Young Guns ( film ) - wikipedia Young Guns ( film ) This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( January 2010 ) Young Guns Theatrical release poster Directed by Christopher Cain Produced by Christopher Cain John Fusco James G. Robinson Joe Roth Paul Schiff Irby Smith Written by John Fusco Starring Emilio Estevez Kiefer Sutherland Lou Diamond Phillips Charlie Sheen Dermot Mulroney Casey Siemaszko Terry O'Quinn Jack Palance Terence Stamp Music by Anthony Marinelli Brian Banks Cinematography Dean Semler Edited by Jack Hofstra Production company Morgan Creek Productions Distributed by 20th Century Fox Release date August 12, 1988 ( 1988 - 08 - 12 ) Running time 103 minutes Country United States Language English Budget $11 million Box office $45,661,556 Young Guns is a 1988 American western film directed by Christopher Cain and written by John Fusco. The film is the first to be produced by Morgan Creek Productions. The film stars Emilio Estevez, Kiefer Sutherland, Lou Diamond Phillips, Charlie Sheen, Dermot Mulroney, Casey Siemaszko, Terence Stamp, Terry O'Quinn, Brian Keith, and Jack Palance. Young Guns is a retelling of the adventures of Billy the Kid during the Lincoln County War, which took place in New Mexico during 1877 -- 78. It was filmed in and around New Mexico. Historian Dr. Paul Hutton called Young Guns the most historically accurate of all prior Billy the Kid films. It opened no. 1 at the box office, eventually earning $45 million from a moderate $11 million budget. A sequel, Young Guns II, was released in 1990. Contents 1 Plot 2 Cast 3 Reception 4 References 5 External links Plot John Tunstall ( Terence Stamp ), an educated Englishman and cattle rancher in Lincoln County, New Mexico, hires wayward young gunmen to live and work on his ranch. Tunstall is in heavy competition with a well - connected Irishman named Lawrence Murphy ( Jack Palance ), who owns a large ranch ; their men clash on a regular basis. Tunstall recruits Billy ( Emilio Estevez ) and advises him to renounce violence saying that `` He who sows the wind will reap the whirlwind. '' Tensions escalate between the two camps, resulting in the murder of Tunstall. Billy, Doc Scurlock ( Kiefer Sutherland ), Jose Chavez y Chavez ( Lou Diamond Phillips ), Richard M. `` Dick '' Brewer ( Charlie Sheen ), `` Dirty '' Steve Stephens ( Dermot Mulroney ), and Charlie Bowdre ( Casey Siemaszko ), consult their lawyer friend Alexander McSween ( Terry O'Quinn ), who manages to get them deputized and given warrants for the arrest of Murphy 's murderous henchmen. Billy quickly challenges Dick 's authority as leader, vowing revenge against Murphy and the men responsible for killing Tunstall. The men dub themselves The Regulators and arrest some of the murderers, but hot - headed Billy is unable to wait for justice. He guns down unarmed men and goes on to kill one of his fellow Regulators ( later arrival J. McCloskey ) in the paranoid ( but correct ) belief that he was still in league with Murphy. The men are stripped of their badges, which they find out about by reading a newspaper. That same paper also confuses Dick for Billy, showing a picture of Dick labeled Billy the Kid, a nickname to which Billy takes an immediate liking. While the local authorities begin their hunt for Billy and the boys, the Regulators argue about continuing with their warrants or to go on the run. One of the men on their list of warrants, Buckshot Roberts ( Brian Keith ), tracks them down, barricades himself in an outhouse, and Dick dies in an intense shootout. Billy appoints himself as the new leader, the gang becomes famous and the U.S. Army is charged with bringing them to justice under Murphy 's corrupt political influence. The gang eludes attention for some time, and Charlie gets married in Mexico. While attending the wedding, Billy meets Pat Garrett ( Patrick Wayne ) who is not yet a sheriff, but warns Billy of an attempt on Alex 's life by Murphy 's men that will happen the next day. Thus the gang packs up and heads off to save Alex. Back in Lincoln, Murphy 's men, led by George W. Peppin, surround Alex 's house, trapping the Regulators, and a shootout begins. A ceasefire is called for