The movie was adapted by Marguerite Roberts from the novel by Charles Portis. It was directed by Henry Hathaway and filmed in the vicinity of Ridgway, Colorado, now the home of the True Grit Cafe.
It won the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role (John Wayne) and was nominated for Best Music, Song (for Elmer Bernstein and Don Black for True Grit).
True Grit was followed by a sequel, Rooster Cogburn, in 1975. It was also remade for television in 1978, starring Warren Oates and Lisa Pelikan.