‘Angel and the Badman’ Review: Zachary Levi Leads Angel Studios’ Fitfully Engaging Remake of a John Wayne Vehicle

Inevitably the Angel media company and streaming platform, rebranded from Angel Studios in 2025, has remade the 1947 John Wayne project “Angel and the Badman,” and not just for the angelic title. It’s actually the third iteration; a 2009 Hallmark Channel adaptation, shot in wintry British Columbia instead of the dusty, sandy American West, starred […] Starring Zachary Levi and Tommy Lee Jones, Julio Quintana's 'Angel and the Badman' piously remakes a John Wayne western. The first version of the story remains the best one, as Julio Quintana's film adds piousness at the expense of excitement, but Tommy Lee Jones stands out. Inevitably the Angel media company and streaming platform, rebranded from Angel Studios in 2025, has remade the 1947 John Wayne project “Angel and the Badman,” and not just for the angelic title.

It’s actually the third iteration; a 2009 Hallmark Channel adaptation, shot in wintry British Columbia instead of the dusty, sandy American West, starred Lou Diamond Phillips and Deborah Kara Unger. The latest, directed by Julio Quintana, stars Zachary Levi and is fitfully diverting, draped with calming New Mexico scenery. The first version, Wayne’s self-financed debut as producer as well as star, came from Republic Pictures and veteran screenwriter James Edward Grant, who went