the night. In the morning, accompanied by Murphy, the army comes in and torches the house, but Chavez escapes out the back. While the house is burning, the men come up with an escape plan. They begin throwing Alex 's possessions out the windows of the second floor. Billy places himself inside of a large trunk, and when it lands in front of the house, he leaps out and begins to open fire. Meanwhile, Doc bursts out of the side stairway, followed by Charlie and Steve. Everyone makes it to the lawn, but Billy is shot twice in his arms. Charlie challenges the bounty hunter John Kinney ( Allen Keller ) ; Kinney shoots Charlie and Charlie fires back, killing each other. Chavez comes from behind the army on horseback, and jumps the barricade to get extra horses to the Regulators. Billy jumps on one horse, but Doc is shot trying to get on another. Doc still manages to pick up his girlfriend Yen Sun ( Alice Carter ), Murphy 's Chinese sex - slave, and they ride off. Chavez tries to get Steve on a horse, but is wounded and falls to the ground. Steve helps Chavez on to a horse, but is left alone and unarmed. The Army and Murphy 's men shoot and kill Steve. Alex cheers on the boys as they ride away. The army opens fire on him with a Gatling gun and he is killed. As the remaining men ride away, Murphy hurls threats and curses after them, but is stunned when Billy turns back and shoots Murphy right between the eyes, killing him. The final scene is a voice - over of Doc explaining what happened afterwards : Alex 's widow caused a congressional investigation into the Lincoln County War. Chavez took work at a farm in California. Doc moved east to New York and married Yen Sun, whom he had saved from Murphy. Billy continued to ride until he was found and shot dead by Pat Garrett. Billy was buried next to Charlie Bowdre at Fort Sumner. A stranger went to the grave of Billy the Kid late one night and made a carving in the headstone. The epitaph read only one word : `` PALS ''. Cast Emilio Estevez as William H. `` Billy the Kid '' Bonney Kiefer Sutherland as Josiah Gordon `` Doc '' Scurlock Lou Diamond Phillips as Jose Chavez y Chavez Charlie Sheen as Richard `` Dick '' Brewer Dermot Mulroney as `` Dirty Steve '' Stephens Casey Siemaszko as Charlie Bowdre Terence Stamp as John Tunstall Jack Palance as Lawrence Murphy Terry O'Quinn as Alexander McSween Sharon Thomas as Susan McSween Alice Carter as Yen Sun Geoffrey Blake as J. McCloskey Brian Keith as Buckshot Roberts Patrick Wayne as Pat Garrett Reception The movie received mixed reviews from critics. It currently holds a 42 % rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 26 reviews, with an average rating of 4.6 / 10. The movie was a box office hit. It grossed $45.6 million domestically. References ^ Jump up to : Chase, Donald ( 22 May 1988 ). `` Young Guns ' Aridin ' Thisaway ''. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010 - 12 - 05. Jump up ^ Hutton, Paul ( June 1990 ). `` Dreamscape Desperado ''. New Mexico Magazine ( 68 ) : 44 -- 57. Jump up ^ Wilmington, Michael ( 1988 - 08 - 12 ). `` MOVIE REVIEW : ' Young Guns ' Breathes Life Into Old Genre ''. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 5, 2010. Jump up ^ Maslin, Janet ( 1988 - 08 - 12 ). `` Review / Film ; Hollywood 's Youn Bloods in ' Youn Guns, ' Tale of Outlawry ''. The New York Times. Retrieved June 5, 2010. Jump up ^ `` Young Guns ''. Washington Post. 1988 - 08 - 16. Retrieved June 5, 2010. Jump up ^ `` Young Guns ( 1988 ) ''. Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved April 9, 2018. Jump up ^ Voland, John ( 23 August 1988 ). `` WEEKEND BOX OFFICE : Freddy Shreds the Movie Competition ''. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 7, 2010. Jump up ^ Easton, Nina J. ( 1 September 1988 ). `` Summer Box Office Heats Up Despite Higher Ticket Prices, Biggest - Grossing Season Since ' 84 Seen ''. