superman movie out there, Costner and Diane Lane are charming as the superhero’s adopted parents, who raise him after his spacecraft lands on their farm.
‘Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit’ (2013)
You know exactly the type of movie to expect from a Tom Clancy novel, but this one happened to be Jack Ryan’s origin story with Chris Pine in the titular role. Costner plays a CIA spy, who recruits Ryan into his top-secret role.
‘Draft Day’ (2014)
This movie, with Costner and Jennifer Garner, is often a forgotten one in his filmography. The sports drama follows the general manager of the Cleveland Browns, who has to figure out what to do after his team acquires the No. 1 draft pick in the upcoming NFL draft. There’s also time for a little romance with Garner’s character.
‘Hidden Figures’ (2016)
A powerful, true story about the three Black women, who were math wizzes at NASA. Their calculations became a huge part of America’s space race, but along the way, women faced racism and sexism in their rise to the top.
‘Molly’s Game’ (2017)
The true story of Molly Bloom, a woman who ran the world’s most exclusive high-stakes poker game for a decade before being arrested in the middle of the night by 17 FBI agents. Coster played Larry Bloom, the professor father trying to understand the trouble his daughter, played by Jessica Chastain, got in.
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