In 2011, a forgotten Paul Bettany vampire movie attempted to launch a new franchise, while also acting as a stealth remake of a John Wayne Western.
- Paul Bettany’s movie Priest is a stealth remake of John Wayne’s iconic Western, The Searchers.
- Priest draws heavily from The Searchers, with similar story beats and themes of rescuing a kidnapped relative from an enemy.
- Priest even uses a fan theory from The Searchers, revealing that the hero’s kidnapped niece is actually his daughter, adding an emotional twist to the ending.
A forgotten Paul Bettany vampire movie is a stealth remake of John Wayne’s most iconic Western. Wayne became a movie star thanks to his turn in 1939’s Stagecoach, and even though the film featured an ensemble cast, his performance stole the show. While he featured in everything from romantic dramas to war movies, he was also permanently typecast as a cowboy. John Wayne starred in 80 Westerns throughout his 50-year career, with some of the most notable being Red River, Rio Bravo and True Grit.
Possibly the most iconic would be The Searchers, a 1956 adventure where Wayne’s bitter Civil War vet sets out to rescue his kidnapped niece. The film is renowned for his central performance, its photography and dark themes, and is considered the very best John Wayne/John Ford Western among famous fans like Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese. Its influence can be seen in everything from Scorsese’s Taxi Driver, the original Star Wars and even the finale of Breaking Bad.
Paul Bettany’s Priest Remakes John Wayne’s The Searchers
This 2011 vampire movie is a beat-for-beat Searcher retread
Probably the most unlikely movie inspired by The Searchers is Priest, a 2011 post-apocalyptic action movie starring Paul Bettany. This was during the far too brief period when Bettany attempted to reinvent himself as an action star, following his starring role in 2010’s Legion as a machine gun-totting angel. Priest reteamed Bettany with Legion director Scott Stewart as a member of an order of warrior priests, who possess almost superhuman speed and strength and battle a vicious breed of vampire.
The movie kicks off years after the vampire threat has supposedly been eradicated, with Bettany’s titular character setting off to rescue his kidnapped niece Lucy (Lily Collins) when she’s taken by vampires. The film draws inspiration from any number of sources, including Mad Max and Judge Dredd. Looking at the story, it becomes clear Priest pulls the most from The Searchers.
Priest co-star Karl Urban would later play the title role in Dredd.
From the setup of an outcast former soldier setting out to rescue his kidnapped niece to threatening to kill her if she’s infected, many of the story beats between Priest and The Searchers are the same. In the case of the latter, Wayne’s character plans to kill his niece Debbie because she’s spent so long with the Comanche; in both movies, the protagonist’s young sidekick threatens to stop them if they try. While Priest
Priest’s Ending Uses A Searchers Fan Theory
Priest’s ending reveals the hero’s kidnapped niece is really his daughter
Priest is such an homage to the Wayne classic it even uses s Searchers fan theory that argues Debbie (Natalie Wood) is actually Ethan’s daughter. The movie contains several clues this is the case, such as the oddly intimate relationship between Ethan and his brother’s wife Martha (Dorothy Jordan). They exchange meaningful glances, while it’s noted that Ethan was away for eight years – which is his niece’s exact age when he finally returns home.
This movie never confirms this one way or another, but Priest makes this subtext into actual text. It reveals that when Bettany’s character was taken to become a priest, he had to give up his wife and baby daughter, and his farmer brother later looked after them both. This adds a more emotional core to the movie’s ending, though it must be said, the subtextual approach is the more interesting one. In making Lucy the daughter of Priest, the film is also laying seeds she could become a vampire slayer herself in a future entry that never arrived.
Priest Proves The Searchers Should Never Be Remade
Priest fares badly next to the 1956 classic
Priest was an attempt to kickstart another Sony action saga in the vein of Underworld or Resident Evil. The movie has rich production design, a unique approach to vampires and a stacked cast, which includes Maggie Q and the late, great Christopher Plummer. Even so, it’s a disposable B-movie that recycles the genre’s worst clichés and lacks truly killer action scenes. Despite ending with a clear sequel tease, its lukewarm grosses quickly killed that plan. Needless to say, Priest is not the remake John Wayne’s The Searchers deserves and is proof some classics should be left well alone.