Movies like Thunder Run (1985)
The best movies like Thunder Run (1985) are The Hitcher (1986), Black Dog (1998) and Nighthawks (1981). If Thunder Run hooked you with its thriller and action, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedWrath of Man (2021)7.6/10 from 6,408 votes
- NewestThe Pickup (2025)Released 2025
The Hitcher (1986)
On a stormy night, young Jim, who transports a luxury car from Chicago to California to deliver it to its owner, feeling tired and sleepy, picks up a mysterious hitchhiker, who has appeared out of nowhere, thinking that a good conversation will help him not to fall asleep. He will have enough time to deeply regret such an unmeditated decision.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBlack Dog (1998)
An ex-con takes a job driving a truck cross country. What he doesn't know is that the truck is filled with illegal weapons and now he must fight to survive and save his family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
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: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCon Air (1997)
Newly-paroled former US Army ranger Cameron Poe is headed back to his wife, but must fly home aboard a prison transport flight dubbed "Jailbird" taking the “worst of the worst” prisoners, a group described as “pure predators”, to a new super-prison. Poe faces impossible odds when the transport plane is skyjacked mid-flight by the most vicious criminals in the country led by the mastermind — genius serial killer Cyrus "The Virus" Grissom, and backed by black militant Diamond Dog and psychopath Billy Bedlam.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Hard Corps (2005)
An Army veteran assembles a team of bodyguards to protect a former boxer. Complications arise when the boxer suspects his sister may be romantically involved with the bodyguard.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Transporter (2002)
Former Special Forces officer Frank Martin will deliver anything to anyone for the right price, and his no-questions-asked policy puts him in high demand. But when he realizes his latest cargo is alive, it sets in motion a dangerous chain of events. The bound and gagged Lai is being smuggled to France by a shady American businessman, and Frank works to save her as his own illegal activities are uncovered by a French detective.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRomeo Must Die (2000)
Two warring gang families (one African-American, the other Chinese) maneuver for bragging rights to the Oakland, California docks. Han Sing and Trish O'Day uncover a trail of deceit that leaves most of the warring factions dead... or worse!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDeath Proof (2007)
Austin's hottest DJ, Jungle Julia, sets out into the night to unwind with her two friends Shanna and Arlene. Covertly tracking their moves is Stuntman Mike, a scarred rebel leering from behind the wheel of his muscle car, revving just feet away.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCommando (1985)
John Matrix, the former leader of a special commando strike force that always got the toughest jobs done, is forced back into action when his young daughter is kidnapped. To find her, Matrix has to fight his way through an array of punks, killers, one of his former commandos, and a fully equipped private army. With the help of a feisty stewardess and an old friend, Matrix has only a few hours to overcome his greatest challenge: finding his daughter before she's killed.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCode of Silence (1985)
A Chicago cop is caught in the middle of a gang war while his own comrades shun him because he wants to take an irresponsible cop down.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhite Line Fever (1975)
An independent trucker with a pregnant wife fights cargo crooks and the big shot they work for.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Pickup (2025)
A routine cash pickup takes a wild turn when mismatched armored truck drivers Russell and Travis are ambushed by ruthless criminals led by savvy mastermind Zoe.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWrath of Man (2021)
A cold and mysterious new security guard for a Los Angeles cash truck company surprises his co-workers when he unleashes precision skills during a heist. The crew is left wondering who he is and where he came from. Soon, the marksman's ultimate motive becomes clear as he takes dramatic and irrevocable steps to settle a score.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDrive (2011)
Driver is a skilled Hollywood stuntman who moonlights as a getaway driver for criminals. Though he projects an icy exterior, lately he's been warming up to a pretty neighbor named Irene and her young son, Benicio. When Irene's husband gets out of jail, he enlists Driver's help in a million-dollar heist. The job goes horribly wrong, and Driver must risk his life to protect Irene and Benicio from the vengeful masterminds behind the robbery.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Wraith (1986)
Packard Walsh and his motorized gang control and terrorize an Arizona desert town where they force drivers to drag-race so they can 'win' their vehicles. After Walsh beats the decent teenager Jamie Hankins to death after finding him with his girlfriend, a mysterious power creates Jake Kesey, an extremely cool motor-biker who has a car which is invincible. Jake befriends Jamie's girlfriend Keri Johnson, takes Jamie's sweet brother Bill under his wing and manages what Sheriff Loomis couldn't; eliminate Packard's criminal gang the hard way...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMaximum Overdrive (1986)
