The Mission: Impossible franchise is a series of action spy films based on Bruce Geller’s 1966 television series. The series stars Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt, an agent of the Impossible Missions Force (IMF) and follows the missions of the IMF’s main field team, led by Hunt, to stop enemy forces and prevent impending global disaster. While Cruise appears throughout each entry in the franchise, he is joined by an ensemble cast, with Ving Rhames and Simon Pegg having recurring roles as Luther Stickell and Benji Dunn, respectively.

The seventh film in the franchise was released in theaters in July 2023, titled Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One. The ensemble cast, alongside Cruise, Rhames, and Pegg, features Hayley Atwell Rebecca Ferguson, Vanessa Kirby, Esai Morales, and Pom Klementieff. The eighth film and immediate sequel to Dead Reckoning Part One is scheduled to release on June 28, 2024, titled Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two. With Mission: Impossible fans excited to see how the story unfolds, they have plenty of options to watch until the eighth film hits theaters. So, here are 20 movies like Mission: Impossible to watch next.

20 GoldenEye

The seventeenth film in the franchise, GoldenEye is a 1995 spy film staring Pierce Brosnan as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. This film is the first of many, being the first to star Brosnan as Bond, the first not to use any story elements from the novels by Ian Fleming, and the first James Bond film not to be directed by Albert Broccoli.

The film follows Bond as he fights to prevent a rouge ex-MI6 agent from using a satellite weapon to cause a global financial meltdown. The plot’s background was provided through the end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union, as this is the first Bond film to be made after that time period.

Related: Best Episodes of the Classic Mission: Impossible TV Series

19 Ocean’s Eleven

The original Ocean’s Eleven released in 1960, starring Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Peter Lawford, and Joey Bishop. This entry talks about the 2001 remake, starring George Clooney, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Casey Affleck, Scott Caan, Elliott Gould, Bernie Mac, Qin Shaobo, and Carl Reiner.

The film follows Danny Ocean and Rusty Ryan as they plan a heist of $160 million from Terry Benedict, a casino owner and the lover of Ocean’s ex-wife, Tess. It became the fifth highest-grossing film of 2001, with $450.7 million worldwide. Ocean’s Eleven produced two sequels, Ocean’s Twelve in 2004 and Ocean’s Thirteen in 2007. In 2018, a spin-off with an all-women lead cast called Ocean’s 8 released.

18 Salt

Salt is an action thriller film released in 2010, starring Angelina Jolie in the titular role, with Liev Schreiber, Daniel Olbrychski, August Diehl, and Chiwetel Ejiofor. The film follows Evelyn Salt, a CIA agent who must go on the run to clear her name after a defector accuses her of being ga Russian sleeper agent.

Tom Cruise was initially secured for the lead role, as Salt was originally meant to be a male protagonist (via Forbes). However, Brian Helgeland ultimately rewrote the script for Jolie. Salt grossed $294 million worldwide, receiving generally positive reviews from critics.

17 Blow Out

Starring John Travolta as Jack Terry, Blow Out is a 1981 neo-noir mystery thriller film. Jack is a movie sound effects technician from Philadelphia, who accidently captures the audio evidence of an assassination involving a presidential hopeful while recording sounds for a slasher B-movie.

Along with Travolta, Nancy Allen, John Lithgow, and Dennis Franz star. It is based on the 1996 film Blowup, but with audio recording used as the medium instead of photography. Blow Out opened to a largely positive reception, though there was minimal audience interest at the time. Since its initial release, the film has developed a cult film status.

16 The A-Team

Released in 2010, The A-Team is an action thriller film based on the television series of the same name from the 80s. The film stars Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Jessica Biel, Quinton Jackson, Sharlto Copley, and Patrick Wilson, and follows a Special Forces team who were wrongly imprisoned for a crime they did not commit. They escape in an effort to clear their names. The film received mixed reviews, with criticism being aimed at the script but praise towards the cast and action sequences.

15 Atomic Blonde

David Leitch directed the 2017 action thriller film Atomic Blonde in his feature directional debut, which is based on the 2012 graphic novel The Coldest City by Antony Johnston and Sam Hart. Starring Charlize Theron, James McAvoy, John Goodman, Til Schweiger, Eddie Marsan, Sofia Boutella, and Toby Jones, the film follows a spy who must find double agents being smuggled into the West on the eve of the collapse of the Berlin Wall in 1989. With a budget of $30 million, the film grossed $100 million worldwide and received generally positive reviews from critics. Since then, talks of Atomic Blonde 2 have circled the internet, with Leitch and Theron providing promising updates throughout the years (via Slash Film).

14 Skyfall

Skyfall is the next James Bond film on this list, featuring Daniel Craig as Bond. Released in 2012, this spy film is the 23rd in the series and the third to star Craig as Bond. Javier Bardem stars as Raoul Silva, the villain, Judi Dench returns as M, with Naomie Harris, Ben Whishaw, Ralph Fiennes, Berenice Marlohe, and Albert Finney starring as well.

The story follows Bond as he investigates a series of targeted data leaks and coordinated attacks on MI6, which are led by Silva. Skyfall was a financial success, grossing $1 billion worldwide, thus becoming the then-seventh highest-grossing film of all time, the highest-grossing James Bond film, and the second highest-grossing film of 2012.

