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The best action movies on Amazon Prime right now

Will Smith and Gene Hackman side by side in an elevator, both looking angry in Enemy of the State.
Buena Vista Pictures Distribution

There are a ton of action movies on Amazon Prime Video, but not nearly as many great action movies. Amazon picked up a lot of schlock to fill out its library in this category, and the same could be said of many other streaming services. The key difference is that you have to scroll down for a long time to find the best action movies on Amazon Prime.

Fortunately, we’ve already done that for you. This month’s most promising new additions include one of the late Gene Hackman’s final thrillers, an action vehicle for Ben Affleck, and one of the greatest action comedies ever made. You can find all of these films and the rest of the best action movies on Amazon Prime below.

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Need more recommendations? Then check out the best new movies to stream this week, the best movies on Netflix, the best movies on Hulu, the best movies on Amazon Prime Video, the best movies on Max, and the best movies on Disney+.

Recently added to Amazon Prime Video

Enemy of the State (1998)

Enemy of the State
67%
7.3/10
r
132m
Genre
Action, Drama, Thriller
Stars
Will Smith, Gene Hackman, Jon Voight
Directed by
Tony Scott
Watch on Amazon
Will Smith has played the action hero so often that it’s refreshing to see him as an everyman in Enemy of the State. Robert Clayton Dean (Will Smith) is a labor lawyer who is as far away from political intrigue as he can be while living in Washington, D.C. He’s only vaguely aware that his friend and former lover, Rachel Banks (Lisa Bonet), contracts a former intelligence operative named Brill (Gene Hackman) for occasional surveillance.

Will Smith has played the action hero so often that it’s refreshing that he’s the everyman in Enemy of the State. Robert Clayton Dean (Smith) is a labor lawyer who is as far away from political intrigue as he can be while living in Washington, D.C. He’s only vaguely aware that his friend and former lover, Rachel Banks (Lisa Bonet), contracts a former intelligence operative named Brill (Gene Hackman) for occasional surveillance.

The Accountant (2016)

The Accountant
51%
7.3/10
r
128m
Genre
Crime, Thriller, Drama
Stars
Ben Affleck, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, Anna Kendrick
Directed by
Gavin O'Connor
Watch on Amazon

Nine years after The Accountant came out, there’s a sequel coming to theaters later this year. But the original works well as a standalone story. The film introduces Ben Affleck as the unnamed title character, an autistic man who puts his skill with numbers to use by examining the financial records of criminals to discover if anyone is defrauding them.

The Accountant’s activities haven’t gone unnoticed by the Treasury Department, and they’re starting to close in on him. A more immediate concern is that the Accountant’s latest job has put both himself and an innocent whistleblower, Dana Cummings (Anna Kendrick), at risk. That may have been a mistake on the part of the Accountant’s newfound enemies. As good as he is with numbers, he’s just as lethal with a gun.

Midnight Run (1988)

Midnight Run
78%
7.5/10
r
126m
Genre
Action, Comedy, Crime, Thriller
Stars
Robert De Niro, Charles Grodin, Yaphet Kotto
Directed by
Martin Brest
Watch on Amazon

There have been countless action comedies over the decades, but few are better than Midnight Run. Former cop Jack Walsh (Robert De Niro) lost his career, his wife, and his family because he wouldn’t give in to corruption. Years later, while working as a bounty hunter, he gets an “easy” job of escorting former mob accountant Jonathan “The Duke” Mardukas (Charles Grodin) cross-country to appear in court.

Mardukas is anything but a cooperative prisoner, especially when he derails Walsh’s plans to fly them home. But when the FBI, dirty cops, and mob boss Jimmy Serrano (Dennis Farina) come after this unlikely duo, they’ll have to find a way to work together if they want to stay alive.

Rob Roy (1995)

Rob Roy
55%
6.9/10
r
139m
Genre
Adventure, History, Drama, Action, War
Stars
Liam Neeson, Jessica Lange, John Hurt
Directed by
Michael Caton-Jones
Watch on Amazon

In the 1990s, it was less common for Liam Neeson to appear in an action film. Rob Roy is about as prestigious as action flicks get, even though it was overshadowed by the similarly themed Braveheart a month later.

The story is set in England and Scotland just over four centuries after the historical events depicted in Braveheart. Rob Roy MacGregor (Neeson) was also a real person, although the film takes certain liberties with his life. When Archibald Cunningham (Tim Roth) steals desperately needed money from Rob Roy and clan MacGregor, they have no choice but to rise up and protect their lands and people. But to keep her husband from endangering himself, Mary MacGregor (Jessica Lange) has to hide the full extent of Cunningham’s crimes from Rob Roy.

