Movies like Wanted: Dead or Alive (1987)
The best movies like Wanted: Dead or Alive (1987) are Never Too Young to Die (1986), The Protector (1985) and Red Heat (1988). If Wanted: Dead or Alive hooked you with its action and crime, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedLethal Weapon (1987)7.3/10 from 5,313 votes
- NewestThe Last Days of American Crime (2020)Released 2020
Never Too Young to Die (1986)
Secret agent Drew Stargrove is brutally murdered by the ruthless hermaphrodite gang leader Velvet Von Ragnar. The murdered secret agent's son, Lance Stargrove is thrust into the dangerous and intriguing world of secret agents and espionage when he seeks revenge. Danja Deerling teams up with Lance as his sidekick and love interest.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Protector (1985)
Billy Wong is a New York City cop whose partner is gunned down during a robbery. Billy and his new partner, Danny Garoni, are working security at a fashion show when a wealthy man's daughter, Laura Shapiro, is kidnapped. The Federal authorities suspect that Laura's father is involved with Mr. Ko, a Hong Kong drug kingpin, so the NYC police commissioner sends the two cops to Hong Kong to investigate.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisRed Heat (1988)
A tough Russian policeman is forced to partner up with a cocky Chicago police detective when he is sent to Chicago to apprehend a Georgian drug lord who killed his partner and fled the country.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMalone (1987)
Erstwhile C.I.A. assassin Richard Malone hopes for a tranquil retirement in the placid Pacific Northwest, but what he gets is a rumble with a right-wing extremist plotting a secret revolution.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNighthawks (1981)
When one of Europe's most lethal terrorists shows up in New York, an elite undercover cop is assigned to take him down by any means necessary.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAction U.S.A. (1989)
After her boyfriend is murdered by the gangsters whose diamonds he stole, a girl is protected by two FBI agents who plan to keep her from sharing the same fate.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
To Live and Die in L.A. (1985)
When his longtime partner on the force is killed, reckless U.S. Secret Service agent Richard Chance vows revenge, setting out to nab dangerous counterfeit artist Eric Masters.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCobra (1986)
A tough-on-crime street cop must protect the only surviving witness to a strange murderous cult with far reaching plans.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSudden Impact (1983)
When a young rape victim takes justice into her own hands and becomes a serial killer, it's up to Dirty Harry Callahan, on suspension from the SFPD, to bring her to justice.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLone Wolf McQuade (1983)
The archetypical renegade Texas Ranger wages war against a drug kingpin with automatic weapons, his wits and martial arts after a gun battle leaves his partner dead. All of this inevitably culminates in a martial arts showdown between the drug lord and the ranger, and involving the woman they both love.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisInvasion U.S.A. (1985)
A one-man army comes to the rescue of the United States when a spy attempts an invasion.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action
SnoozefestMovies like thisPoint Break (1991)
In Los Angeles, a gang of bank robbers who call themselves The Ex-Presidents commit their crimes while wearing masks of Reagan, Carter, Nixon and Johnson. Believing that the members of the gang could be surfers, the F.B.I. sends young agent Johnny Utah to the beach undercover to mix with the surfers and gather information.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNext of Kin (1989)
Truman Gates, a Chicago cop, sets out to find his brother's killer. Meanwhile, another of his brothers, Briar (a hillbilly) decides to find the killer himself.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Rookie (1990)
Veteran cop Nick Pulovski is used to playing musical partners; many of the partners he's had in the past have died on the job, and often as a result of Nick's risky tactics. But the rookie who's been assigned to help Nick bust a carjacking ring is almost as hotheaded as he is … and when Nick gets kidnapped, his newbie partner is his only hope.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisRaw Deal (1986)
Mark Kaminsky is kicked out of the FBI for his rough treatment of a suspect. He winds up as the sheriff of a small town in North Carolina. FBI Chief Harry Shannon, whose son has been killed by a mobster named Patrovina, enlists Kaminsky in a personal vendetta with a promise of reinstatement into the FBI if Patrovina is taken down. To accomplish this, he must go undercover and join Patrovina's gang.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisLethal Weapon (1987)
A veteran cop and an unstable detective become partners who must put their differences aside in order to bring down a heroin-smuggling ring run by ex-Special Forces.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDead Bang (1989)
Los Angeles homicide detective Jerry Beck searches for the murderer who killed a police officer on Christmas Eve. The investigation takes Beck inside the violent world of hate groups and white supremacists, who are hatching a deadly plot to attack even more innocent people. Beck must also confront his own personal demons, including his growing problem with alcohol, if he wants to track down and stop the violent neo-Nazis before it is too late.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHawkeye (1988)
The Strip, Las Vegas, the city that never sleeps & neither do the cops. Especially Alexander "Hawkeye" Hawkamoto & Charlie Wilson the Toughest, meanest cop team that ever kicked ... and took names. After Hawkeye's best friend is mysteriously killed by the mob, there is nothing, no one or anything that will stop Hawkeye and Wilson from finding the killers and bringing them to justice. It is war as the Mafia and the Yakuza do battle with Hawkeye and Wilson in an all out kill or be killed. It's "48 hours", Hong Kong style!
