By virtue of the popularity of his TV series The Range Rider, Jack (later Jock) Mahoney is afforded almost as much screen time in Hawk of the Wild River as the film's official star Charles Starrett. In fact, since Mahoney doubles for Starrett in certain sequences, it could be argued that his part is larger. This 53-minute "Durango Kid" western finds Starrett adopting his "Durango" disguise to find out who's behind a series of stagecoach holdups. The miscreant turns out to be "The Hawk" (Clayton Moore, the "Lone Ranger" himself!) Mahoney plays a deputy sheriff who helps the Durango Kid bring The Hawk to justice.