Appaloosa is a 2008 American Western film based on the novel Appaloosa by Robert B. Parker. Directed by Ed Harris, the movie stars Harris, Viggo Mortensen, Renée Zellweger, and Jeremy Irons. Set in 1882, the film follows lawman Virgil Cole and deputy Everett Hitch as they are hired to restore order in the town of Appaloosa, which is threatened by a powerful local rancher.