Living

1974 Film Named 'Funniest Movie of All Time' by Fans - And You Can Watch it Free

The competition for funniest movie of all time is fierce, with the likes of Airplane!, Superbad and Dumb and Dumber in the running. Comedy geniuses like Will Farrell and Chevy Chase have delivered countless laughs to their audiences, but in the end only one movie can be crowned as the funniest of all time.

The master of comedy Mel Brooks took the cake with his 1974 film Blazing Saddles, according to fans on Ranker.com.

'Blazing Saddles' Wins Funniest Movie of All Time

Blazing Saddles took the No. 1 spot ahead of Airplane!, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, Caddyshack and Superbad, which rounded out the top five.

The film received a 65% upvote from fans, while Airplane! received 64%.

"In this satirical take on Westerns, crafty railroad worker Bart (Cleavon Little) becomes the first black sheriff of Rock Ridge, a frontier town about to be destroyed in order to make way for a new railroad," reads the synopsis from Rotten Tomatoes.

"Initially, the people of Rock Ridge harbor a racial bias toward their new leader. However, they warm to him after realizing that Bart and his perpetually drunk gunfighter friend (Gene Wilder) are the only defense against a wave of thugs sent to rid the town of its population."

Mel Brooks Wanted Richard Pryor to Star

When Brooks spoke with NPR to promote his memoir All About Me in 2022, he claimed Warner Brothers was dead set against casting Pryor, telling him, "No, under no circumstances. We can't get any insurance on Richard because of the drug problems. And he's been in jail."

Brooks allegedly wanted to call off the film, but Pryor insisted.

""Nonsense, stupidity. We're going to do it. And you and I are going to find the right Black sheriff to play the lead," he told Brooks.

The film received three Academy Award nominations: Madeline Kahn for Best Actress in a supporting role, John C. Howard and Danford Greene for Film Editing and "Blazing Saddles" by John Morris and Brooks for Best Song.

The film also won an award for Comedy Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen from the Writers Guild of America.

Blazing Saddles is streaming for free on Pluto TV.

Related: 2007 Film Named Among Best Westerns of All Time - It's Streaming for Free

This story was originally published by Men's Journal on Jun 8, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

2026 The Arena Group Holdings, Inc. All rights reserved.

This story was originally published June 7, 2026 at 10:08 PM.

Get one year of unlimited digital access for $159.99
#ReadLocal

Only 44¢ per day

SUBSCRIBE NOW