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 5, 2010. Jump up ^ Klady, Leonard ( January 8, 1989 ). `` Box Office Champs, Chumps : The hero of the bottom line was the 46 - year - old ' Bambi ' ''. Los Angeles Times. External links Wikiquote has quotations related to : Young Guns ( film ) Young Guns on IMDb Young Guns at Rotten Tomatoes Young Guns at Metacritic Young Guns at Box Office Mojo Films directed by Christopher Cain Sixth and Main ( 1977 ) The Stone Boy ( 1984 ) That Was Then... This Is Now ( 1985 ) Where the River Runs Black ( 1986 ) The Principal ( 1987 ) Young Guns ( 1988 ) Wheels of Terror ( 1990 ) Pure Country ( 1992 ) The Next Karate Kid ( 1994 ) The Amazing Panda Adventure ( 1995 ) Rose Hill ( 1997 ) Gone Fishin ' ( 1997 ) A Father 's Choice ( 2000 ) September Dawn ( 2007 ) Pure Country 2 : The Gift ( 2010 ) Billy the Kid in popular culture Films Billy the Kid ( 1911 ) Billy the Kid ( 1930 ) Billy the Kid Returns ( 1938 ) Billy the Kid ( 1941 ) The Outlaw ( 1943 ) The Kid from Texas ( 1950 ) The Left Handed Gun ( 1958 ) Billy the Kid Versus Dracula ( 1966 ) Dirty Little Billy ( 1972 ) Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid ( 1973 ) Billy the Kid and the Green Baize Vampire ( 1985 ) Young Guns ( 1988 ) Gore Vidal 's Billy the Kid ( 1989 ) Young Guns II ( 1990 ) Lola and Billy the Kid ( 1999 German - Turkish ) Billy the Kid film series ( 1940 -- 46 ) Bob Steele as Billy the Kid Billy the Kid Outlawed ( 1940 ) Billy the Kid in Texas ( 1940 ) Billy the Kid 's Gun Justice ( 1940 ) Billy the Kid 's Range War ( 1941 ) Billy the Kid 's Fighting Pals ( 1941 ) Billy the Kid in Santa Fe ( 1941 ) Buster Crabbe as Billy the Kid Billy the Kid Wanted ( 1941 ) Billy the Kid 's Round - Up ( 1941 ) Billy the Kid Trapped ( 1942 ) Billy the Kid 's Smoking Guns ( 1942 ) Law and Order ( 1942 ) Sheriff of Sage Valley ( 1942 ) The Mysterious Rider ( 1942 ) The Kid Rides Again ( 1943 ) Fugitive of the Plains ( 1943 ) Western Cyclone ( 1943 ) Cattle Stampede ( 1943 ) The Renegade ( 1943 ) Blazing Frontier ( 1943 ) Buster Crabbe as Billy Carson Devil Riders ( 1943 ) Frontier Outlaws ( 1944 ) Valley of Vengeance ( 1944 ) The Drifter ( 1944 ) Rustlers ' Hideout ( 1944 ) Wild Horse Phantom ( 1944 ) Oath of Vengeance ( 1944 ) His Brother 's Ghost ( 1945 ) Thundering Gunslingers ( 1945 ) Shadows of Death ( 1945 ) Gangster 's Den ( 1945 ) Fuzzy Settles Down ( 1945 ) Stagecoach Outlaws ( 1945 ) Border Badmen ( 1945 ) Fighting Bill Carson ( 1945 ) Prairie Rustlers ( 1945 ) Lightning Raiders ( 1945 ) Terrors on Horseback ( 1946 ) Gentlemen with Guns ( 1946 ) Ghost of Hidden Valley ( 1946 ) Prairie Badmen ( 1946 ) Overland Riders ( 1946 ) Outlaws of the Plains ( 1946 ) TV The Tall Man ( 1960 ) The Legend of Billy the Kid ( 1994 ) Music `` The Ballad of Billy the Kid '' Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid ( album ) `` Billy the Kid '' `` Las Cruces Jail '' Stage Billy the Kid ( ballet ) Comics Billy the Kid ( Charlton Comics ) Billy the Kid ( Lucky Luke ) Billy the Kid 's Old Timey Oddities Literature The Authentic Life of Billy, the Kid ( Pat Garrett ) Billy the Kid : A Handbook ( Jon Tuska ) Billy the Kid : A Short and Violent Life ( Robert M. Utley ) The Old West : The Gunfighters ( Paul Trachtman ) Art Dick Brewer, Billy the Kid and the Regulators Related Brushy Bill Roberts Lincoln County Regulators Commons Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Young_Guns_(film)&oldid=835651349 '' Categories : 1988 films English - language films 1980s Western ( genre ) films American Western ( genre ) films Biographical films about Billy the Kid Lincoln County Wars American action films American buddy films Biographical films about criminals Films set in New Mexico Films shot in New Mexico Films produced by Joe Roth Films set in the 1870s 20th Century Fox films Artisan Entertainment films Morgan Creek Productions films Vestron Pictures films American films Films scored by Anthony Marinelli Hidden categories : Articles needing additional references from January 2010 All articles needing additional references Talk Contents About Wikipedia Wikiquote Català Čeština Dansk Deutsch Español Euskara Français 한국어 Italiano Lietuvių Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Русский Suomi Svenska Türkçe Українська 11 more Edit links This page was last edited on 9 April 2018, at 23 : 38. 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Question: who plays billy the kid in young guns
Answer: Emilio Estevez