The All-Time Greatest Action Stars
Who are the all-time greatest action stars? This list includes some of the biggest names in movie history, and each actor or actress listed here is fully capable of kicking butt and taking names in any movie they're in. Action stars are a special breed. They combine great acting ability with physicality that brings an action film to life. Be sure to vote for your favorite action stars and vote down any you don't like. Also, feel free to add any great action movie stars who are missing from the list.
What makes an action star the best? It's someone who commands the screen with feats of strength and prowess - not to mention the uncanny ability to miraculously survive even in the face of impossible odds. Many people listed here are top action movie stars who starred in some of the greatest action movies of all time. Some are newcomers, having landed major roles in recent films, including the best action movies of 2012, for example.
Not all of the all-time greatest action stars are men, no no. Some of the sexiest women in action movies are included here. Among them: Sigourney Weaver, aka Ripley in Alien. She definitely qualifies. Angelina Jolie and Milla Jovovich are other good examples.
Enjoy voting for the best action stars, and remember: You can, and should, add any famous Hollywood action actors who deserve a spot but aren't already listed here!
- Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (; German: [ˈaɐ̯nɔlt ˈʃvaɐ̯tsn̩ˌʔɛɡɐ]; born July 30, 1947) is an Austrian-American politician, actor, filmmaker, and former professional bodybuilder. He served as the 38th ...more
- Sylvester Enzio Stallone (; born Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone, July 6, 1946) is an American actor, director, screenwriter, and producer. After his beginnings as a struggling actor for a ...more
- Chan Kong-sang (born 7 April 1954), known professionally as Jackie Chan, is a Hong Konger martial artist, actor, film director, producer, stuntman, and singer. He is known for his acrobatic fighting ...more
- Lee Jun-fan (Chinese: 李振藩; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973), known professionally as Bruce Lee (Chinese: 李小龍), was a Hong Kong-American actor, director, martial artist, martial arts instructor, and ...more
- Walter Bruce Willis (born March 19, 1955) is an American actor, producer, and singer. Born to a German mother and American father in Idar-Oberstein, Germany, he moved to the United States with his ...more
- Keanu Charles Reeves ( kee-AH-noo; born September 2, 1964) is a Canadian actor and musician. He gained fame for his starring roles in several blockbuster films, including comedies from the Bill and ...more
- Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor, filmmaker, musician, and politician. After achieving success in the Western TV series Rawhide, he rose to international fame with his ...more
- Jason Statham (; born 26 July 1967) is an English actor and film producer. Typecast as the antihero, he is known for his action-thriller roles and portraying tough, irredeemable, and machiavellian ...more
- Harrison Ford (born July 13, 1942) is an American actor. He gained worldwide fame for his starring roles as Han Solo in the Star Wars film series and as the title character of the Indiana Jones movie ...more
- Carlos Ray Norris (born March 10, 1940) is an American martial artist, actor, film producer and screenwriter. After serving in the United States Air Force, he won many martial arts championships and ...more
- Liam John Neeson (born 7 June 1952) is an actor from Northern Ireland. He has been nominated for a number of awards, including an Academy Award for Best Actor, a BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a ...more
- Dwayne Douglas Johnson (born May 2, 1972), also known by his ring name The Rock, is an American actor, producer, and former professional wrestler. Johnson was a professional wrestler for the World ...more
- Li Lianjie (born 26 April 1963), better known by his stage name Jet Li, is a Chinese film actor, film producer, martial artist, and retired Wushu champion who was born in Beijing. He is a ...more
- Jean-Claude Camille François van Varenberg (born 18 October 1960), professionally known as Jean-Claude van Damme (French pronunciation: [ʒɑ̃ klod vɑ̃ dam], Dutch: [vɑn ˈdɑmə]) and as JCVD, is a ...more
- Sir Thomas Sean Connery (25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a retired Scottish actor and producer, who during his life won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards, one being a BAFTA Academy Fellowship ...more
- Mel Colmcille Gerard Gibson (born January 3, 1956) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is best known for his action hero roles, particularly his breakout role as Max Rockatansky in the first ...more
- Denzel Hayes Washington Jr. (born December 28, 1954) is an American actor, director, and producer. He has been described as an actor who reconfigured "the concept of classic movie stardom", ...more
- Kurt Vogel Russell (born March 17, 1951) is an American actor. He began acting on television at the age of 12 in the western series The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters (1963–1964). In the late 1960s, he ...more
- Hugh Michael Jackman (born 12 October 1968) is an Australian actor, singer, and producer. He is best known for playing Wolverine in the X-Men film series from 2000 to 2018, a role for which he holds ...more
- Charles Bronson (born Charles Dennis Buchinsky; Lithuanian: Karolis Dionyzas Bučinskis; November 3, 1921 – August 30, 2003) was an American actor. He was often cast in the role of a police officer, ...more
- Milica Bogdanovna "Milla" Jovovich ( YOH-və-vitch; born December 17, 1975) is an American actress, model, and musician. Her starring roles in numerous science fiction and action films led the music ...more
- Thomas Cruise (born July 3, 1962) is an American actor and film producer. He has received several accolades for his work, including three Golden Globe Awards and nominations for three Academy Awards. ...more
- Marion Mitchell Morrison (born Marion Robert Morrison; May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and nicknamed Duke, was an American actor, filmmaker, and Presidential Medal ...more
- Christopher Hemsworth (born 11 August 1983) is an Australian actor. He rose to prominence playing Kim Hyde in the Australian TV series Home and Away (2004–07) before leaving to begin a film career in ...more
- Mark Sinclair (born July 18, 1967), better known by his stage name Vin Diesel, is an American actor, producer, director, and screenwriter. After featuring in the war film Saving Private Ryan (1998), ...more