Been working on a western for a while now. (Too long) after rewrite and rewrite it just didn’t sound right. Lord and behold, I woke up in the middle of the night and realized although the story was good - the protagonist was flat - no arc. Was good guy early and good guy late. Flaws missing although I tried.
Any suggestions.
Maybe his flaw is to be too much of a good guy. Like, he is too trusting in people. This could be exploited by the antagonists early on. This could be his downfall in the end of Act 2. When he breaks into 3, he's presented to a new test of trust, which reveals a more somber and cynical personality, leading to the Act 3 climax where he's not the naive guy from the start.
Not all "arcs" are arc-shaped.
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Boring protagonist means no actor wants to do it. It is your job to write actor bait- characters that are interesting roles to play.
My amateur suggestion? think up a backstory/history for your main protag. Get inside his head, and his thoughts at the beginning of your screenplay. Where's he coming from, where's he going and how does that change as he becomes involved in the story you are telling.
Using the example of "Unforgiven" above, the main protag has kids, single father, etc. until a wannabe "full of spit and fire" kid shows up and he's faced with a decision. He eventually gives in to the "call to action", enlists his "reluctant friend" and carries his past with him into the main plot.
"The Salvation" is an even more recent Western. Ex-soldier and his brother homesteading in the western frontier. His wife shows up and the plan is that of a simple homesteader. On a stage, everything goes south and the plot ramps into gear.
As I am not able to read your script, I don't know if I'm making relevant suggestions or am way off the mark.
Explore a "good guys" weakness buried so nicely and pull it out, see him struggle, fail and face himself and grow from the process...everyone walks a tight rope from time to time... :-)
Like the one thing he feared....:-)
Or maybe he is faced with his hidden fear and then overcomes it...:-)
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Everyone talks about a character arc like it's a requirement that every character have one. Every character needs to be fascinating to the audience. Tell me what is 007's arc in any of the Bond films, how about McCain's arc in Die Hard? These characters proved their bad-guy whompin' ability but they didn't transform through some arc; 007 going in is the same 007 coming out. We all love that womanizing wascal in the beginning and still love him at the end. John McCain is a tough Cop going in, he's a tough Cop coming out - there is no arc. Don't overthink this stuff.
I had this problem with my spec for ages. It wasn't until it dawned on me that my hero's greatest strength in terms of the outer journey was also his greatest weakness in terms of his inner journey (caused by the wound in his past). Maybe your hero, too, has to figure out how to stay true to themselves while at the same time bending enough to solve the main story problem.
I would agree with Doug Nelson re 007, but disagree with him re John McClane in Die Hard. John's arc is about him becoming more responsible. He's irresponsible at work and in his relationship with his wife. He also doesn't want to take on the bad guys in the building by himself until he realizes he can't count on outside help. That's when his inner journey begins. That's my take on it , anyway :-)
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John, lots of advice in the comments and my guess is none of it is based on a reading of your script. Sounds like you need a good healthy script consultation. Check out Michael Hauge at https://www.storymastery.com/https://www.storymastery.com/ or his Film Courage Interviews at https://bit.ly/2KDsPP7https://bit.ly/2KDsPP7.
Sorry, those links were severely damaged.
Michael's website: https://www.storymastery.com
Michael's Film Courage Interview: https://bit.ly/2KDsPP7
Hmm....maybe link his weakness to his desire? Like if he wants to be a sheriff then give him terrible aim, or if he wants to court a woman, make him socially awkward, etc.