Action movies have remained one of the most popular genres of entertainment since the birth of cinema. Prime Video offers a nice collection of actioners in its massive library, including Prime Video originals, and it adds new movies every week. That has made it a solid Netflix alternative in the raging streaming wars. So, what are the best action movies on Amazon Prime Video?

Below, we offer you our picks of the top 16 action movies you’ll find on the Amazon streamer. These include titles from various decades and countries spanning numerous sub-genres. We’ve also made sure to include a few movies you can watch for free on Amazon’s ad-supported channel Freevee. And if you aren’t already a Prime subscriber, you can sign up by hitting the link below.

Editor’s note: We will update this list regularly as action movies leave Amazon Prime Video and others are introduced.

What you need to know:

• Rating: PG-13
• Runtime: 138 minutes
• Director: Chris McKay
• Main cast: Chris Pratt, Yvonne Strahovski, J.K. Simmons, Betty Gilpin, Sam Richardson, Edwin Hodge, Jasmine Mathews
• Genre: Action, Adventure
• IMDB rating: 6.6

When time travelers arrive from the future warning about an alien invasion, high school teacher Dan Forester gets a terrifying ticket to the frontlines. Drafted into a war 30 years in the future, Dan’s thrust into combat against freaky alien creatures alongside his estranged father. No pressure, Dan, but the fate of humankind rests on you rewiring some alien tech to save us all.

What you need to know:

• Rating: R
• Runtime: 108 minutes
• Director: Sheldon Lettich
• Main cast: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Harrison Page, Deborah Rennard, Lisa Pelikan, Brian Thompson
• Genre: Action, Martial Arts
• IMDB rating: 6.2

Jean-Claude Van Damme plays a French Foreign Legion soldier who has to deal with his brother getting murdered. He wants to help support his sister-in-law and her daughter, so JCVD heads to Los Angeles and fights in illegal matches to get some money for the family.

If you love martial arts action movies and low-budget 1990s Hollywood action films, this one’s a hoot, and you can check it out on Prime Video.

What you need to know:

• Rating: R
• Runtime: 102 minutes
• Director: Alex Proyas
• Main cast: Brandon Lee, Rochelle Davis, Ernie Hudson, Michael Wincott, Bai Ling, Sofia Shinas, Anna Thomson
• Genre: Action, Crime
• IMDB rating: 7.5

Murdered musician Eric Draven is resurrected by a creepy crow and given supernatural powers. With his ghostly face paint, Eric goes full reaper, picking off the gang members responsible for killing him and his fiancée Shelly. He’s on a dark mission of vengeance, ready to deliver justice from beyond the grave.

What you need to know:

• Rating: R
• Runtime: 138 minutes
• Director: John Woo
• Main cast: John Travolta, Nicolas Cage, Joan Allen, Alessandro Nivola, Gina Gershon, Dominique Swain, Nick Cassavetes
• Genre: Action, Crime, Science Fiction
• IMDB rating: 7.3

FBI agent Sean Archer undergoes wild face-swapping surgery to impersonate his enemy, crime lord Castor Troy. But Castor kills the doctors and steals Sean’s face! Now the sworn enemies are running around in each other’s skin. Sean races to stop Castor while keeping his identity secret, but Castor’s got the same plan. Let the ultimate game of pretend begin!

What you need to know:

• Rating: R
• Runtime: 116 minutes
• Director: Russell Mulcahy
• Main cast: Christopher Lambert, Sean Connery, Clancy Brown
• Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
• IMDB rating: 7

Connor MacLeod is an immortal warrior. Born in ancient Scotland, he’s lived for centuries, clashing with other immortals.

Now, in the neon-lit streets of 1980s New York City, he confronts his fiercest enemy, the menacing Kurgan.

Dive into this blend of fantasy and action, and see why Highlander remains a classic on Amazon Prime.

What you need to know:

• Rating: R
• Runtime: 131 minutes
• Director: Kathryn Bigelow
• Main cast: Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, David Morse, Guy Pearce, Evangeline Lilly, Ralph Fiennes
• Genre: Drama, Thriller, War
• IMDB rating: 7.5

Iraq bomb tech William James gets his thrills defusing insurgent IEDs, ignoring protocols and putting lives in danger. Basically a war adrenaline junkie, he risks everything while hunting an elusive bomber called “The Hurt Locker.” But his addiction could blow up in his team’s face at any moment.

What you need to know:

• Rating: PG-13
• Runtime: 144 minutes
• Director: Martin Campbell
• Main cast: Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Judi Dench
• Genre: Action, Adventure, Thriller
• IMDB rating: 8

Daniel Craig’s debut as the legendary James Bond brings a fresh, gritty take on 007.

Tasked with bankrupting terrorist financier Le Chiffre at a high-stakes poker game, Bond faces the enigmatic Vesper Lynd. As alliances shift, Bond finds that love and duty might just be at odds.

Casino Royale is both stylish and intense, redefining the spy genre for a new era.

