The 20 Best Action Movies on Netflix Right Now

Photo: Dreamworks

This list is frequently updated as titles leave and join Netflix. *New additions are indicated with an asterisk.

Netflix has made headlines by investing in highbrow dramas that win Oscars. But sometimes you don’t want that! Sometimes you just want to escape the increasingly insane world out there into an action movie. Netflix has made a few of their own, but the bulk of the best action films on their service are still Hollywood blockbusters from ‘90s modern classics to more recent box office hits to films that may have slipped under your radar. From Matt Reeves to Steven Spielberg, here are the best action movies currently on Netflix.

1917

Year: 2019
Runtime: 1h 59m
Director: Sam Mendes

This Oscar winner doesn’t land on streaming services very often, so take this chance while you can. Sam Mendes directs a visceral recounting of a personal story told to him by his grandfather about his time in World War I, allowing the harrowing journey of a British soldier (George MacKay) to unfold in one unforgettable, unbroken shot.

300

Year: 2007
Runtime: 1h 26m
Director: Zack Snyder

Zack Snyder’s 2007 hit really changed the game in terms of action storytelling, influencing the next decade of the genre in ways that still feel underappreciated. Based on the graphic novel by Frank Miller and Lynn Varley, Gerard Butler leads the cast of this highly stylized period action film that downright exudes testosterone.

Baby Driver

Year: 2017
Runtime: 1h 53m
Director: Edgar Wright

It’s a little harder to watch this movie now given what we know about some of its cast, but it’s still such a remarkably well-made piece of action filmmaking, the kinetically unforgettable story of a getaway driver who knows all the best tunes. Ansel Elgort, Jamie Foxx, and Lily James may be the stars of this movie, but it’s Wright’s showmanship that really steals the spotlight.

The Big 4

Year: 2022
Runtime: 2h 21m
Director: Timo Tjahjanto

Have you seen The Night Comes for Us? You would remember if you have because director Timo Tjahjanto is a maniac, a madman who choreographs and shoots action scenes like no one else in the world right now. He returned in late 2022 for his Netflix original about a group of assassins who are forced into action when someone kills their mentor. It’s kind of like a live-action Looney Tunes with bazookas.

*Collateral

Year: 2004
Runtime: 2h
Director: Michael Mann

Tom Cruise gives one of his most fascinating performances as Vincent, the passenger to Jamie Foxx’s L.A. cab driver on a very fateful night. It turns out that Vincent is a hitman, and he needs Foxx’s character to drive him on a killing spree in this tense, gorgeously-shot thriller from the masterful craftsman Michael Mann.

*Edge of Tomorrow

Year: 2014
Runtime: 1h 53m
Director: Doug Liman

Also known as Live Die Repeat, this is one of the best video game movies even if it’s not technically a video game movie. But think about it. It’s about a guy (Tom Cruise) who respawns every time he dies, taking what he learned from the previous attempt to try and defeat an alien race. That’s kind of how video games work. Edge of Tomorrow rules, partially because it also includes a fantastic Emily Blunt supporting performance.

Fury

Year: 2014
Runtime: 2h 15m
Director: David Ayer

The director of Suicide Squad (the first one) is one of our more divisive blockbuster filmmakers, but everyone seems to agree that this 2014 war movie is among his best. Not only is the story of an American tank crew tightly made, but it features one of Ayer’s strongest cast, and one of the strongest of any war movie in the modern era, including Brad Pitt, Shia LaBeouf, Logan Lerman, Michael Pena, and Jon Bernthal, all totally bringing it.

Godzilla Minus One

Year: 2023
Runtime: 2h 5m
Director: Takashi Yamazaki

Netflix stunned people when they stealthily dropped this worldwide hit on their service on June 1st, making a movie that wasn’t even on VOD finally available at home. The winner of the Oscar for Best Visual Effects, Godzilla Minus One is a masterful blend of action and social commentary, considered by many to be among the best in this generations-spanning franchise.

Hardcore Henry

Year: 2015
Runtime: 1h 36m
Director: Ilya Naishuller

Have you ever wanted to see a movie that replicated the feel of playing a first-person shooter video game? Then Hardcore Henry is the one for you. The plot doesn’t really matter — there’s something about experiments and lost memories and whatever — as this is all an exercise in style. Writer/director Ilya Naishuller straps viewers into the perspective of his increasingly powerful hero and then unleashes him on enemies who want to stop him. At its peak, it’s got some adrenaline-pumping lunacy that’s admirable.

The Harder They Fall

Year: 2021
Runtime: 2h 19m
Director: Jeymes Samuel

The Harder They Fall came and went too fast in late 2021 and deserves to find a bigger audience on Netflix. The phenomenal Jonathan Majors stars in this stylish Western with tons of attitude, memorable characters, and brilliant set pieces. He’s joined by Idris Elba, Zazie Beetz, Regina King, Delroy Lindo, Lakeith Stanfield, Danielle Deadwyler, and many more in a film that feels like it will become bigger as its incredible cast become acting legends.

