Timothy Olyphant has made a name for himself as a Western actor, but one of his three best performances comes from Star Wars. Olyphant played Cobb Vanth in The Mandalorian, and despite the science fiction setting, it’s one of his best Western shows. In recent years, Olyphant has branched out into sci-fi more frequently through Star Wars and Alien: Earth, but he was previously known for his Western roles.
Olyphant also has one of the most impressive streaks when it comes to television roles. Since he starred in Deadwood in 2004, Olyphant hasn’t had a single series that was negatively received by critics or viewers. Still, some of Olyphant’s shows are better than others, and The Mandalorian is one of his best. Since it’s a fusion of sci-fi and Western tropes, The Mandalorian also counts as one of Timothy Olyphant’s best Westerns.
Timothy Olyphant Was Great As Cobb Vanth In The Mandalorian & The Book Of Boba Fett
Timothy Olyphant made his Star Wars debut in The Mandalorian season 2 when he began playing Cobb Vanth, the marshal of Mos Pelgo, a rural town on Tatooine. Vanth immediately wowed audiences by being introduced while wearing the iconic beskar armor of Boba Fett, and he didn’t disappoint from there. He quickly proved himself as an honorable man and even fought alongside Din Djarin and Boba Fett himself in The Book of Boba Fett.
Olyphant also did a brilliant job of portraying Cobb Vanth. He brings such a calm and cool charisma to his acting that just perfectly suits the gunslingling lawman type. His first episode in The Mandalorian, for example, sets up his deep desire to protect Mos Pelgo in just a matter of minutes. Later on, in The Book of Boba Fett, Vanth becomes the perfect way to illustrate the danger of Cad Bane, and he’s one half of the best scene in the entire show when they have their shootout.
Cobb Vanth was such a great character that he was one of the few highlights of the otherwise very underwhelming Book of Boba Fett. Vanth’s shootout with Cad Bane rightfully gets most of the attention, but the way he stood up to the Pyke Syndicate and the backstory we get about his past with spice added very valuable context to the character. In one of Star Wars‘ worst shows, Timothy Olyphant was a bright spot.
Luckily for Star Wars fans, Olyphant may get a chance to play Cobb Vanth again. Despite being shot by Cad Bane, the ending of The Book of Boba Fett included a post-credits scene that saw Vanth recuperating in a bacta tank. Now that The Mandalorian and Grogu is moving the New Republic era forward once again, Vanth may be fully healed by the time of the movie. Din Djarin may even call upon his help once again as he searches for more Imperial remnants.
Deadwood & Justified Are Still Olyphant’s Best Western Shows To Date
As good as The Mandalorian was and as well-written as Cobb Vanth is, Timothy Olyphant’s best Western shows are still Deadwood and Justified. That’s not a slight against The Mandalorian, but an endorsement of Olyphant’s earlier shows. Deadwood is widely considered one of the best Western shows of all time, while Justified is also on the list and features one of Olyphant’s longest-running and most complex characters.
Deadwood tells the sprawling tale of the early American frontier town it’s named after, and Olyphant plays lawman Seth Bullock. Though he’s only one piece of the town, Olyphant shines as Seth, and he has this fantastic back-and-forth relationship with Ian McShane’s Al Swearengen. Deadwood also gave Olyphant a better chance to show off how intense he can be, and how well he can navigate the moral grayness of a very complex character.
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Justified, meanwhile, gave Olyphant six seasons to develop the character of Raylan Givens and to work opposite Walton Goggins as Boyd Crowder. Olyphant and Goggins created one of the most engaging rivalries on television, the entire show is one of the best neo-Westerns out there, and every episode presents a great crime thriller story. Most importantly, Olyphant is a very compelling leading man for Justified.
In contrast, Olyphant’s character in The Mandalorian is lacking a lot of the qualities that made Deadwood and Justified so great. Cobb Vanth doesn’t have a nemesis like Al Swearengen or Boyd Crowder. He’s also a very minor character who only appears for a handful of episodes across two shows. While Timothy Olyphant plays the part well, The Mandalorian is only his third-best Western show.
- Release Date
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2019 – 2023-00-00
- Network
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Disney+
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Din Djarin / The Mandalorian
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Katee Sackhoff
Bo-Katan Kryze