Big Trouble in Little China (1986)

Big Trouble in Little China
53%
7.2/10
pg-13
100m
Genre
Action, Comedy, Fantasy
Stars
Kurt Russell, Kim Cattrall, Dennis Dun
Directed by
John Carpenter
Watch on Amazon

Kurt Russell perfectly embodied a 1980s action hero in John Carpenter’s cult classic Big Trouble in Little China. Ol’ Jack Burton (Russell) was just trying to collect a bet from his pal, Wang Chi (Dennis Dun), when Wang’s fiancée, Miao Yin (Suzee Pai), was kidnapped in front of them.

From there, Jack and Wang find themselves way over their heads in trouble as an ancient Chinese sorcerer, Lo Pan (James Hong), plans to use Miao Yin to break a curse placed on him centuries ago. Gracie Law (Kim Cattrall) — a local lawyer who tries to help Jack and Wang recover Miao — is also drawn into Lo Pan’s supernatural plan when he decides to take two brides instead of one.

Spectre (2015)

Spectre
60%
6.8/10
pg-13
148m
Genre
Action, Adventure, Thriller
Stars
Daniel Craig, Christoph Waltz, Léa Seydoux
Directed by
Sam Mendes
Watch on Amazon

Spectre picked up the lingering elements of Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace and thrust Daniel Craig’s James Bond into a larger story that would culminate in 2021’s No Time To Die. But first, Bond had to figure out how the terrorist organization Quantum was related to a new threat against the entire world.

Tracking down his old enemy Mr. White (Jesper Christensen), Bond gets what he needs from White’s daughter, Madeleine Swann (Léa Seydoux). Bond soon discovers that Spectre is more than just a nefarious covert criminal organization; it’s part of a decades-long vendetta against Bond himself courtesy of Ernst Stavro Blofeld (Christoph Waltz).

The Fall Guy (2024)

The Fall Guy
73%
6.9/10
pg-13
127m
Genre
Action, Comedy, Romance
Stars
Ryan Gosling, Emily Blunt, Aaron Taylor-Johnson
Directed by
David Leitch
Watch on Amazon

The Fall Guy movie only lightly resembles the TV series of the same name from four decades ago. Instead of a stuntman moonlighting as a bounty hunter, Colt Seavers (Ryan Gosling) is simply burnt out on Hollywood after getting hurt during a shoot. He also alienates his girlfriend, Jody Moreno (Emily Blunt), when he drops out of the industry.

Nearly two years later, Jody is directing her first film and she’s having trouble keeping her star, Tom Ryder (Kraven the Hunter‘s Aaron Taylor-Johnson), under control. Colt is recruited to work on Jody’s film, much to her displeasure. But when Tom goes missing, Colt is the only one who can track him down and save Jody’s movie from going under before it’s even finished.

Die Hard (1988)

Die Hard
72%
8.2/10
r
132m
Genre
Action, Thriller
Stars
Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Alexander Godunov
Directed by
John McTiernan
Watch on Amazon

Is it really Christmas if Bruce Willis doesn’t get a machine gun at Nakatomi Plaza? “Ho, ho, ho!” Holiday purists may not like the idea of Die Hard as a Christmas movie, but we love it. It also just so happens to be one of the greatest action flicks of all-time.

For his first turn as John McClane, Willis gives a very emotionally vulnerable performance as he tries to convince his estranged wife, Holly Gennaro-McClane (Bonnie Bedelia), to reconcile with him during her company’s holiday party. But the party’s over when Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) arrives alongside armed terrorists. Suddenly, John has to draw on all of his cop training just to stay alive and attempt to rescue the hostages. And there’s no one left to save the day but him.

Road House (2024)

Road House
59%
6.3/10
r
121m
Genre
Action, Thriller
Stars
Jake Gyllenhaal, Daniela Melchior, Conor McGregor
Directed by
Doug Liman
Watch on Amazon

Road House may have skipped theaters, but there’s no shortage of action in this remake of the 1989 original starring Patrick Swayze. Jake Gyllenhaal headlines the new film as Dalton, a former UFC fighter running from his past who gets a chance to turn his life around when Frankie (Jessica Williams) hires him to be the new head bouncer at her road house bar.

Dalton is so good at his job that he runs afoul of local crime boss Ben Brandt (Billy Magnussen), who’s trying to take Frankie’s land as part of a larger scheme. When Dalton won’t back down, an even more formidable enforcer, Knox (Conor McGregor), is sent to put him in his place. And this is one fight where even Dalton’s skills will be sorely tested.

Payback (1999)

Payback
46%
7.1/10
r
100m
Genre
Action, Drama, Crime
Stars
Mel Gibson, Gregg Henry, Maria Bello
Directed by
Brian Helgeland
Watch on Amazon

The posters for Payback said “get ready to root for the bad guy.” It’s not so hard when the bad guy is going up against people who are even worse than he is. Action icon Mel Gibson plays Porter, a career criminal who was double-crossed by his partner, Val Resnick (Gregg Henry), who also convinced Porter’s wife, Lynn (Deborah Kara Unger), that he was cheating on her. Together, they leave Porter for dead, and Val steals the money that he and Porter had previously taken from the Chinese Triad.

