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The Killer poster

Movies that feel likeThe Killer (2023)

After a fateful miss, an assassin battles his employers, and himself, on an international manhunt he insists isn't personal.

If you loved The Killer, the closest films we have are Cold Pursuit (2019), Blue Ruin (2014) and Cop Car (2015). All three share The Killer's gritty feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is The Square (2008).

🍅 85% Rotten Tomatoes★ 6.7 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. David Finchergrittytensedarkly funnyrelentless
9 of 12 streaming nowNetflix · Amazon Prime Video · Paramount Plus Premium

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If The Killer hit the spot, these will too

Cold Pursuit poster
Cold Pursuit
2019 · dir. Hans Petter Moland
🍅 68%★ 6.2crime · action · dramaPrime Video

Two things both keep coming back to: dark comedy and revenge

The difference: Trades the tension of The Killer for an angle of its own

The quiet family life of Nels Coxman, a snowplow driver, is upended after his son's murder. Nels begins a vengeful hunt for Viking, the drug lord he holds responsible for the killing, eliminating Viking's associates one by one. As Nels draws closer to Viking, his actions bring even more unexpected and violent consequences, as he proves that revenge is all in the execution.

Blue Ruin poster
Blue Ruin
2014 · dir. Jeremy Saulnier
🍅 96%★ 7.1crime · thrillerPrime VideoPeacock

Both keep coming back to the same thing: revenge

The difference: Takes it somewhere less darkly funny than The Killer does

When the quiet life of a beach bum is upended by dreadful news, he sets off for his childhood home to carry out an act of vengeance. However, he proves an inept assassin and finds himself in a brutal fight to protect his estranged family.

Cop Car poster
Cop Car
2015 · dir. Jon Watts
🍅 82%★ 6.3crime · thrillerPrime Video

Gritty where it counts, tense underneath

Two kids find themselves in the centre of a deadly game of cat and mouse after taking a sheriff's cruiser for a joy ride.

Scream VI poster
Scream VI
2023 · dir. Matt Bettinelli-Olpin
🍅 77%★ 6.4horror · thriller · crimeNetflixParamount+

New York City shapes both of them

The difference: Leans harder into horror than The Killer does

Following the latest Ghostface killings, the four survivors leave Woodsboro behind and start a fresh chapter.

Dogman poster
Dogman
2018 · dir. Matteo Garrone
🍅 84%★ 7.2crime · drama · thriller

Relentless crime, and it commits to that

The difference: Sits closer to drama than The Killer does

Marcello, a small and gentle dog groomer, finds himself involved in a dangerous relationship of subjugation with Simone, a former violent boxer who terrorizes the entire neighborhood. In an effort to reaffirm his dignity, Marcello will submit to an unexpected act of vengeance.

Extraction 2 poster
Extraction 2
2023 · dir. Sam Hargrave
🍅 79%★ 7action · thriller · crimeNetflix

Gritty thriller in both cases

Back from the brink of death, highly skilled commando Tyler Rake takes on another dangerous mission: saving the imprisoned family of a ruthless gangster.

Run All Night poster
Run All Night
2015 · dir. Jaume Collet-Serra
🍅 59%★ 6.6action · crime · thriller

Common ground: hitman

The difference: The critics' underdog of the pair

Brooklyn mobster and prolific hit man Jimmy Conlon has seen better days. Longtime best friend of a mob boss, Jimmy is haunted by the sins of his past—as well as a dogged police detective who’s been one step behind Jimmy for 30 years. But when Jimmy’s estranged son becomes a target, Jimmy must make a choice between the crime family he chose and the real family he abandoned long ago. Now, with nowhere safe to turn, Jimmy has just one night to figure out exactly where his loyalties lie and to see if he can finally make things right.

Below Zero poster
Below Zero
2021 · dir. Lluís Quílez
🍅 86%★ 6.2action · crime · thrillerNetflix

Both lean on tension more than on crime

When a prisoner transfer van is attacked, the cop in charge must fight those inside and outside while dealing with a silent foe: the icy temperatures.

Uncut Gems poster
Uncut Gems
2019 · dir. Benny Safdie
🍅 91%★ 7.4drama · thriller · crimeRent or buy

The same preoccupation in both: dark comedy

A charismatic New York City jeweler always on the lookout for the next big score makes a series of high-stakes bets that could lead to the windfall of a lifetime. Howard must perform a precarious high-wire act, balancing business, family, and encroaching adversaries on all sides in his relentless pursuit of the ultimate win.

The Square poster
The Square
2008 · dir. Nash Edgerton
🍅 86%★ 6.7crime · drama · thriller

Thriller built on relentlessness, twice over

Ray, a construction worker trapped in an unhappy marriage, pursues an affair with his neighbor, Carla. Carla's husband, Greg, is a mobster who keeps large sums of drug money in their home. With this in mind, Carla comes up with a plan: She and Ray will steal Greg's money, burn down her house, convince Greg the money was lost in the fire and then run away together. Carla's scheme, however, doesn't go off as planned.

The Equalizer poster
The Equalizer
2014 · dir. Antoine Fuqua
🍅 61%★ 7.3thriller · action · crimeNetflix

Common ground in both: assassin and sociopath

McCall believes he has put his mysterious past behind him and dedicated himself to beginning a new, quiet life. But when he meets Teri, a young girl under the control of ultra-violent Russian gangsters, he can’t stand idly by – he has to help her. Armed with hidden skills that allow him to serve vengeance against anyone who would brutalize the helpless, McCall comes out of his self-imposed retirement and finds his desire for justice reawakened. If someone has a problem, if the odds are stacked against them, if they have nowhere else to turn, McCall will help. He is The Equalizer.

Crank poster
Crank
2006 · dir. Brian Taylor
🍅 62%★ 6.9action · thriller · crime

Both are built on the same subject: assassin

Chev Chelios, a hit man wanting to go straight, lets his latest target slip away. Then he awakes the next morning to a phone call that informs him he has been poisoned and has only an hour to live unless he keeps adrenaline coursing through his body while he searches for an antidote.

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The best-reviewed films that share The Killer’s defining feeling.