The story begins as he rides into a small town and provokes prizefighter Jim Corbett, ending up in a livery stable, unconscious and badly bruised.

Horn accepts the offer, and receives the approval of U.S. marshal Joe Belle at an association picnic, where he also catches the eye of Glendolene, the local schoolteacher.

The owners of the large cattle companies realize that, although he is doing exactly what they hired him to do, his tactics will ultimately tarnish their image, so they begin to plot his demise.

Their conspiracy is set in motion when a young boy tending sheep is shot by a .45–60, the same caliber rifle Tom Horn is known to use.

[citation needed] Since the troubled production and disastrous release of An Enemy of the People, Steve McQueen had once again struggled to find work.

[citation needed] The press book accompanying the release of the film did not mention Wiard in the filmmakers section or give a biography.

[4] Post-production was similarly fraught; the producers attempting both a linear version of the film, then another telling the story in flashback, before settling on the former approach.

[citation needed] Although filming ended without problems, during production McQueen had trouble breathing and later was found to have a rare and aggressive form of lung cancer, malignant mesothelioma.