Favorite Action/Thriller Films
by NerdEmperor | created - 19 Dec 2013 | updated - 03 Feb 2021 | Public- Instant Watch Options
- Genres
- Movies or TV
- IMDb Rating
- In Theaters
- Release Year
- Keywords
1. Air Force One (1997)
R | 124 min | Action, Drama, Thriller
Communist radicals hijack Air Force One with the U.S. President and his family on board. The Vice President negotiates from Washington D.C., while the President, a veteran, fights to rescue the hostages on board.
Director: Wolfgang Petersen | Stars: Harrison Ford, Gary Oldman, Glenn Close, Wendy Crewson
Votes: 210,229 | Gross: $172.96M
2. Speed (1994)
R | 116 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
A young police officer must prevent a bomb exploding aboard a city bus by keeping its speed above 50 mph.
Director: Jan de Bont | Stars: Keanu Reeves, Dennis Hopper, Sandra Bullock, Joe Morton
Votes: 392,166 | Gross: $121.25M
3. Die Hard (1988)
R | 132 min | Action, Thriller
A New York City police officer tries to save his estranged wife and several others taken hostage by terrorists during a Christmas party at the Nakatomi Plaza in Los Angeles.
Director: John McTiernan | Stars: Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Bonnie Bedelia, Reginald VelJohnson
Votes: 946,106 | Gross: $83.01M
4. Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)
PG-13 | 119 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
James Bond sets out to stop a media mogul's plan to induce war between China and the UK in order to obtain exclusive global media coverage.
Director: Roger Spottiswoode | Stars: Pierce Brosnan, Jonathan Pryce, Michelle Yeoh, Teri Hatcher
Votes: 204,746 | Gross: $125.33M
5. GoldenEye (1995)
PG-13 | 130 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
Years after a friend and fellow 00 agent is killed on a joint mission, a secret space based weapons program known as "GoldenEye" is stolen. James Bond is assigned to stop a Russian crime syndicate from using the weapon.
Director: Martin Campbell | Stars: Pierce Brosnan, Sean Bean, Izabella Scorupco, Famke Janssen
Votes: 270,313 | Gross: $106.60M
6. Die Another Day (2002)
PG-13 | 133 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
James Bond is sent to investigate the connection between a North Korean terrorist and a diamond mogul, who is funding the development of an international space weapon.
Director: Lee Tamahori | Stars: Pierce Brosnan, Halle Berry, Rosamund Pike, Toby Stephens
Votes: 229,246 | Gross: $160.94M
7. Commando (1985)
R | 90 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
A retired Special Forces colonel tries to save his daughter, who was abducted by his former subordinate.
Director: Mark L. Lester | Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rae Dawn Chong, Dan Hedaya, Vernon Wells
Votes: 174,995 | Gross: $35.10M
8. True Lies (1994)
R | 141 min | Action, Comedy, Thriller
A fearless, globe-trotting, terrorist-battling secret agent has his life turned upside down when he discovers his wife might be having an affair with a used-car salesman while terrorists smuggle nuclear war heads into the United States.
Director: James Cameron | Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Arnold, Bill Paxton
Votes: 281,144 | Gross: $146.28M
9. A View to a Kill (1985)
PG | 131 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
The recovery of a microchip from the body of a fellow British secret agent leads James Bond to a mad industrialist scheming to cause massive destruction.
Director: John Glen | Stars: Roger Moore, Christopher Walken, Tanya Roberts, Grace Jones
Votes: 104,955 | Gross: $50.33M
10. Live and Let Die (1973)
PG | 121 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
James Bond is sent to stop a diabolically brilliant heroin magnate armed with a complex organisation and a reliable psychic tarot card reader.
Director: Guy Hamilton | Stars: Roger Moore, Yaphet Kotto, Jane Seymour, Clifton James
Votes: 115,534 | Gross: $35.38M
11. Die Hard 2 (1990)
R | 124 min | Action, Thriller
John McClane attempts to avert disaster as rogue military operatives seize control of Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C.
Director: Renny Harlin | Stars: Bruce Willis, William Atherton, Bonnie Bedelia, Reginald VelJohnson
Votes: 383,248 | Gross: $117.54M
12. Con Air (1997)
R | 115 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
Newly-paroled ex-con and former U.S. Ranger Cameron Poe finds himself trapped in a prisoner-transport plane when the passengers seize control.
