Will Kane popular imagination: the gaunt, chiseled stone face, a stoic deadpan that rendered Cooper the leading-man, romantic-actor equivalent of Buster Keaton...By contrast, Skerritt saunters through the new "Noon" as if he were still the easygoing, ironic lawman of "Picket Fences"." Will Kane William "Will" Kane is the protagonist of the film "High Noon" (1952). He was first played by Gary Cooper, then by Lee Majors in "" (1980), and by Tom Skerritt in "High Noon" (2000), a remake for cable television. Gary Cooper originated the character in "High Noon" in 1952. Cooper briefly reprised his "High Noon" role in an uncredited
High Noon against the popular will. Any time you're alone and you feel you're not getting the support you need, Cooper's Will Kane becomes the perfect metaphor." Ronald Reagan cited "High Noon" as his favorite film, due to the protagonist's strong commitment to duty and the law. By contrast, John Wayne told an interviewer that he considered "High Noon" "the most un-American thing I've ever seen in my whole life", and later teamed with director Howard Hawks to make "Rio Bravo" in response. "I made "Rio Bravo" because I didn't like "High Noon"," Hawks explained. "Neither did Duke [Wayne]. I didn't think