The greatest epic action movies ever made have some of the best action stars to have ever fought on screen. Good Hollywood action movies tend to be the ones where we get a little substance to go along with the shooting; a little banter along with the battles. This list has some of the most awesome action films of all time, and it's now up to Ranker users to vote on which of these are truly the top action movies of all time. If you're looking for some of the greatest action movies of all time that are streaming on Netflix or Amazon, check out The Best Action Movies on Netflix and The Best Action Movies On Amazon Prime.
The list of popular action movies ever has famous action films with a mix of one man renegades (Die Hard), supernatural thrills (Alien), and science fiction dreams brought to reality on the big screen (Terminator, Jurassic Park). You'll even find some great comedic performances among the gun fights, smack talking, and explosions. Heck, you could probably fill a New Jersey size dump with all the stuff that gets blown up in these action films. The list covers a broad time range as well with nearly as many classic action movies making the list as newer, big budget CGI action-fest. Other good action movies to watch include The Matrix Trilogy, the John Wick movies, and The Bourne Series.
This is a fan ranked list and that means you can rerank this list so everyone can know that the biggest action movie of all time was actually...(this is where you fill in what you think the coolest action movie ever is). Make your voice heard and don't forget, these are action films so you're gonna have to be loud. And, if you love action movies, you might want to check out this list of the best action shows.
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7,4233,042Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Arnold Schwarzenegger, Edward FurlongReleased: 1991
Directed by: James Cameron
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10,4804,252Dark Knight Trilogy
Christian Bale, Gary OldmanReleased: 2005 - 2012
Directed by: Christopher Nolan
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4,3981,744Gladiator
Russell Crowe, Joaquin PhoenixReleased: 2000
Directed by: Ridley Scott
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6,6312,7515
7,2412,988Star Wars Franchise
Harrison Ford, Carrie FisherReleased: 1977 - Present
Directed by: George Lucas, JJ Abrams, Rian Johnson, Irvin Kershner, Richard Marquand
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5,4581,146John Wick Franchise
Keanu Reeves7
3,5281,552Braveheart
Mel Gibson, Sophie MarceauReleased: 1995
Directed by: Mel Gibson
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3,7971,628First Blood
Sylvester Stallone, Brian DennehyReleased: 1982
Directed by: Ted Kotcheff
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1,834766The Fugitive
Julianne Moore, Harrison FordReleased: 1993
Directed by: Andrew Davis
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1,671573The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Clint Eastwood, Eli WallachReleased: 1966
Directed by: Sergio Leone
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4,5082,004Saving Private Ryan
Tom Hanks, Matt DamonReleased: 1998
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
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3,8581,745The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
Elijah Wood, Ian McKellanReleased: 2001 - 2003
Directed by: Peter Jackson
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4,9152,40015
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9,6755,022Indiana Jones Franchise
Harrison Ford, Sean ConneryReleased: 1981 - Present
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
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5,5112,714Jurassic Park Franchise
Richard Attenborough, Sam NeillReleased: 1993 - Present
Directed by: Steven Spielberg, Joe Johnston, Colin Trevorrow, J.A. Bayona
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7,7304,018Marvel Cinematic Universe
Robert Downey Jr., Chris EvansReleased: 2008
Directed by: Jon Favreau, Joss Whedon, Anthony Russo, Joe Russo, Ryan Coogler
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8,1404,40221
1,257549The Rock
Nicolas Cage, Sean ConneryReleased: 1996
Directed by: Michael Bay
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2,3061,180Total Recall
Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sharon StoneReleased: 1990
Directed by: Paul Verhoeven
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5,9243,285Bourne Franchise
Matt Damon, Brian CoxReleased: 2002 - Present
Directed by: Doug Liman, Paul Greengrass
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1,046473Point Break
Keanu Reeves, Gary BuseyReleased: 1991
Directed by: Kathryn Bigelow
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4,0012,150Casino Royale
Daniel Craig, Pierce BrosnanReleased: 1962 - Present
Directed by: Terence Young, Guy Hamilton, Lewis Gilbert, Sam Mendes, Peter R. Hunt
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