Summary
The Good, the Bad, and the Uglyis a standout film whose cast elevated it to greatness andis the third movie in Sergio Leone’s iconicFistful of Dollarstrilogy. The trilogy began withA Fistful of Dollarsin 1964 and was followed up byFor A Few Dollars Morethe next year before culminating with 1966’sThe Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. The films are part ofthe Spaghetti Western tradition, which was asubgenre of Westerns that used Italian teams to make American Western-genre films.
The Good, the Bad, and the Uglyis arguably the most iconic film in the Spaghetti Western genre, as it is one that is still appreciated today. The Leone trilogy is receiving a second wind, as aremake ofA Fistful of Dollarswas announced earlier this year. Though divorced from the peak era of the Spaghetti Western, the remake will allow a new set of audiences to appreciate the beats of the classic film. In advance of the first film’s remake, it is fascinating to take another look at the cast ofThe Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, and what happened to them after the film.
10 Best Characters From Sergio Leone’s Spaghetti Westerns
From the Man with No Name to Once Upon a Time in the West’s Frank, Sergio Leone gave us some of the western genre’s greatest villains and antiheroes.
The Good: Clint Eastwood As The Man with No Name / Blondie
Born August 14, 2025
Returning to the series afterA Fistful of DollarsandFor A Few Dollars More, Clint Eastwood continued to establish his Western career through his performance in this film. Beginning his career in the 1950s, Eastwood was already well-known for the Western genre by the timeThe Good, the Bad, and the Uglyrolled around, with the 1966 film only further cementing that status. Eastwood continued to act in Western films for years afterThe Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, including the ‘60s filmsCoogan’s BluffandPaint Your Wagonand later Westerns likeUnforgiven.
1971
1985
1992
Bill Munny
In addition to his on-camera work, Eastwood also became a prolific Hollywood figure behind-the-scenes. Five years after appearing inThe Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, Eastwood would direct his first feature film withPlay Misty for Me. He would go on to direct dozens of other movies, evenwinning an Oscar for Best Director in 2005 for his emotional 2004 filmMillion Dollar Baby. In 2023, the nonagenarian announced his official retirement from film work.
Born June 24, 2025; Died June 22, 2025
Taking on “The Bad” persona, Lee Van Cleef stepped in to play the ruthless mercenary inThe Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. As in the case of Eastwood, Van Cleef was no stranger to the Western genre by the time he acted in the Leone film. He also had a previous role in the Spaghetti Western trilogy, acting inFor a Few Dollars More, as well as playing a role in the John Ford classicThe Man Who Shot Liberty Vance.
1981
1962
1988
Col. Mazzarini
AfterThe Good, the Bad, and the Ugly,Van Cleef went immediately into a slew of other Spaghetti Westerns, acting inThe Big Gundown,Death Rides a Horse,Day of Anger,Beyond the Law, andSabataall between the years of 1967 and 1969. He had a prolific career playing outlaws and gunslingers, acting in nearly 200 projects throughout his career. Van Cleef passed away from a heart attack at the age of 64. Released posthumously, his final on-screen appearance was in the drama parody filmThieves of Fortune.
The Ugly: Eli Wallach As Tuco, AKA “The Rat”
Born July 30, 2025; Died July 08, 2025
Wallach’s quick-witted character provided some comic relief in the otherwise-seriousThe Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. Unlike Eastwood and Van Cleef,The Good, the Bad, and the UglywasWallach’s Leone trilogy debut, as the actor had been reportedly convinced to play the role after Leone showed him the opening sequence ofFor A Few Dollars More. By the time he acted inThe Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, Wallach was already infamous for his Method acting style and his iconic roles as a character actor. After the Leone film, Wallach took on another Spaghetti Western when he played Cat Stevens in Ace High.
Eli Wallach also won an Emmys for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama and Best Guest Actor in a Comedy Series in 1967 and 2010 forThe Poppy is Also A FlowerandNurse Jackie, respectively.
Though Wallach did not stay strictly in the Western and Spaghetti Western genres, his characters did exist mostly within the genre film sphere. These parts ranged from thrillers such asThe Deepto action-caper films likeFirepower. Wallach continued acting throughout his twilight years and was given anHonorary Award by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences at the 2011 Governers' Awards. His last feature film appearance before his 2014 death was in 2010’sWall Street: Money Never Sleeps.
1960
1990
2006
Arthur
Wallach, Eastwood, and Van Cleef Grounded The Film
The eponymous trio of “The Good,” “The Bad,” and “The Ugly” were the central players in the Spaghetti Western film. They received the vast majority of the movie’s screen time, and the tensions and collaborations among the members of the main trio amount to the vast majority ofThe Good, the Bad, and the Ugly’s plot. That said, the film has a couple of supporting characters that contribute to parts of the film and have their own acting legacies.
Antonio Casas plays Stevens, a former Confederate soldier, in the film. Born in Spain, Casas began his professional career as a soccer player before transitioning to acting in 1942. The actor played parts in a number of Spanish-language films prior toThe Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, and followed up his Leone film role with parts inThe Big Gundown,The Young Rebel, andThe Magnificent Tony Carrera.Casas acted in nearly 200 projects, all the way up until his death in 1982.
Other supporting actors inThe Good, the Bad, and the Uglyincluded Aldo Giuffrè as Union Captain Clinton, Luigi Pistilli as Father Pablo Ramirez, and Rada Rassimov as Maria.Unlike Casas and the Hollywood acting trio at the core ofThe Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, Giuffrè, Pistilli, and Rassimov were all Italian-born actors. Pistilli had previously worked with Leone inFor a Few Dollars More, and spent the rest of his career acting primarily in Italian-language works. He tragically passed away from suicide in 1996, at the age of 66.
Giuffrè was born in Naples in 1924, and had a career that included over 100 roles. AfterThe Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, Giuffrè’s roles includedGhosts, Italian StyleandWhen Women Had Tails. He retired from acting in 2004 before passing away in 2010. As for Rassimov, the actor is still alive today, but retired from her acting career in 2003. As in the case of Pastilli, her later works also included predominantly Italian-language titles.
The Good the Bad and the Ugly
Cast
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly is a Spaghetti Western directed by Sergio Leone, scored by Ennio Morricone, and starring Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, and Eli Wallach as three gunslingers who compete for a cache of Confederate gold during the American Civil War. The 1966 film is regarded as one of the greatest Westerns of all time.
