Russell Crowe And Nicholas Hoult's Criminally Underseen Western Is A Must-Watch On Hulu

Westerns aren't exactly at the height of their appeal in 2025, but interest is increasing in a post-"Yellowstone" world. As such, you might be intrigued to hear that Hulu is hosting one of the best and most under-seen Westerns of recent years with the Russell Crowe and Nicholas Hoult-starring "True History of the Kelly Gang." But this isn't your typical Western; the film is based on Peter Carey's 2000 novel of the same name, which (oddly, given the book and film's title) presents a fictionalized take on the life of Australian outlaw Edward "Ned" Kelly and his gang.

We've had some great Westerns even in the last decade, but the genre has mostly been considered dead since the 1970s. Now, with Taylor Sheridan and his bewilderingly expansive slate of Paramount+ shows almost single-handedly restoring interest in the genre, Westerns are cool again. As audiences continue to watch Sheridan series in earnest, Netflix is prepping its own "Yellowstone" replacement "The Abandons." So, while we wait to see if that project can reach the heights of its Paramount counterpart, there's "True History of the Kelly Gang" just waiting to be wrangled from the bushes over on Hulu.

Directed by Justin Kurzel and scripted by Shaun Grant, the film follows bushranger Ned Kelly (George MacKay) — a folk hero in his native Aus — as he and his band of outlaws try to evade capture in the 1870s. We see Kelly during his childhood, where he makes a mortal enemy in Charlie Hunnam's English lawman Sergeant O'Neil, and also in his adult life, where he clashes with another limey lout in the form of Hoult's police constable Fitzpatrick. As for Crowe, he plays the bushranger Harry Power, who mentors young Ned and teaches him the basics of what would, in time, become his lawless lifestyle.

"True History of the Kelly Gang" premiered at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival before making its limited theatrical debut in Australia and the United Kingdom the following year. IFC also released the film domestically, but it went largely overlooked stateside. Most of that can be attributed to the fact that it hit theaters on April 24, 2020, just as the COVID-19 pandemic broke out. Still, at least it can claim to have been number one at the box office that weekend. But in all honesty, the film deserved better. /Film's Chris Evangelista dubbed "True History of the Kelly Gang" a punk-rock outlaw tale covered in a thick layer of grime, and while it's not anything resembling an accurate account of Ned Kelly's life, it was a hit with other critics, too. 

The film currently bears an 80% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with Alissa Wilkinson of Vox praising the way in which Justin Kurzel uses "stylized images and the occasional anachronistic metal track to provoke a mood." Matt Zoller Seitz of RogerEbert.com was similarly impressed, writing, "This is myth-making, splattered in blood, scored with an electric guitar, and enacted with such brazen bigness that you wouldn't be surprised if the cast assembled for a curtain call at the end." Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Times' Justin Chang felt it struck "just the right balance of scary and crazy," which might not make for the most truthful excursion into Kelly's actual experiences, but it sure sounds like a lot of fun. As such, if you're not too bothered about historical accuracy and just want to feel immersed in a unique Western with some top-notch talent, "True History of the Kelly Gang" is definitely worth a stream.