The Killer

Year: 2023
Runtime: 1h 59m
Director: David Fincher

Michael Fassbender gives his best performance in years as an icy hired assassin who struggles to hold things together when a job goes horribly wrong. It’s a movie about a self-proclaimed perfectionist who is constantly defying his own voiceover, a great film that’s alternately hysterical and thrilling. One of the best of 2023.

The Man From U.N.C.L.E.

Year: 2015
Runtime: 1h 56m
Director: Guy Ritchie

This loose adaptation of the ‘60s TV show looked like it was going to be a major summer blockbuster, but it kind of ended up a box office bomb, killing a potential franchise before it really began. In part because of that fate, it’s developed a loyal cult following, people who adore its undeniably cool blend of action and a few of the most beautiful people in the world. With the recent success of Guy Ritchie’s The Gentlemen on Netflix, it’s a perfect time to chase that experience with this superior film.

The Matrix

Year: 1999
Runtime: 2h 16m
Director: The Wachowskis

Neo and the gang returned to HBO Max in late 2021 with The Matrix Resurrections, and the response was predictably divisive. You know what’s not divisive? The fact that the first movie still absolutely rules. The story of an average guy who learns that nothing is what it seems has influenced so much pop culture in the over-two decades since this movie was released. You can see Neo everywhere. (And you can watch the entire original trilogy on Netflix now.)

Mr. & Mrs. Smith

Year: 2005
Runtime: 2h
Director: Doug Liman

The fun new reboot series may be over on Prime, but Netflix has the one that started it all: The movie that gave the world Brangelina. Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt star as a seemingly ordinary suburban couple who discover that they both have secret identities as competing assassins. When they get assignments to kill each other, all hell breaks loose.

Rebel Ridge

Year: 2024
Runtime: 2h 11m
Director: Jeremy Saulnier

Future superstar Aaron Pierre stars in the latest from the phenomenal director behind Blue Ruin and Green Room, proving again that he is one of the best at tight action filmmaking. Wasting no time, Rebel Ridge opens with Pierre’s character essentially robbed by smalltown cops while he’s trying to take bail money to his cousin. The former military specialist doesn’t take that well. This is one of the best Netflix originals in a long time. (Streaming September 6.)

RRR

Year: 2022
Runtime: 3h 5m
Director: S.S. Rajamouli

One of the biggest films in the world in 2022, this crazy action flick really took off in the United States when it dropped on Netflix. It’s hard to put into words just how much movie you get with RRR. It’s kind of all the movies — musical, romance, comedy, action, drama. Whatever you’re looking for, it’s in here. You’ll want to watch it twice.

The Rundown

Year: 2003
Runtime: 1h 44m
Director: Peter Berg

Remember when Dwayne Johnson was credited as “The Rock”? That was the case with this truly fun buddy comedy, which was really the current superstar’s breakthrough in action filmmaking. It remains one of his best films, a clever riff on a tried-and-true formula with Johnson and Seann William Scott perfectly matched. Christopher Walken and Rosario Dawson help too.

Skyfall

Year: 2012
Runtime: 2h 23m
Director: Sam Mendes

The Daniel Craig era of James Bond has come to a close and so now history can look back and appreciate his entire run. Is the best film of his five the centerpiece? Arguably. This epic unpacking of the history of 007 is gorgeously shot by Roger Deakins and perfectly directed by Sam Mendes. It features a strong villain performance from Javier Bardem and great supporting work from Albert Finney and Judi Dench. Heck, it even has a killer theme song.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Year: 2023
Runtime: 2h 20m
Director: Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson

What a gift to Netflix subscribers for this to already be on the service so soon after playing in theaters and landing on Blu-ray. This is how you do a big-budget blockbuster sequel, developing the themes of the first movie and setting up the stake for what now appears will be one of the best trilogies in superhero history. Packed with so much detail and creativity, it’s a film you’ll want to watch over and over again.

Starship Troopers

Year: 1997
Runtime: 2h 9m
Director: Paul Verhoeven

The bugs! No one else but the director of Robocop could have made this unforgettable sci-fi/action epic about giant bugs from outer space. On the surface, it’s a wildly entertaining action movie about young soldiers trying to stop an unimaginable force. Dig deeper and you’ll find richly rewarding satirical levels about the military complex and even fascism. However you enjoy it, just enjoy it while you can.

World War Z

Year: 2013
Runtime: 1h 57m
Director: Marc Forster

The people behind this massive blockbuster took the relatively simple book of the same name by Max Brooks and made it into a globe-hopping epic about the end of the world on a massive scale. Brad Pitt stars as Gerry Lane, a United Nations investigator who tries to stop a zombie pandemic while it’s actually happening. It’s an imperfect adaptation but some of its imagery is unforgettable. And every list like this needs a few zombie movies.

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