But leaving someone for dead is not the same thing as making sure they’re dead. Porter takes the time to recover, and when he returns, he’s going to make sure there’s hell to pay. Val’s just one of the top names on his hit list, and Porter won’t stop coming until his revenge is complete.

Guy Ritchie's The Covenant (2023)

Guy Ritchie's The Covenant
63%
7.5/10
r
123m
Genre
War, Action, Thriller
Stars
Jake Gyllenhaal, Dar Salim, Sean Sagar
Directed by
Guy Ritchie
Watch on Amazon

Bonds of brotherhood are formed in battle, even though Master Sergeant John Kinley (Jake Gyllenhaal) doesn’t initially care for his new interpreter, Ahmed (Dar Salim), during the war in Afghanistan. The Covenant reveals Ahmed’s heroism when he risks his own life to see Kinley to safety after the latter is injured by Taliban fighters.

Ahmed’s bravery is not rewarded by the U.S. government, which refuses to evacuate him and his family even as the Taliban hunts him down to get revenge. When Kinley discovers this injustice, he returns to Afghanistan to repay the debt that he has to Ahmed.

Samaritan (2022)

Samaritan
45%
5.7/10
pg-13
102m
Genre
Action, Drama, Science Fiction
Stars
Javon Walton, Sylvester Stallone, Dascha Polanco
Directed by
Julius Avery
Watch on Amazon
Seeing as we’ve already seen wave after wave of actors getting the cape-and-cowl treatment, it was only a matter of time before the superhero story found its way to someone like Sylvester Stallone. The movie to do so is Samaritan, and while it’s pretty par for the course in terms of narrative scope and set pieces, it’s certainly not the worst blending of sci-fi action and drama we’ve ever seen. The story follows Sam Cleary (Javon Walton), a 13-year-old kid who is watching the world around him crumble. Crime is rampant, heroes are hard to come by, and the end times seem to be drawing near. But perhaps all is not lost. Mr. Smith (Stallone) could actually be Samaritan, a superhero who was the white knight of Sam’s stomping grounds a long time ago. And it’s up to the persistent and hopeful Sam to convince Mr. Smith to become a hero once more.
SAMARITAN Trailer (2022)

Jolt (2021)

Jolt
48%
5.6/10
91m
Genre
Action, Comedy
Stars
Kate Beckinsale, Stanley Tucci, Bobby Cannavale
Directed by
Tanya Wexler
Watch on Amazon
In Jolt, Kate Beckinsale’s Lindy Lewis has a bit of a problem keeping her intermittent explosive disorder under control. The short version is that she’s prone to fits of extreme violence at a moment’s notice. While trying to maintain some sense of normalcy, Lindy goes on a date with Justin (Jai Courtney). But when Justin is murdered, Lindy realizes that the police will do nothing to solve the case. So she takes it upon herself to dispense justice, one beating at a time, until she gets some answers.

Tom Clancy's Without Remorse (2021)

Tom Clancy's Without Remorse
41%
5.8/10
r
109m
Genre
Action, Thriller
Stars
Michael B. Jordan, Jamie Bell, Jodie Turner-Smith
Directed by
Stefano Sollima
Watch on Amazon
After nearly three decades in development hell, Tom Clancy’s novel, Without Remorse, was finally adapted with Michael B. Jordan in the leading role as John Kelly, the leader of an elite team of U.S. Navy SEALs. Following a mission that unwittingly pits them against Russian operatives, John and his team face deadly reprisals months later on American soil. John is the only survivor of an attack that also claims the life of his wife, Pam Kelly (Lauren London). After murdering one of the men responsible, John bargains his way out of prison to help capture the last surviving assassin, Victor Rykov (Brett Gelman).

The Tomorrow War (2021)

The Tomorrow War
45%
6.6/10
pg-13
138m
Genre
Action, Science Fiction, Adventure
Stars
Chris Pratt, Yvonne Strahovski, J.K. Simmons
Directed by
Chris McKay
Watch on Amazon
As the title implies, The Tomorrow War isn’t about a conflict in the present. But it is very much a problem that the modern world can’t ignore. When Lt. Hart (Jasmine Mathews) travels back in time to warn the people of Earth about an alien invasion, she also reveals that humanity is losing the war. Recruits are badly needed to come back to the future and fight the alien horde. Chris Pratt’s Dan Forester is one of many who answer the call to action, but he’s not the only member of his family who gets roped into the war. Yet once they get to the future, Dan and the new recruits find themselves ill-prepared for the full scale of the threat.
Movie images and data from:
Blair Marnell
Blair Marnell has been an entertainment journalist for over 15 years. His bylines have appeared in Wizard Magazine, Geek…
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