Arts & Entertainment

11 Action-Thriller Films To Watch This Weekend

Add some excitement to your weekend by watching action-thriller films, such as "Casino Royale," "Inception" and "Atomic Blonde."

Daniel Craig in "Casino Royale"
Daniel Craig in "Casino Royale" (Sony Pictures)

During these difficult times, there's nothing more distracting than sitting at home and watching a movie โ€” especially if it's an action-thriller. And if youโ€™re looking for a quality flick to watch this weekend, look no further than these jaw-dropping picks weโ€™ve compiled for your streaming pleasure.

Those in the mood for a clever sci-fi thriller should not miss โ€œInceptionโ€ and โ€œMinority Report,โ€ which are both available on Netflix and Amazon Prime.

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If youโ€™re seeking spy thrillers, James Bond dazzles in โ€œCasino Royale,โ€ while MI6 Agent Lorraine Broughton shows off her elite spy tactics in โ€œAtomic Blonde.โ€

Meanwhile, when it comes to a comedy-thriller, โ€œShazam!โ€ will certainly put a smile or two on everyoneโ€™s faces.

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So while you stay safely inside this weekend, get ready to stream these action-thrillers, which are sure to get your heart racing in no time:


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โ€œMinority Reportโ€ (Netflix) โ€” Tom Cruise, Colin Farrell; directed by Steven Spielberg


Based on Philip K. Dickโ€™s 1956 short story, the 2002 sci-fi action-thriller centers on the question of whether oneโ€™s actions are inherently predestined or consciously chosen. Set in the year 2054, the film stars Tom Cruise as John Anderton, commander of a specialized police force tasked to apprehend murderers before they commit the actual crimes. How exactly? They base the arrest on the premonitions provided by three reputable psychics called โ€œprecogs.โ€ However, for Anderton, complications arise when he is accused of a murder that is yet to take place, forcing him to be on the run as a fugitive.


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โ€œCasino Royaleโ€ (Netflix) โ€” Daniel Craig, Eva Green; directed by Martin Campbell


In a career-defining moment for the accomplished character actor, Daniel Craig would gain worldwide fame as he transformed the iconic spy from a snappy dresser to a quintessential model of virility. The 2006 film opens with the rise of James Bond through the ranks of MI6 to become Agent 007 โ€” a crรจme de la crรจme British spy with a license to kill. His first assignment takes him to the Le Casino Royale in Montenegro, where Bond challenges a terrorist financier in a high-stakes poker game. Eventually, 007 wins with a straight flush, setting in motion an international game of cat and mouse.


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โ€œJohn Wickโ€ (Amazon Prime) โ€” Keanu Reeves, Michael Nyqvist; directed by Chad Stahelski and David Leitch


Chad Stahelskiโ€™s feature directorial debut stars Keanu Reeves as a famed super-assassin seeking retribution to avenge the death of his beloved beagle puppy, which was a final gift from his dying wife. The movie spawned two sequels (โ€œJohn Wick: Chapter 2โ€ and โ€œJohn Wick: Chapter 3 โ€” Parabellum"), launching a successful film series known for its unvarnished kinetic and emotional thrills in a universe inhabited by assassins for hire.


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โ€œMad Max: Fury Roadโ€ (Amazon Prime) โ€” Charlize Theron, Tom Hardy; directed by George Miller


In 2015, 30 years after the theatrical release of โ€œMad Max Beyond Thunderdome,โ€ George Millerโ€™s post-apocalyptic franchise came back with its fourth installment, starring Charlize Theron and Tom Hardy as a pair of unlikely allies โ€” Furiosa (Theron) and Max (Hardy) โ€” trying to escape the wrath of a tyrannical, unconscionable cult leader. As the two newfound friends try to overcome their evil foe, the film shines a light on their past lives.


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โ€œInceptionโ€ (Netflix) โ€” Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt; directed by Christopher Nolan


The world of corporate espionage is front and center in Christopher Nolanโ€™s 2010 sci-fi action adventure. Enter Dominick Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio), a notorious professional thief known for his unorthodox way of stealing secrets and ideas by directly implanting himself into his targetโ€™s subconscious. However, he soon gets caught in the act, setting in motion his one final mission that will serve as his path to redemption.


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โ€œAtomic Blondeโ€ (Amazon Prime) โ€” Charlize Theron, James McAvoy; directed by David Leitch


In this action-spy thriller, Charlize Theron further solidified her status as an action star in her portrayal of MI6โ€™s most elite field agent, Lorraine Broughton. The badass female spyโ€™s mission takes her to the streets of Berlin while on a perilous pursuit of a missing document, which contains the names of double agents trying to sabotage the Westโ€™s entire intelligence operation.


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โ€œShazam!โ€ (HBO) โ€” Zachary Levi, Asher Angel, Djimon Hounsou; directed by David F. Sandberg


A favorite of DC Comics fans, the superhero film is worthy of its titular exclamation mark from beginning to end, as it chronicles the origins of the action hero (Zachary Levi) known for his yellow lightning bolt. Plus, you get to know what the acronym SHAZAM means.


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โ€œDie Hardโ€ (Amazon Prime) โ€” Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman; directed by John McTiernan


This action-thriller โ€” which propelled Bruce Willis to a Hollywood A-list star โ€” follows the pursuits of John McClane (Willis), a New York City police officer who attempts to rescue his wife and her co-workers after they are taken hostage by terrorists during a Christmas party at the Nakatomi Plaza in Los Angeles. The 1988 box-office hit spawned four sequels over the years: โ€œDie Hard 2โ€ (1990); โ€œDie Hard with a Vengeanceโ€ (1995); โ€œLive Free or Die Hard" (2007) and โ€œA Good Day to Die Hardโ€ (2013).


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โ€œHaywireโ€ (Netflix) โ€” Gina Carano, Ewan McGregor; directed by Steven Soderbergh


Treachery abounds in Steven Soderberghโ€™s โ€œHaywire,โ€ an action-thriller introducing Gina Carano in the lead role of a black-ops operative, Mallory Kane, who is trapped in a deadly game of conspiracy and deception. With time running out, she must unravel the mystery in order to survive, as she becomes the target of skilled assassins. The 2011 film parades a cast of Hollywood A-listers from beginning to end, including Ewan McGregor, Michael Fassbender, Channing Tatum, Bill Paxton, Michael Douglas and Antonio Banderas.


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โ€œHannaโ€ (Hulu) โ€” Saoirse Ronan, Cate Blanchett, Eric Bana; directed by Joe Wright


Joe Wrightโ€™s dazzling 2011 action-thriller stars Saoirse Ronan in the titular role of a 16-year-old girl trained by her ex-CIA operative father (Eric Bana) to become a deadly assassin. Hot on the father-daughter duoโ€™s trail is Marissa Wiegler (Cate Blanchett), a CIA chief officer who holds the key to unlock the mystery surrounding Hannaโ€™s hidden past.


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โ€œTotal Recallโ€ (Amazon Prime) โ€” Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sharon Stone; directed by Paul Verhoeven


Set in 2084, Paul Verhoevenโ€™s 1990 sci-fi action film centers on a construction worker named Quaid (Arnold Schwarzenegger) who โ€” during a virtual vacation on Mars โ€” unwittingly discovers that he is, in fact, a secret agent who switched sides to rebel against the governmentโ€™s tyranny. To solve the mystery surrounding his past, Quaid travels to Mars, where more surprises await our hero.


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