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action
Sharky's Machine (1981)
Police officer Tom Sharky gets busted back to working vice, where he happens upon a scandalous conspiracy involving a local politician. Sharky's new 'machine' gathers evidence while Sharky falls in love with a woman he has never met.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like this48 Hrs. (1982)
A hard-nosed cop reluctantly teams up with a wise-cracking criminal temporarily paroled to him, in order to track down a killer.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTango & Cash (1989)
Ray Tango and Gabriel Cash are two successful narcotics detectives who can't stand each other. Crime lord Yves Perret, furious at the loss of income they have caused him, plots an elaborate revenge against them.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAction Jackson (1988)
Vengeance drives a tough Detroit cop to stay on the trail of a power hungry auto magnate who's systematically eliminating his competition.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)
Samantha Caine is a small-town schoolteacher and mom with no memory of her life before washing up on a beach eight years ago. After a car accident and a violent home invasion trigger flashes of her past, she discovers she used to be a deadly CIA assassin. Teaming up with a wisecracking private investigator, Samantha must return to her old ways to take down the people who tried to erase her.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both crime & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlack Rain (1989)
Two New York cops get involved in a gang war between members of the Yakuza, the Japanese Mafia. They arrest one of their killers and are ordered to escort him back to Japan. However, in Japan he manages to escape, and as they try to track him down, they get deeper and deeper into the Japanese Mafia scene and they have to learn that they can only win by playing the game—the Japanese way.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlue Thunder (1983)
Los Angeles, California. Officer Murphy, a veteran Metropolitan Police helicopter pilot suffering from severe trauma due to his harsh experiences during the Vietnam War, and Lymangood, his resourceful new partner, are tasked with testing an advanced and heavily armed experimental chopper known as Blue Thunder.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStreets of Fire (1984)
Raven Shaddock and his gang of merciless biker friends kidnap rock singer Ellen Aim. Ellen's former lover, soldier-for-hire Tom Cody, happens to be passing through town on a visit. In an attempt to save his star act, Ellen's manager hires Tom to rescue her. Along with a former soldier, they battle through dangerous cityscapes, determined to get Ellen back.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHeat (1986)
Reynolds plays an ex-soldier-of-fortunish character in Vegas, taking "Chaperone" jobs, fighting with the mob, and trying to get enough money together to move to Venice, Italy.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Challenge (1982)
Rick, a down-and-out American boxer, is hired to transport a sword to Japan, unaware that the whole thing is a set up in a bitter blood-feud between two brothers, one who follows the traditional path of the samurai and the other a businessman. At the behest of the businessman, Rick undertakes samurai training from the other brother, but joins his cause. He also becomes romantically involved with the samurai's daughter.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action
SnoozefestMovies like thisIn the Blood (2014)
When her husband goes missing during their Caribbean vacation, a woman sets off on her own to take down the men she thinks are responsible.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Last Days of American Crime (2020)
In the not-too-distant future, as a final response to crime and terrorism, the U.S. government plans to broadcast a signal that will make it impossible for anyone to knowingly break the law.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Wanted: Dead or Alive?
The closest matches to Wanted: Dead or Alive are Never Too Young to Die (1986), The Protector (1985) and Red Heat (1988). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Wanted: Dead or Alive?
People who watched Wanted: Dead or Alive most often go on to Never Too Young to Die (1986), The Protector (1985) and Red Heat (1988).
What is the highest-rated movie like Wanted: Dead or Alive?
Lethal Weapon (1987), rated 7.3/10 by 5,313 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Wanted: Dead or Alive?
The Last Days of American Crime (2020) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Wanted: Dead or Alive?
Yes: Never Too Young to Die (1986), The Protector (1985) and Red Heat (1988).
How are movies similar to Wanted: Dead or Alive chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Wanted: Dead or Alive, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.