13 The Sum of All Fears

Starring Ben Affleck and Morgan Freeman, The Sum of All Fears is a 2002 spy thriller film based on Tom Clancy’s novel of the same title, which was released in 1991. The film is a reboot in the Jack Ryan series, where the titular character is portrayed as much younger than in previous films.

The film follows Jack Ryan, a CIA analyst tasked with stopping the plans of a Neo-Nazi faction that threatens to cause a catastrophic conflict between the United States and Russia’s President. While The Sum of All Fears received mixed reviews, it was still a financial success, grossing $193.9 million against a budget of $68 million.

12 Jack Reacher

Starring Tom Cruise, Jack Reacher is a 2012 action thriller film based on Lee Child’s 2004 novel One Shot. With Cruise playing the titular character, Rosamund Pike, Werner Herzog, Robert Duvall, David Oyelowo, Richard Jenkins, and Jai Courtney star in supporting roles. The film begins when five individuals are shot dead by an expert sniper.

The culprit is quickly identified and arrested, but instead of confessing, he simply writes, “Get Jack Reacher,” who sees the news reports and turns up in the city. While the defense is relieved, Reacher is out to confirm the absolute certainty of the suspect’s guilt. Jack Reacher received positive reviews from critics and grossed $218.3 million worldwide against a budget of $60 million.

11 Jason Bourne

Starring Matt Damon in the titular role, Jason Bourne is an action-thriller film released in 2016. It is the fifth installment in the Bourne series, serving as a direct sequel to The Bourne Ultimatum that premiered nine years prior. Tommy Lee Jones, Alicia Vikander, Julia Stiles, Vincent Cassell, Riz Ahmed, Ato Essandoh, and Scott Shepherd also star.

The film follows Bourne as he is still on the run from CIA hit squads, all the while trying to discover the truth about his father. The director of the CIA, Robert Dewey had ordered the head of cyber-security, Heather Lee, to hunt him down. While the film received mixed reviews from critics, it grossed $425 million worldwide against a budget of $120 million.

10 North by Northwest

Alfred Hitchcock’s North by Northwest is a 1959 spy thriller film starring Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, and James Mason. The film is about mistaken identity, where an innocent man is pursued across the United States by agents from a mysterious organization who want to prevent him from stopping their plan to smuggle government secrets out of the country.

North by Northwest is often listed as one of the greatest films of all time, being selected for preservation by the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress in 1995.

Related: The 5 Most Underrated Mission: Impossible Villains, Ranked

9 Body of Lies

Starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe, Body of Lies is a spy action thriller film released in 2008. The film follows the CIA and GID of Jordan in their attempts to catch a terrorist known as al-Saleem. The target is elusive, causing a strain between a CIA operative, his superior, and the head of Jordanian Intelligence due to their different approaches.

Along with DiCaprio and Crowe, Mark Strong, Oscar Isaac, and Golshifteh Farahani also star. The film grossed $118 million worldwide and was met with mixed reviews.

8 American Assassin

American Assassin is a 2017 action thriller film starring Dylan O’Brien, Michael Keaton, Sanaa Lathan, Shiva Negar, and Taylor Kitsch. It based on the 2010 novel of the same name by Vince Flynn, centering on a young CIA black ops recruit named Mitch Rapp as he helps a Cold War veteran prevent the detonation of a rogue nuclear weapon. The film received mixed reviews from critics and grossed $67 million worldwide against a budget of $33 million.

7 Edge of Tomorrow

The Live, Die, Repeat science fiction action film Edge of Tomorrow released in 2014, starring Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt in the lead roles, with Bill Paxton and Brendan Gleeson in supporting roles. It is adapted from Hiroshi Sakurazaka’s 2004 light novel All You Need is Kill and takes place in a future where Europe is largely occupied by an alien race.

Major William Cage is a public relations officer who is forced to join a landing operation against the aliens, despite having minimal combat experience. As he tries to find a way to defeat the aliens, he finds himself locked in a time loop. The film received largely positive reviews from critics.

6 Tenet

Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, Tenet is a science fiction action thriller film released in 2020. The film stars John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, Dimple Kapadia, Michael Caine, and Kenneth Branagh and follows a former CIA agent who discovers how to manipulate the flow of time and uses it to prevent an attack that threatens to annihilate the world.

Opening in theaters during the pandemic, it grossed $365 million worldwide against a $200 million budget, which made it a box-office disappointment, though it was the fifth highest-grossing film of 2020. Tenet received positive reviews from critics.

5 The Man from U.N.C.L.E.

Based on the television series of the same name, The Man from U.N.C.L.E. is a spy film released in 2015, starring Henry Cavill, Armie Hammer, Alicia Vikander, Elizabeth Debicki, and Hugh Grant. Set in the early-1960s, CIA agent Napoleon Solo and Gaby Teller defect to West Germany despite opposition from KGB agent Illya Kuryakin. The three end up working together on a joint mission against a mysterious criminal organization who are trying to construct their own nuclear bomb.

While the film is listed as the 50th best action film of all time by Rolling Stone, it was a box office bomb, grossing $107 million worldwide against a budget of $75 to $84 million.

4 Police Story

Police Story is a 1985 action thriller film directed by and starring Jackie Chan, and is the first film in the franchise. Chan stars as a Hong Kong police…