When a comet passes close to the earth, machines all over the world come alive and go on homicidal rampages. A group of people at a desolate truck stop are held hostage by a gang of murderous 18-wheelers. The frightened people set out to defeat the killer machines…Or be killed by them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Hitcher (2007)
While driving through the New Mexico Desert during a rainy night, college students Jim Halsey and his girlfriend Grace Andrews give a ride to a hitchhiker. While in their car, the stranger proves to be a psychopath threatening the young couple with a knife, but Jim successfully throws him out of the car. This sets off a chain of events that will change all of their lives forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisJoy Ride (2001)
Three young people on a road trip from Colorado to New Jersey talk to a trucker on their CB radio, then must escape when he turns out to be a psychotic killer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Baytown Outlaws (2012)
When three redneck brothers agree to help a woman save her son from an abusive father, they become targets on the run from an odd cast of characters.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTargets (1968)
An aging horror-movie icon's fate intersects with that of a seemingly ordinary young man on a psychotic shooting spree around Los Angeles.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDiva (1981)
Jules, a young Parisian postman, secretly records a concert performance given by the opera singer Cynthia Hawkins, whom he idolises. The following day, Jules runs into a woman who is being pursued by armed thugs. Before she is killed, the woman slips an audio cassette into his mail bag...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBad Company (2002)
When a Harvard-educated CIA agent is killed during an operation, the secret agency recruits his twin brother.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisFalse Flag (2025)
A sidelined CIA Operator wrestles with the decision to execute orders for a false flag terrorist event or defy his own country in order to protect it.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & thriller
Sudden Death (1995)
When a man's daughter is suddenly taken during a championship hockey game – with the captors demanding a billion dollars by game's end – he frantically sets a plan in motion to rescue her and abort an impending explosion before the final buzzer.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMad Max 2 (1981)
Max Rockatansky returns as the heroic loner who drives the dusty roads of a postapocalyptic Australian Outback in an unending search for gasoline. Arrayed against him and the other scraggly defendants of a fuel-depot encampment are the bizarre warriors commanded by the charismatic Lord Humungus, a violent leader whose scruples are as barren as the surrounding landscape.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisConspiracy Theory (1997)
A man obsessed with conspiracy theories becomes a target after one of his theories turns out to be true. Unfortunately, in order to save himself, he has to figure out which theory it is.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAssault on Precinct 13 (2005)
On New Year's Eve, inside a police station that's about to be closed for good, officer Jake Roenick must cobble together a force made up cops and criminals to save themselves from a mob looking to kill mobster Marion Bishop.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisInfidel (2019)
An American is kidnapped while attending a conference in Cairo and ends up in prison in Iran on spying charges. His wife goes to Iran, determined to get him out.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisNo Escape (1994)
In the year 2022, a ruthless prison warden has created the ultimate solution for his most troublesome and violent inmates: Absolom, a secret jungle island where prisoners are abandoned and left to die. But Marine Captain John Robbins, convicted of murdering a commanding officer, is determined to escape the island in order to reveal the truth behind his murderous actions and clear his name.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Devil's Own (1997)
Frankie McGuire, one of the IRA's deadliest assassins, draws an American family into the crossfire of terrorism. But when he is sent to the U.S. to buy weapons, Frankie is housed with the family of Tom O'Meara, a New York cop who knows nothing about Frankie's real identity. Their surprising friendship, and Tom's growing suspicions, forces Frankie to choose between the promise of peace or a lifetime of murder.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Thunder Run?
The closest matches to Thunder Run are The Hitcher (1986), Black Dog (1998) and Nighthawks (1981). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Thunder Run?
Start with The Hitcher (1986), the closest match to Thunder Run.
What is the highest-rated movie like Thunder Run?
Wrath of Man (2021), rated 7.6/10 by 6,408 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Thunder Run?
The Pickup (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Thunder Run?
Yes: The Hitcher (1986), Black Dog (1998) and Nighthawks (1981).
How are movies similar to Thunder Run chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Thunder Run, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.