What you need to know:

• Rating: R
• Runtime: 101 minutes
• Director: Thomas Vincent
• Main cast: Kaley Cuoco, David Oyelowo, Bill Nighy, Connie Nielsen, Rudi Dharmalingam, Lucia Aliu, Reagan Bryan-Gudgeon
• Genre: Action, Comedy, Romance
• IMDB rating: 5.4

Bored with the routine of married life, Emma and Paul spice things up with a sexy role-playing game at a hotel bar, pretending to be strangers meeting for the first time. But the fantasy takes a dangerous turn when Emma’s secret life as a hired assassin collides with their marital role-play. With her stunned husband watching, Emma must rely on her killer instincts when a handsome stranger approaches her at the bar.

What you need to know:

• Rating: PG-13
• Runtime: 119 minutes
• Director: Doug Liman
• Main cast: Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Vince Vaughn, Adam Brody, Kerry Washington, Keith David, Chris Weitz
• Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime
• IMDB rating: 6.5

Married suburbanites John and Jane Smith seem normal, but they’ve got a pretty huge secret: they’re both assassins for rival agencies. When they’re each assigned to kill the other, forget marital bliss! Or couples therapy. They have to combine their deadly skills, but who would they choose to eliminate? Their employers or each other? Not exactly your average nuclear family. Watch this action movie on Prime for a good laugh and some heart-thumping action.

What you need to know:

• Rating: R
• Runtime: 101 minutes
• Director: Jason Moore
• Main cast: Jennifer Lopez, Josh Duhamel, Lenny Kravitz
• Genre: Action, Comedy, Romance
• IMDB rating: 5.5

Tom and Darcy plan the perfect destination wedding in the Philippines, but their dreams quickly turn into a nightmare when pirates crash the party, demanding a ransom from Darcy’s wealthy father.

Families turn on each other – hilariously with the help of Jennifer Coolidge’s talent.

The couple must navigate their doubts, defend their guests, and decide whether their love is worth fighting for.

What you need to know:

• Rating: PG-13
• Runtime: 163 minutes
• Director: Cary Joji Fukunaga
• Main cast: Daniel Craig, Léa Seydoux, Rami Malek, Lashana Lynch, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Whishaw, Naomie Harris
• Genre: Action, Adventure, Thriller
• IMDB rating: 7.3

James Bond’s attempt at retirement gets cut real short when he has to come back as 007 to take down the villainous Lyutsifer Safin. This psycho’s got his hands on some DNA-targeted bioweapon that could kill millions. With help from CIA agent Paloma, Bond jets off to Safin’s secret lair, racing to stop the release of this killer tech and save humanity from catastrophe. No big deal, right?

What you need to know:

• Rating: PG-13
• Runtime: 112 minutes
• Director: Dominic Cooke
• Main cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Merab Ninidze, Rachel Brosnahan
• Genre: Drama, History, Mystery
• IMDB rating: 7.2

Set against the Cold War backdrop, an ordinary British businessman finds himself at the heart of a dangerous operation. Recruited by MI6 and the CIA, he must form an alliance with a Soviet officer to provide crucial intelligence and prevent a potential nuclear war.

The Courier is a gripping tale of unsung heroes during one of history’s most perilous moments.

What you need to know:

• Rating: PG-13
• Runtime: 112 minutes
• Director: Aaron Nee, Adam Nee
• Main cast: Sandra Bullock, Channing Tatum, Daniel Radcliffe
• Genre: Action, Adventure, Comedy
• IMDB rating: 6.1

Loretta Sage’s romantic-adventure novels leap off the page and into reality when she’s kidnapped by a billionaire desperate to find a legendary treasure.

With the lines between fiction and reality blurring, Loretta teams up with Alan, the real-life embodiment of her novel’s dashing hero. Together, they take on danger, romance, and have surprising revelations.

What you need to know:

• Rating: R
• Runtime: 122 minutes
• Director: Denis Villeneuve
• Main cast: Emily Blunt, Benicio del Toro, Josh Brolin, Victor Garber, Jon Bernthal, Daniel Kaluuya, Jeffrey Donovan
• Genre: Action, Crime
• IMDB rating: 7.7

Idealistic FBI agent Kate Macer joins a shady task force chasing Mexican drug lord Manuel Díaz. She quickly realizes this mission’s got some seriously sketchy tactics, thanks to the vengeance-driven hitman Alejandro Gillick. Although conflicted, Kate presses on into the underworld of the cartel trying to take down Díaz the right way. But in this dirty drug war, the lines between right and wrong get blurry pretty fast.

What you need to know:

• Rating: R
• Runtime: 89 minutes
• Director: Lynne Ramsay
• Main cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Judith Roberts, Ekaterina Samsonov, John Doman, Alex Manette, Dante Pereira-Olson, Alessandro Nivola
• Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
• IMDB rating: 6.7

A brutal, traumatized veteran works as an enforcer for criminals in the Prime Video original film from director Lynne Ramsay. When he’s tasked with retrieving a kidnapped girl, he uncovers a disturbing conspiracy and realizes he’s the child’s only hope, and he’ll go to any lengths to keep her safe.

Especially slow and meditative for an action movie, You Were Never Really Here exhibits some of the defining features of the genre, and it’s among the best Prime Video originals. If you enjoy films like Oldboy, Drive, Thief, and Collateral, you’ll want to make sure to watch You Were Never Really Here.