5 Western dramas like The Last Rodeo that you must watch as you wait for Tulsa King Season 3, ranked

If you watched The Last Rodeo and felt something real, then you know how powerful stories revolving around second chances can be. Neal McDonough plays a former bull-riding champion who risks everything for his grandson, and that kind of story sticks. It’s not just about the rodeo or the prize money. It’s about a man trying to fix what went wrong and show up for his family when it matters most.

While Tulsa King season 3 is still on the way, there is a gap that needs to be filled. Western dramas today are not stuck in the past. They focus on real problems and real people who fight hard to protect what they love. You won’t find flashy heroes. You’ll find tired men and women doing what they have to do.

The five shows and films listed ahead all carry the weight like The Last Rodeo. They deal with land and loss and the kind of pain that does not get talked about much. If The Last Rodeo left you thinking about family and sacrifice, then these stories will land in the same place. They will hold you over until Stallone and Jackson return with more in Tulsa King season 3.

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5 Western dramas like The Last Rodeo that you must watch as you wait for Tulsa King Season 3, ranked

1. Yellowstone (2018–2024)

Yellowstone tells the story of John Dutton, who runs the biggest ranch in the United States and fights to protect it from people who want to take it. Developers and politicians try to carve it up while enemies push from all sides. Dutton is not a hero but a man who chooses loyalty to land over comfort.

He makes sacrifices that cost him his peace and his family’s trust. His kids are damaged in different ways, and the ranch is both their legacy and prison. Every decision comes with weight, and the fallout usually hurts the ones closest to him.

This is where the comparison to The Last Rodeo comes in. Joe Wainwright chooses pain to protect what matters. John Dutton does the same. Both men carry old wounds and fight battles they know will never really end, but they do it because family means more than safety.

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2. Hell or High Water (2016)

Two brothers in West Texas start robbing banks to pay off a reverse mortgage that threatens their family ranch. One brother is quiet and desperate, while the other is wild and reckless. Their plan is neither about revenge nor thrill. It is about survival and making sure the next generation gets a better shot.

The towns they move through feel forgotten, and the people inside them seem drained. The banks they rob took everything from everyone, so they take what they can. Jeff Bridges plays the ranger chasing them, and even he knows this isn’t a clean fight.

The film works because it feels real. Like The Last Rodeo, it demonstrates how people make hard choices when backed into a corner. Joe Wainwright enters a bull-riding contest for his grandson. These brothers pick up guns for their kids. Neither path is clean, but both are filled with reasons that make sense in The Last Rodeo and Hell or High Water.

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3. Walker (2021– )

Cordell Walker is a Texas Ranger who loses his wife and doesn’t know how to move forward. He leaves his children for a long undercover job, and when he comes back, nothing feels the same. His daughter is angry. His son is distant. His brother and parents try to help, but they can’t fix it.

The cases he works are important, but the heart of the show is at home. Every episode pulls him towards being a better father. Some days he shows up and says the right thing. On other days, he fails. What matters is that he keeps trying.

Walker and The Last Rodeo share the same emotional core. Joe Wainwright broke himself in the past, and now he’s trying to fix what’s left. Cordell does the same. The badge and cowboy hat are there, but in the background. What makes the story work is watching someone fight to be enough.

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4. Let Him Go (2020)

George and Margaret Blackledge are grandparents who lose their son and watch their daughter-in-law remarry into an abusive family. When their grandson is taken across state lines, they go after him. They do not ask for help, they just go. George is a retired sheriff. Margaret is quiet but determined.

They travel through the Midwest with old pain and a clear purpose. What they find is a violent family that refuses to let the boy go. The final act turns harsh. There is no safe rescue. What follows leaves deep scars, and not everyone survives it.

Let Him Go is slow and heavy. It never flinches from what loss does to people. Like The Last Rodeo, it’s about grandparents who step up when the world turns its back. Joe gets on a bull. George picks up a gun. Neither wants to go back into battle, but both do.

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5. Concrete Cowboy (2020)

Fifteen-year-old Cole gets sent to live with his father in North Philadelphia after getting expelled from school. His father is part of a group that keeps horses and rides through the city’s streets. At first, Cole hates it. The barn smells, and the rules feel sharp. He wants to leave.

But over time, he sees that this way of life is more than a hobby. It is history. It is survival. His father is not warm, but he is steady. The horses keep him grounded. The community keeps him sane. Cole learns the same lessons the hard way.

Concrete Cowboy connects to The Last Rodeo through the way it shows broken families trying to come together. Joe Wainwright fights to reach his daughter and grandson. Cole’s father fights to reach him. No one uses perfect words. No one has an easy fix. But they show up and try.

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