Movies like Taken (2008)
The best movies like Taken (2008) are Close Range (2015), Protector (2026) and Close (2019). If Taken hooked you with its action and thriller, these 30 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
- NewestThe Runner (2026)Released 2026
- Same seriesTaken 2 (2012)Taken
Close Range (2015)
A rogue soldier turned outlaw is thrust into a relentless fight with a corrupt sheriff, his obedient deputies, and a dangerous drug cartel in order to protect his sister and her young daughter.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
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: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisClose (2019)
A counter-terrorism expert takes a job protecting a young heiress. After an attempted kidnapping puts both of their lives in danger, they must flee.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMan on Fire (2004)
Jaded ex-CIA operative John Creasy reluctantly accepts a job as the bodyguard for a 10-year-old girl in Mexico City. They clash at first, but eventually bond, and when she's kidnapped he's consumed by fury and will stop at nothing to save her life.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Runner (2026)
Maia Marten, a brilliant London lawyer, has her life shattered by a single call on her morning run: her son has been taken. To get him back, she must keep running, obey every ruthless command, and trust no one-each second a test of how far a mother will go to save her child.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWildcat (2025)
An ex-black ops team reunite to pull off a desperate heist in order to save the life of their leader’s eight-year-old daughter.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRage (2014)
When the Russian mob kidnaps the daughter of a reformed criminal, he rounds up his old crew and seeks his own brand of justice.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisHostage (2005)
When a mafia accountant is taken hostage on his beat, a police officer – wracked by guilt from a prior stint as a negotiator – must negotiate the standoff, even as his own family is held captive by the mob.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHigh Rollers (2025)
A master thief must pull off a dangerous casino heist when his nemesis kidnaps his lover. Caught between rival criminals and FBI pursuit, he risks all to save her and score big.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLargo Winch: The Price of Money (2024)
Largo Winch, devastated by the kidnapping of his son, realizes that if he finds those responsible for his bankruptcy, maybe he'll see his son again.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisJohn Wick (2014)
Ex-hitman John Wick comes out of retirement to track down the gangsters that took everything from him.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Gray Man (2022)
When a shadowy CIA agent uncovers damning agency secrets, he's hunted across the globe by a sociopathic rogue operative who's put a bounty on his head.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Killer (2022)
While his girlfriend is away on a trip, retired assassin Bang Ui-kang is tasked with looking after her friend's 17-year-old daughter. After a street attack, Bang Ui-kang becomes embroiled in a murder investigation and dangerous trafficking gang.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisExtraction (2015)
When a former CIA operative is kidnapped by a group of terrorists, his son learns there is no plan for his father to be saved—so he launches his own rescue operation.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisHaywire (2011)
A black ops soldier seeks payback after she is betrayed and left for dead.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisSalt (2010)
As a CIA officer, Evelyn Salt swore an oath to duty, honor, and country. Her loyalty will be tested when a Russian defector accuses her of being a Russian sleeper spy. She goes on the run, using all her skills and years of experience as a covert operative to elude capture, protect her husband, and stay one step ahead of her colleagues at the CIA. Her efforts to prove her innocence only serve to cast doubt on her motives, as the hunt to uncover the truth behind her identity continues and the question remains: "Who is Salt?"
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Equalizer (2014)
McCall believes he has put his mysterious past behind him and dedicated himself to beginning a new, quiet life. But when he meets Teri, a young girl under the control of ultra-violent Russian gangsters, he can’t stand idly by – he has to help her. Armed with hidden skills that allow him to serve vengeance against anyone who would brutalize the helpless, McCall comes out of his self-imposed retirement and finds his desire for justice reawakened. If someone has a problem, if the odds are stacked against them, if they have nowhere else to turn, McCall will help. He is The Equalizer.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both thriller & action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTaken 2 (2012)
In Istanbul, retired CIA operative Bryan Mills and his wife are taken hostage by the father of a kidnapper Mills killed while rescuing his daughter.
Why it matches: Same series: Taken · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Working Man (2025)
Levon Cade left behind a decorated military career in the black ops to live a simple life working construction. But when his boss's daughter, who is like family to him, is taken by human traffickers, his search to bring her home uncovers a world of corruption far greater than he ever could have imagined.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKidnap (2017)
A mother (in her Minivan) stops at nothing to recover her kidnapped son.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNobody (2021)
Hutch Mansell, a suburban dad, overlooked husband, nothing neighbor — a "nobody." When two thieves break into his home one night, Hutch's unknown long-simmering rage is ignited and propels him on a brutal path that will uncover dark secrets he fought to leave behind.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisLong Gone Heroes (2024)
Gunner, a special forces soldier who has witnessed the darkest side of country and combat, is forced back into the field of battle to save his niece, who is being held in South America. As the fight intensifies, Gunner and his team discover that her disappearance is part of a corrupt private operation that hits way too close to home.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisSound of Freedom (2023)
The story of Tim Ballard, a former US government agent, who quits his job in order to devote his life to rescuing children from global sex traffickers.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisActs of Violence (2018)
When his fiancee is kidnapped by human traffickers, Roman and his ex-military brothers set out to track her down and save her before it is too late. Along the way, Roman teams up with Avery, a cop investigating human trafficking and fighting the corrupt bureaucracy that has harmful intentions.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Marine 6: Close Quarters (2018)
Jake Carter and another former Marine, Luke Trapper, join forces to rescue a young kidnapped girl from a gang of international criminals.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDeath Wish (2018)
A mild-mannered father is transformed into a killing machine after his family is torn apart by a violent act.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAtomic Blonde (2017)
An undercover MI6 agent is sent to Berlin during the Cold War to investigate the murder of a fellow agent and recover a missing list of double agents.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPeppermint (2018)
A grieving mother transforms herself into a vigilante following the murders of her husband and daughter, eluding the authorities to deliver her own personal brand of justice.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisExtraction (2020)
A hardened gun-for-hire's latest mission becomes a soul-searching race to survive when he's sent into Bangladesh to rescue a drug lord's kidnapped son.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Cold Light of Day (2012)
After his family is kidnapped during their sailing trip in Spain, a young Wall Street trader is confronted by the people responsible: intelligence agents looking to recover a mysterious briefcase.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Taken?
The closest matches to Taken are Close Range (2015), Protector (2026) and Close (2019). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Taken?
People who watched Taken most often go on to Close Range (2015), Protector (2026) and Close (2019).
What is the highest-rated movie like Taken?
Protector (2026), rated 8.4/10 by 648 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Taken?
The Runner (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Is Taken part of a series?
Yes. It belongs to Taken, which includes Taken 2 (2012).
Are there English movies like Taken?
Yes: Close Range (2015), Protector (2026) and Close (2019).
How are movies similar to Taken chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Taken, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.