Movies like The Head Hunter (1982)
The best movies like The Head Hunter (1982) are Master Z: Ip Man Legacy (2018), Bad Ass 2: Bad Asses (2014) and Special ID (2013). If The Head Hunter hooked you with its action, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedInfernal Affairs III (2003)7.0/10 from 392 votes
- NewestMexicali (2026)Released 2026
Master Z: Ip Man Legacy (2018)
Following his defeat by Master Ip, Cheung Tin Chi tries to make a life with his young son in Hong Kong, waiting tables at a bar that caters to expats. But it's not long before the mix of foreigners, money, and triad leaders draw him once again to the fight.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBad Ass 2: Bad Asses (2014)
Vietnam vet Frank Vega now runs an East L.A. community center where he trains young boxers to survive in and out of the ring. But when his prize student falls in with the wrong crowd and turns up dead, Frank teams up with his pal Bernie to take matters into their own fists and prove that justice never gets old.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSpecial ID (2013)
A career-long undercover Hong Kong cop is sent to Mainland China when his former protégé becomes the primary suspect in a murder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisVengeance (2009)
A French chef swears revenge after a violent attack on his daughter's family in Macau, during which her husband and her two children are murdered. To help him find the killers, he hires three local hit-men working for the mafia.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDog Bite Dog (2006)
A young Cambodian man who has been trained to fight for money in his country is hired to kill someone in Hong Kong. He performs the hit and then flees from Hong Kong police, who are wrestling with internal problems of a model cop and his son, who is also on the force and who was told by his dad not to become a police officer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMexicali (2026)
A former special forces contractor is forced out of retirement as an avocado farmer in Mexico when local gangsters try to force him and his family off their farm.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBeckman (2020)
A contract killer, becomes the reverend of a LA church, until a cult leader and his minions kidnap his daughter. Blinded by vengeance, he cuts a bloody path across the city. The only thing that can stop him is his newfound faith.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIsland of Fire (1991)
Someone in a prison run by a corrupt warden fakes the deaths of convicts to later use them as expendable assassins. A police officer is sent into the prison to gather evidence of the corruption.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Mission (1999)
Triad boss Lung, who has just escaped being killed in an assassination attempt hires the killers Curtis, James, Mike, Roy and Shin for his protection.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Better Tomorrow III: Love and Death in Saigon (1989)
Before the events of A Better Tomorrow (1986), Mark 'Gor' Lee heads to Saigon during the Vietnam War to bring home his uncle and cousin, but his task becomes complicated when a well-known criminal tries to help him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEmbattled (2020)
The eldest son of a ruthlessly tough MMA champion must fight his way out of the abusive cycle his father has continued.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisP Storm (2019)
Liu Yue Ping reports to the ICAC about a rich 2G Cao Yuen Yuen who bribed officers of the Hong Kong Correctional Services (HKCS) from inside the prison. William Luk decides to infiltrate the prison as an inmate to conduct his investigation, while his partner Ching Tak Ming and Chief Inspector Lau Po-keung back him up from the outside.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisInfernal Affairs III (2003)
Triad gangster turned corrupt cop Lau Kin-ming goes to dangerous lengths to avoid detection.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSection 8 (2022)
After avenging the murder of his family, a former soldier is sprung from prison and recruited by a shadowy government agency.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChasing the Dragon (2017)
An illegal immigrant from Mainland China sneaks into the corrupt British-colonized Hong Kong in 1963, transforming himself into a ruthless drug lord.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBirth of the Dragon (2017)
Set against the backdrop of San Francisco’s Chinatown, this cross-cultural biopic chronicles Bruce Lee’s emergence as a martial-arts superstar after his legendary secret showdown with fellow martial artist Wong Jack Man.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe White Storm 3: Heaven or Hell (2023)
An undercover cop who invade a drug cartel led by a notorious Thai drug lord. In classic heroic bloodshed fashion, the two develop a bond of brotherhood.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGladiator Underground (2025)
Two brothers compete in the world's deadliest underground fighting tournament, where they must decide whether to play by the rules or to cast their honor aside and team up to bring down the dark syndicate running the tournament.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Legend II (1993)
The hero Fong Sai Yuk becomes involved in the secret brotherhood "The Red Flower", who are trying to overthrow the Manchurian emperor and re-establishing the Ming dynasty. The social upheaval is combined with Sai Yuk's personal moral conflict about how to conform to the rigid regime of the brotherhood and on top of that sort out his difficult love life, saddled with two presumptive wives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Enforcer (2022)
A noir thriller set in Miami, the film follows an enforcer who discovers his femme fatale boss has branched out into cyber sex trafficking, putting a young runaway he’s befriended at risk. He sacrifices everything to save the young girl from the deadly organization he’s spent his life building.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Head Hunter?
The closest matches to The Head Hunter are Master Z: Ip Man Legacy (2018), Bad Ass 2: Bad Asses (2014) and Special ID (2013). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Head Hunter?
Start with Master Z: Ip Man Legacy (2018), the closest match to The Head Hunter.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Head Hunter?
Infernal Affairs III (2003), rated 7.0/10 by 392 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Head Hunter?
Mexicali (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
How are movies similar to The Head Hunter chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Head Hunter, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.