The film's exploration of mortality is presented through various characters, each confronting death in different, yet equally poignant, manners. In "The Ballad of Buster Scruggs," the titular character (played by Tim Blake Nelson) is a peculiar protagonist whose narrative serves as the film's framing device. Buster Scruggs, a peculiarly named prospector, narrates his own story of survival and eventual death, embodying a thematic preoccupation with the fragility of life.