Not including Clint the Director. Strictly as actors. Who has the better body of work? (feel free to also write in who you think is a better actor)

2 of the most legendary actors ever. The 2 biggest Western stars ever. (Arguably). The 2 biggest Republican movie stars ever. (minus Ronnie of course). For better or worse, both the height of American machismo. Dirty Harry or Rooster Cogburn. Who do you choose?

Highlighted body of work:

John Wayne:

Stagecoach
They Were Expendable
Fort Apache
Red River
Three Godfathers
She Wore a Yellow Ribbon
Rio Grande
The Quiet Man
The Searchers
Rio Bravo
The Horse Soldiers
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
Hatari!
The Longest Day
McLintock!
In Harms Way
El Dorado
True Grit
The Cowboys
The Shootist

Clint Eastwood:

A Fistful of Dollars
For A Few Dollars More
The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
Where Eagles Dare
Two Mules For Sister Sara
Kelly's Heroes
The Beguiled
Play Misty For Me
Dirty Harry
High Plains Drifter
Magnum Force
Thunderbolt & Lightfoot
The Outlaw Josey Wales
Escape From Alcatraz
Pale Rider
Unforgiven
In The Line of Fire
A Perfect World
The Bridges of Madison County
Million Dollar Baby
Gran Torino

John Wayne was mostly in shit movies and he had no acting range. This is not a competition at all. Clint wins all the way. In fact, I would go as far as to say I hate John Wayne in movies. Just a pigeon chested tall old man that for some reason people believed as being a tough guy.

I voted Eastwood, and it wasn't even close. I never got the love for John Wayne either. Not a particularly good actor, but he resonated with that generation to become the icon he is today. I can't really think of too many Clint movies I don't like and some of his best work came much later in his career when a lot of other actors are spinning their wheels or retiring.

I love both, but they are so vastly different. Basically the Superman & Batman of westerns.

Both are great. I can't pick one over the other.

People who don't think Wayne could act should watch The Searchers, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, and The Shootist. When given the right script he could really deliver phenomenal performances.

Wayne was an alright actor who did some great bits and was legendary in western. He was very stunted though. Eastwood is a much better actor.

It's foolish to even compare the two on the basis of acting and not have it lopsided to Eastwood just based on the quality of acting.

Just for the variety of work alone too... Eastwood.

Which is fair to say... but Batman still has had the better material too. Superman... he's been an iffy one w/ some generally alright stuff to a smallish number of GREAT stuff. Batman... has a shit ton more of great stuff than Supes ever has had.

Agreed.

It is no contest to me... Eastwood. He was apart of the type of westerns I much prefer. Though, there are a few of Wayne's I do like and are classics. But they aren't even on the same level, IMO. Generally too light and fluffy whereas Clint's are down and dirty and gritty. Clint's non westerns are overall pretty great too.

Eastwood for sure.

You have to take into account they are different eras too. Mostly 50/60's for Wayne and 70's for Eastwood. So of course Eastwood's films are darker and edgier than Wayne's. And if that is your preference, there's your answer.

To expound on my first post I do love both. Wayne for his Superman level of always winning with 1 punch, always right and Eastwood for his darker grittier, and sometimes supernatural characters.

But, if we are talking westerns and machismo, this guy needs to be added to the poll:

/end thread

Don't own a single movie with John Wayne in it, nor do I want to. Eastwood in a no-contest.

Neither were great actors but Clint Eastwood is Marlon Brando compared to John Wayne.

I'd vote for Clyde too.

Wayne all the way. But I do think you should post your age (50) in your reply. That might be an eye opener. Wayne played the hero in most of his movies, Eastwood played the anti-hero (a sign of the times they were made). And almost any of his movies that had that ex-girlfriend of his in them, sucked ass.

And Wayne's best movie (in my opinion) was The Quiet Man.

I'd have to go with The Shootist.

(48 - )

I'm the same age as you but I could never get into Wayne's movies. Some are okay but nothing worth revisiting.

I'll give a vote for Wayne because I know he's going to get creamed in this poll. But, as pointed out, it's not a fair comparison. Despite some overlap, different eras of film making. Wayne made more crap, but he worked mostly in the times when studios dictated what movies you made and it wasn't unusual for even "stars" to make 3-4 movies a year. Wayne's best 15-20 or so movies are absolutely fantastic and stand alongside the output of anyone.

I do think Eastwood is a better actor. But to say Wayne gives the same performance in every movie is just wrong. Yeah, he played the Superman-like square jawed hero in a lot of movies. But as noted, movies like The Searchers, Liberty Valence, Red River, The Quiet Man show different sides to Wayne.

Wayne all the way. He may have been in a lot of crap, but he was in a handful of films that are better than every Eastwood film combined. Fort Apache for starters.

Eastwood is definately the better director.

Wayne was a much better actor than you guys give him credit for. He was especially good with actresses.

Here are some of the films of his you should see:

THEY WERE EXPENDABLE (1945) - PT boats during the Pacific War; check out his emotional exchange over the radio with Donna Reed during the evacuation. Eastwood never did anything even close to that. This the first film John Ford directed after returning to Hollywood from the war.
RED RIVER (1948) - Howard Hawks' western take on MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY, with Wayne in the Captain Bligh role and Montgomery Clift in the Fletcher Christian role, except that Wayne is the more sympathetic character.
FORT APACHE (1948) - he goes up against Fonda in this great cavalry tale directed by John Ford.
THE SANDS OF IWO JIMA (1949) - his first Oscar nomination/one of the best films about marine corps training and combat ever; Wayne plays a flawed, tragic character.
OPERATION PACIFIC (1951) - an underrated war film/check out his scenes with Patricia Neal
BLOOD ALLEY (1955) - he leads Chinese villagers out of a war zone in Communist China/with Lauren Bacall
THE SEA CHASE (1955) - he plays a German maritime officer on the run from British ships during the war/with Lana Turner
THE SEARCHERS (1956) - his and Ford's masterpiece/ see the Blu-ray
THE BARBARIAN AND THE GEISHA (1958) - very understated Wayne, on location in Japan
RIO BRAVO (1959) - Hawks knew how to direct a more laidback Wayne; great scenes with Angie Dickinson
THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE (1962) - Wayne and James Stewart and the end of an era in the west/another Ford masterpiece
IN HARM'S WAY (1965) - another underrated war film, this time about Pearl Harbor, and another with great scenes with Patricia Neal
TRUE GRIT (1969) - his Oscar winner (deservedly so)

That's just off the top of my head.

Eastwood only wishes he made films as good as these or gave performances as good as these.

In the late '60s / early '70s, my friends and I routinely attended Wayne and Eastwood movies. I've always admired and respected Eastwood, but I didn't love him. I loved John Wayne.

Don't think I've ever seen a full Wayne movie and I love Clint.