Movies like Way of the Monkey's Claw (2012)
The best movies like Way of the Monkey's Claw (2012) are Ninja III: The Domination (1984), Ninja: Shadow of a Tear (2013) and Gladiator Underground (2025). If Way of the Monkey's Claw hooked you with its action, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedProtector (2026)8.4/10 from 648 votes
- NewestOne Mile: Chapter Two (2026)Released 2026
Ninja III: The Domination (1984)
An aerobics instructor becomes a ruthless assassin after being possessed by a slain ninja's spirit, leading to a showdown with a martial arts expert.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNinja: Shadow of a Tear (2013)
Fight everyone and trust no one: it's the code of survival practiced by martial-arts master Casey Bowman after his life of domestic bliss is shattered by a savage act of violence. Vowing revenge, the fearless American stealthily tracks the killer from Osaka to Bangkok to Rangoon with the help of a wise and crafty sensei. His only clues: a series of victims whose necks bear the distinctive mark of strangulation by barbed wire. Fighting to avenge as well as to survive, Casey must sharpen his razor-like responses and take his battle skills to the next level, even using deep meditation to fake his own death. His target: the sinister drug lord Goro, who is flooding the streets with deadly meth cooked at his remote jungle factory. To prepare for his ultimate confrontation, Casey must finally become an invisible warrior worthy of the name Ninja. But just when his prey is cornered, an unexpected twist shows Casey that his battle is only beginning: he truly can trust no one.
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 thisOne Mile: Chapter Two (2026)
Former special forces operative Danny is forced back onto a remote island when a violent, secretive community takes revenge by abducting his daughter Alex, launching a relentless hunt against enemies prepared for his every move.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLet's Get Harry (1986)
Harry Burck has been kidnapped by South American terrorists, and when the US Government refuses to intervene, Harry's friends decide to take matters into their own hands!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKill Shot (2023)
Posing as hunters, a group of terrorists are in search of $100 million that was stolen and lost in a plane crash en route from Afghanistan.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Marine 3: Homefront (2013)
A Marine must do whatever it takes to save his kidnapped sister and stop a terrorist attack masterminded by a radical militia group.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisShootfighter: Fight to the Death (1993)
Nick and Ruben are hoodwinked into a "shootfighter" (no-holds-barred, to the death) martial arts match by the evil Mr. Lee, who has a grudge against world shootfighter champ(and teacher of Nick and Ruben) Shingo.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Marine 5: Battleground (2017)
While working as an EMT back stateside Jake Carter after responding to a distress call, finds himself caught up protecting a person of interest from a biker gang ruthlessly hunting them down.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNinja Terminator (1986)
The hunt is on to gain the fabulous super-strength of ninja sorcery, after three top students of the Ninja Empire each steals one of the sections of the Golden Ninja Warrior statuette. On the case is interpol agent, Jaguar Wong, who must make sure that whoever re-unites the pieces uses the power for doing good not evil. A Hong Kong cut and paste edit of the 1984 Korean Film "스타페리의 不請客" (Uninvited Guest of The Star Ferry) with new ninja scenes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisShowdown (1993)
Ken has just moved from Kansas with his mother. He talks to a girl named Julie, not knowing that her boyfriend Tom is very possessive of her. Tom is learning karate from Lee, a sensei whose brother was killed by a rookie cop named Billy. Billy has since then become the janitor of the school that Ken, Julie and Tom go to. When Ken gets beaten up by Tom for talking to Julie again, Billy helps Ken by teaching him how to defend himself, which eventually leads to a battle between student vs. student, and sensei vs. sensei.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWelcome to Sudden Death (2020)
Jesse Freeman is a former special forces officer and explosives expert now working a regular job as a security guard in a state-of-the-art basketball arena. Trouble erupts when a tech-savvy cadre of terrorists kidnap the team's owner and Jesse's daughter during opening night. Facing a ticking clock and impossible odds, it's up to Jesse to not only save them but also a full house of fans in this highly charged action thriller.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Paper Tigers (2020)
Three middle aged men polish their martial arts skills to avenge their fallen master.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHow to Rob a Bank (2007)
Caught in the middle of a bank robbery, a slacker and a bank employee become the ones who arbitrate the intense situation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
SnoozefestMovies 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 thisNinjago: Masters of Spinjitzu - Day of the Departed (2016)
When Cole returns to Yang's haunted temple to seek revenge on a former Airjitzu Master, he accidentally uses a powerful Dark Magic blade that unleashes the spectral forms of Ninjago's greatest villains and traps himself in the temple. The Ninja must return the ghosts to the Departed Realm before it's too late.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNinja Assassin (2009)
Ninja Assassin follows Raizo, one of the deadliest assassins in the world. Taken from the streets as a child, he was transformed into a trained killer by the Ozunu Clan, a secret society whose very existence is considered a myth. But haunted by the merciless execution of his friend by the Clan, Raizo breaks free from them and vanishes. Now he waits, preparing to exact his revenge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe System (2022)
When a young soldier, newly returned from war, gets caught up in a drug bust, he is recruited by the authorities to go undercover in a notoriously dangerous prison in order to figure out what is really going on.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRevenge of the Ninja (1983)
A peaceful ex-ninja's life shatters when his son's kidnapping forces him back into violence amid an American-Japanese criminal drug war.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisProtector (2026)
Nikki's life is shattered when her daughter is kidnapped. Thrust into the criminal underworld while hunted by cops and military, she must fight to rescue her child.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Absolute CinemaMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Way of the Monkey's Claw?
The closest matches to Way of the Monkey's Claw are Ninja III: The Domination (1984), Ninja: Shadow of a Tear (2013) and Gladiator Underground (2025). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Way of the Monkey's Claw?
Start with Ninja III: The Domination (1984), the closest match to Way of the Monkey's Claw.
What is the highest-rated movie like Way of the Monkey's Claw?
Protector (2026), rated 8.4/10 by 648 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Way of the Monkey's Claw?
One Mile: Chapter Two (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Way of the Monkey's Claw?
Yes: Ninja III: The Domination (1984), Ninja: Shadow of a Tear (2013) and Gladiator Underground (2025).
How are movies similar to Way of the Monkey's Claw chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Way of the Monkey's Claw, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.