Director: Simon West | Stars: Nicolas Cage, John Cusack, John Malkovich, Colm Meaney
Votes: 319,452 | Gross: $101.12M
13. Passenger 57 (1992)
R | 84 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
An airline security expert must take action when he finds himself trapped on a passenger jet when terrorists seize control of it.
Director: Kevin Hooks | Stars: Wesley Snipes, Bruce Payne, Tom Sizemore, Alex Datcher
Votes: 50,740 | Gross: $44.07M
14. Timecop (1994)
R | 99 min | Action, Crime, Sci-Fi
Max Walker, an officer for a security agency that regulates time travel, must fend for his life against a shady politician who's intent on changing the past to control the future.
Director: Peter Hyams | Stars: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Mia Sara, Ron Silver, Bruce McGill
Votes: 64,224 | Gross: $44.85M
15. Nick of Time (1995)
R | 90 min | Action, Crime, Drama
An unimpressive, everyday man is forced into a situation where he is told to kill a politician to save his kidnapped daughter.
Director: John Badham | Stars: Johnny Depp, Christopher Walken, Courtney Chase, Charles S. Dutton
Votes: 45,181 | Gross: $8.17M
16. Last Action Hero (1993)
PG-13 | 130 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
With the help of a magic ticket, a young movie fan is transported into the fictional world of his favorite action movie character.
Director: John McTiernan | Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, F. Murray Abraham, Art Carney, Charles Dance
Votes: 163,939 | Gross: $50.02M
17. The Rock (1996)
R | 136 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
A mild-mannered chemist and an ex-con must lead the counterstrike when a rogue group of military men, led by a renegade general, threaten a nerve gas attack from Alcatraz against San Francisco.
Director: Michael Bay | Stars: Sean Connery, Nicolas Cage, Ed Harris, John Spencer
Votes: 358,309 | Gross: $134.07M
18. The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)
PG | 125 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
James Bond investigates the hijacking of British and Russian submarines carrying nuclear warheads, with the help of a K.G.B. agent whose lover he killed.
Director: Lewis Gilbert | Stars: Roger Moore, Barbara Bach, Curd Jürgens, Richard Kiel
Votes: 116,312 | Gross: $46.80M
19. You Only Live Twice (1967)
PG | 117 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
James Bond and the Japanese Secret Service must find and stop the true culprit of a series of space hijackings, before war is provoked between Russia and the United States.
Director: Lewis Gilbert | Stars: Sean Connery, Akiko Wakabayashi, Mie Hama, Tetsurô Tanba
Votes: 117,597 | Gross: $43.08M
20. Skyfall (2012)
PG-13 | 143 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
James Bond's loyalty to M is tested when her past comes back to haunt her. When MI6 comes under attack, 007 must track down and destroy the threat, no matter how personal the cost.
Director: Sam Mendes | Stars: Daniel Craig, Javier Bardem, Naomie Harris, Judi Dench
Votes: 731,379 | Gross: $304.36M
21. U.S. Marshals (1998)
PG-13 | 131 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
U.S. Marshal Samuel Gerard and his team of Marshals are assigned to track down Sheridan, who has been accused of a double-murder.
Director: Stuart Baird | Stars: Tommy Lee Jones, Wesley Snipes, Robert Downey Jr., Joe Pantoliano
Votes: 113,418 | Gross: $57.17M
22. The Fugitive (1993)
PG-13 | 130 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Dr. Richard Kimble, unjustly accused of murdering his wife, must find the real killer while being the target of a nationwide manhunt led by a seasoned U.S. Marshal.
Director: Andrew Davis | Stars: Harrison Ford, Tommy Lee Jones, Sela Ward, Julianne Moore
Votes: 318,885 | Gross: $183.88M
23. Speed 2: Cruise Control (1997)
PG-13 | 121 min | Action, Adventure, Crime
A computer hacker breaks into the computer system of the Seabourn Legend cruise liner and sets it speeding on a collision course into a gigantic oil tanker.
Director: Jan de Bont | Stars: Sandra Bullock, Jason Patric, Willem Dafoe, Temuera Morrison
Votes: 86,001 | Gross: $48.61M
24. Minority Report (2002)
PG-13 | 145 min | Action, Crime, Mystery
John works with the PreCrime police which stop crimes before they take place, with the help of three 'PreCogs' who can foresee crimes. Events ensue when John finds himself framed for a future murder.
Director: Steven Spielberg | Stars: Tom Cruise, Colin Farrell, Samantha Morton, Max von Sydow
Votes: 584,641 | Gross: $132.07M
25. Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995)
R | 128 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
John McClane and a Harlem store owner are targeted by German terrorist Simon in New York City, where he plans to rob the Federal Reserve Building.
