Best Action Movies of 2020 | Rotten Tomatoes

(Photo by Netflix/courtesy Everett Collection.)

The Best Action Movies of 2020, Ranked by Tomatometer

We’re putting the team together: Every Fresh and Certified Fresh action movie from the year with at least 20 reviews. From hard-hitters (Extraction) to superheroes (Birds of Prey) to sci-fi (Tenet), these are the best action movies of 2020, ranked by Tomatometer. —Alex Vo

#14

Project Power (2020)
61%

#14
Adjusted Score: 71176%
Critics Consensus: Although it wastes some of the potential of its premise, Project Power is a slick, fun action thriller - and features a star-making turn from Dominique Fishback.
Synopsis: A former soldier teams up with a cop to find the source behind a dangerous pill that provides temporary superpowers.... [More]
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Dominique Fishback, Rodrigo Santoro
Directed By: Henry Joost, Ariel Schulman

#13
#13
Adjusted Score: 84603%
Critics Consensus: Wonder Woman 1984 struggles with sequel overload, but still offers enough vibrant escapism to satisfy fans of the franchise and its classic central character.
Synopsis: Diana Prince lives quietly among mortals in the vibrant, sleek 1980s -- an era of excess driven by the pursuit... [More]
Starring: Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Kristen Wiig, Pedro Pascal
Directed By: Patty Jenkins

#12
#12
Adjusted Score: 78448%
Critics Consensus: Fittingly fleet and frequently fun, Sonic the Hedgehog is a video game-inspired adventure the whole family can enjoy -- and a fine excuse for Jim Carrey to tap into the manic energy that launched his career.
Synopsis: The world needed a hero -- it got a hedgehog. Powered with incredible speed, Sonic embraces his new home on... [More]
Starring: James Marsden, Jim Carrey, Ben Schwartz, Tika Sumpter
Directed By: Jeff Fowler

#11

Extraction (2020)
67%

#11
Adjusted Score: 79413%
Critics Consensus: Spectacular stunt work and an electric performance from Chris Hemsworth can't save Extraction from being dragged down by its aimless violence.
Synopsis: A black-market mercenary who has nothing to lose is hired to rescue the kidnapped son of an imprisoned international crime... [More]
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Rudhraksh Jaiswal, Randeep Hooda, Golshifteh Farahani
Directed By: Sam Hargrave

#10

Archenemy (2020)
75%

#10
Adjusted Score: 77419%
Critics Consensus: Archenemy fails to follow through on some of its more interesting ideas, but Joe Manganiello's lead performance and the picture's infectious raw energy make for a fun action-adventure.
Synopsis: Max Fist (Joe Manganiello) is a local drunk who claims to be a superhero from the planet Chromium. He tells... [More]
Starring: Joe Manganiello, Skylan Brooks, Zolee Griggs, Paul Scheer
Directed By: Adam Egypt Mortimer

#9

Tenet (2020)
69%

#9
Adjusted Score: 90958%
Critics Consensus: A visually dazzling puzzle for film lovers to unlock, Tenet serves up all the cerebral spectacle audiences expect from a Christopher Nolan production.
Synopsis: A secret agent embarks on a dangerous, time-bending mission to prevent the start of World War III.... [More]
Starring: John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Kenneth Branagh
Directed By: Christopher Nolan

#8

Cut Throat City (2020)
70%

#8
Adjusted Score: 71688%
Critics Consensus: An evolution for director RZA, Cut Throat City overcomes occasionally muddled storytelling on the strength of its raw, infectious energy.
Synopsis: When Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans, four desperate friends band together to pull off a daring heist in the heart... [More]
Starring: Shameik Moore, Demetrius Shipp Jr., Denzel Whitaker, Keean Johnson
Directed By: RZA

#7

Mulan (2020)
72%

#7
Adjusted Score: 91028%
Critics Consensus: It could have told its classic story with greater depth, but the live-action Mulan is a visual marvel that serves as a stirring update to its animated predecessor.
Synopsis: To save her ailing father from serving in the Imperial Army, a fearless young woman disguises herself as a man... [More]
Starring: Yifei Liu, Donnie Yen, Jason Scott Lee, Yoson An
Directed By: Niki Caro

#6

Greenland (2020)
78%

#6
Adjusted Score: 86832%
Critics Consensus: Beware, comets of Greenland: Gerard Butler is here to protect Earth -- and show audiences an improbably entertaining time.
Synopsis: John Garrity, his estranged wife and their young son embark on a perilous journey to find sanctuary as a planet-killing... [More]
Starring: Gerard Butler, Morena Baccarin, Roger Dale Floyd, Scott Glenn
Directed By: Ric Roman Waugh

#5

The Gentlemen (2019)
75%

#5
Adjusted Score: 89429%
Critics Consensus: It may not win writer-director Guy Ritchie many new converts, but for those already attuned to the filmmaker's brash wavelength, The Gentlemen stands tall.
Synopsis: Mickey Pearson is an American expatriate who became rich by building a highly profitable marijuana empire in London. When word... [More]
Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Charlie Hunnam, Michelle Dockery, Jeremy Strong
Directed By: Guy Ritchie

#4
#4
Adjusted Score: 91305%
Critics Consensus: Loaded up with action and a double helping of leading-man charisma, Bad Boys for Life reinvigorates this long-dormant franchise by playing squarely to its strengths.
Synopsis: The wife and son of a Mexican drug lord embark on a vengeful quest to kill all those involved in... [More]
Starring: Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Vanessa Hudgens, Jacob Scipio
Directed By: Adil El Arbi, Bilall Fallah

#3
#3
Adjusted Score: 105110%
Critics Consensus: With a fresh perspective, some new friends, and loads of fast-paced action, Birds of Prey captures the colorfully anarchic spirit of Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn.
Synopsis: It's open season on Harley Quinn when her explosive breakup with the Joker puts a big fat target on her... [More]
Starring: Margot Robbie, Rosie Perez, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Jurnee Smollett
Directed By: Cathy Yan

#2

The Old Guard (2020)
80%

#2
Adjusted Score: 96405%
Critics Consensus: The Old Guard is occasionally restricted by genre conventions, but director Gina Prince-Bythewood brings a sophisticated vision to the superhero genre - and some knockout action sequences led by Charlize Theron.
Synopsis: A group of mercenaries, all centuries-old immortals with the ablity to heal themselves, discover someone is onto their secret, and... [More]
Starring: Charlize Theron, Chiwetel Ejiofor, KiKi Layne, Matthias Schoenaerts
Directed By: Gina Prince-Bythewood

#1

The Outpost (2019)
91%

#1
Adjusted Score: 95643%
Critics Consensus: Told with gripping realism, The Outpost is a thrilling technical feat and a worthy tribute to military heroes.
Synopsis: A small unit of U.S. soldiers, alone at the remote Combat Outpost Keating, located deep in the valley of three... [More]
Starring: Scott Eastwood, Caleb Landry Jones, Orlando Bloom, Jack Kesy
Directed By: Rod Lurie