Director: John McTiernan | Stars: Bruce Willis, Jeremy Irons, Samuel L. Jackson, Graham Greene
Votes: 408,350 | Gross: $100.01M
26. Dr. No (1962)
PG | 110 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
A resourceful British government agent seeks answers in a case involving the disappearance of a colleague and the disruption of the American space program.
Director: Terence Young | Stars: Sean Connery, Ursula Andress, Bernard Lee, Joseph Wiseman
Votes: 179,488 | Gross: $16.07M
27. Licence to Kill (1989)
PG-13 | 133 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
A vengeful James Bond goes rogue to infiltrate and take down the organization of a drug lord who has murdered his friend's new wife and left him near death.
Director: John Glen | Stars: Timothy Dalton, Robert Davi, Carey Lowell, Talisa Soto
Votes: 112,135 | Gross: $34.67M
28. The World Is Not Enough (1999)
PG-13 | 128 min | Action, Adventure, Thriller
James Bond uncovers a nuclear plot while protecting an oil heiress from her former kidnapper, an international terrorist who can't feel pain.
Director: Michael Apted | Stars: Pierce Brosnan, Sophie Marceau, Robert Carlyle, Denise Richards
Votes: 210,031 | Gross: $126.94M
29. Mercury Rising (1998)
R | 111 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Shadowy elements in the NSA target a nine-year old autistic savant for death when he is able to decipher a top secret code.
Director: Harold Becker | Stars: Bruce Willis, Miko Hughes, Alec Baldwin, Chi McBride
Votes: 77,589 | Gross: $32.94M
30. Safe (I) (2012)
R | 94 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
Mei, a young girl whose memory holds a priceless numerical code, finds herself pursued by the Triads, the Russian mob, and corrupt NYC cops. Coming to her aid is an ex-cage fighter whose life was destroyed by the gangsters on Mei's trail.
Director: Boaz Yakin | Stars: Jason Statham, Catherine Chan, Chris Sarandon, Robert John Burke
Votes: 117,659 | Gross: $17.14M
31. Eraser (1996)
R | 115 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A Witness Protection specialist becomes suspicious of his co-workers when dealing with a case involving high-tech weapons.
Director: Chuck Russell | Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Vanessa Williams, James Caan, James Coburn
Votes: 118,432 | Gross: $101.30M
32. Live Free or Die Hard (2007)
PG-13 | 128 min | Action, Thriller
John McClane and a young hacker join forces to take down master cyber-terrorist Thomas Gabriel in Washington D.C.
Director: Len Wiseman | Stars: Bruce Willis, Justin Long, Timothy Olyphant, Maggie Q
Votes: 420,765 | Gross: $134.53M
33. Taken (I) (2008)
PG-13 | 90 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A retired CIA agent travels across Europe and relies on his old skills to save his estranged daughter, who has been kidnapped while on a trip to Paris.
Director: Pierre Morel | Stars: Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen, Leland Orser
Votes: 634,792 | Gross: $145.00M
34. Paycheck (2003)
PG-13 | 119 min | Action, Mystery, Sci-Fi
What seemed like a breezy idea that would net an engineer millions of dollars ends up leaving him on the run for his life and trying to piece together why he's being chased.
Director: John Woo | Stars: Ben Affleck, Aaron Eckhart, Uma Thurman, Michael C. Hall
Votes: 113,311 | Gross: $53.79M
35. Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)
R | 129 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
A spy organisation recruits a promising street kid into the agency's training program, while a global threat emerges from a twisted tech genius.
Director: Matthew Vaughn | Stars: Colin Firth, Taron Egerton, Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Caine
Votes: 716,510 | Gross: $128.26M
36. Dolan's Cadillac (2009)
R | 89 min | Crime, Thriller
A young man attempts to seek to avenge his wife's death after she is murdered by a Las Vegas mobster.
Director: Jeff Beesley | Stars: Christian Slater, Emmanuelle Vaugier, Wes Bentley, Greg Bryk
Votes: 7,612
37. Blue Steel (1990)
R | 102 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A rookie in the police force must engage in a cat-and-mouse game with a pistol-wielding psychopath who becomes obsessed with her.
Director: Kathryn Bigelow | Stars: Jamie Lee Curtis, Ron Silver, Clancy Brown, Elizabeth Peña
Votes: 17,780 | Gross: $8.22M
Tell Your Friends