Movies like Lightning Bolt (1966)
The best movies like Lightning Bolt (1966) are Chief of Station (2024), Get Smart (2008) and No Name on the Bullet (1959). If Lightning Bolt 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 ratedCapricorn One (1977)6.8/10 from 541 votes
- NewestChief of Station (2024)Released 2024
- In ItalianOperation White Shark (1966)Also in Italian
Chief of Station (2024)
After learning that the death of his wife was not an accident, a former CIA Station Chief is forced back into the espionage underworld, teaming up with an adversary to unravel a conspiracy that challenges everything he thought he knew.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGet Smart (2008)
When members of the nefarious crime syndicate KAOS attack the U.S. spy agency Control and the identities of secret agents are compromised, the Chief has to promote hapless but eager analyst Maxwell Smart to field agent. He is partnered with veteran and capable Agent 99, the only spy whose cover remains intact. Can they work together to thwart the evil world-domination plans of KAOS and its crafty operative?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNo Name on the Bullet (1959)
When hired killer John Gant rides into Lordsburg, the town's folk become paranoid as each leading citizen has enemies capable of using the services of a professional killer for personal revenge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDefence of the Realm (1986)
A reporter named Mullen 'stumbles' onto a story linking a prominent Member of Parliament to a KGB agent and a near-nuclear disaster involving a teenage runaway and a U.S. Air Force base. Has there been a Government cover-up? Mullen teams up with Vernon Bayliss, an old hack, and Nina Beckam, the MP's assistant, to find out the truth.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCapricorn One (1977)
In order to protect the reputation of the American space program, a team of NASA administrators turn the first Mars mission into a phony Mars landing. Under threat of harm to their families the astronauts play their part in the deception on a staged set in a deserted military base. But once the real ship returns to Earth and burns up on re-entry, the astronauts become liabilities. Now, with the help of a crusading reporter, they must battle a sinister conspiracy that will stop at nothing to keep the truth hidden.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Silencers (1966)
Matt Helm is called out of retirement to stop the evil Big O organization who plan to explode an atomic bomb over Alamagordo, NM, and start WW III.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOur Man Flint (1966)
When scientists use eco-terrorism to impose their will on the world by affecting extremes in the weather, Intelligence Chief Cramden calls in top agent Derek Flint.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJohnny English (2003)
A lowly pencil pusher working for MI7, Johnny English is suddenly promoted to super spy after Agent One is assassinated and every other agent is blown up at his funeral. When a billionaire entrepreneur sponsors the exhibition of the Crown Jewels—and the valuable gems disappear on the opening night and on English's watch—the newly-designated agent must jump into action to find the thief and recover the missing gems.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJohnny English Strikes Again (2018)
Disaster strikes when a criminal mastermind reveals the identities of all active undercover agents in Britain. The secret service can now rely on only one man - Johnny English. Currently teaching at a minor prep school, Johnny springs back into action to find the mysterious hacker. For this mission to succeed, he’ll need all of his skills - what few he has - as the man with yesterday’s analogue methods faces off against tomorrow’s digital technology.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Ipcress File (1965)
Sly and dry intelligence agent Harry Palmer is tasked with investigating British Intelligence security, and is soon enmeshed in a world of double-dealing, kidnap and murder when he finds a traitor operating at the heart of the secret service.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStar Kid (1997)
Shy seventh-grader Spencer Griffith's life changes when the meteor falls into local junkyard and he finds a Cybersuit - the wise and strong robot from another galaxy. Spencer puts Cybersuit on and becomes a different kind of guy
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Spy Next Door (2010)
Former CIA spy Bob Ho takes on his toughest assignment to date: looking after his girlfriend's three kids, who haven't exactly warmed to their mom's beau. And when one of the youngsters accidentally downloads a top-secret formula, Bob's longtime nemesis, a Russian terrorist, pays a visit to the family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe MacKintosh Man (1973)
A member of British Intelligence assumes a fictitious criminal identity and allows himself to be caught, imprisoned, and freed in order to infiltrate a spy organization and expose a traitor; only, someone finds him out and exposes him to the gang...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEach Dawn I Die (1939)
A corrupt D.A. with governatorial ambitions is annoyed by an investigative reporter's criticism of his criminal activities and decides to frame the reporter for manslaughter in order to silence him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHooper (1978)
Legendary stunt man Sonny Hooper remains one of the top men in his field, but due to too many stressful impacts to the spine and the need to pop painkillers several times a day, he knows he should get out of the industry before he ends up permanently disabled.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJohnny English Reborn (2011)
The most prominent heads of state in the world begin gathering for a conference that could have a major impact on global politics. When MI-7 receives word that the Chinese premier has become the target of some high-powered killers, it falls on Johnny English to save the day. Armed with the latest high-tech weaponry and gadgets that would make even James Bond jealous, the once-disgraced agent uncovers evidence of a massive conspiracy involving some of the world's most powerful organisations, and vows to redeem his tarnished reputation by stopping the killers before they can strike.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlack Widow (1987)
Federal agent Alexandra Barnes believes that Catherine Petersen is a serial killer who marries rich men and then murders them for their money. But since Catherine is seemingly a master of disguise and has multiple identities, Alexandra can't prove anything with conventional detective work. With no other option, she goes undercover, pursuing the same man as Catherine, and hoping that Catherine will slip up and reveal her true identity.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAsteroid: Final Impact (2015)
A deadly meteor storm has been labeled a one-time celestial occurrence, but astrophysicist Steve Thomas believes something worse is yet to come. After discovering his asteroid tracking satellite is secretly being used for military surveillance, Steve leaks the truth to the press, and it costs him his reputation, his job, and his friends. With the backlash of being a whistle-blower, the pressure threatens to tear his family apart, just when Steve discovers a threat to the entire planet: a giant dark asteroid invisible to current detection systems will soon strike the Earth. Barred from using his own satellite to prove the asteroid's existence, Steve is forced to work in the shadows in a desperate attempt to save humanity.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStargate SG-1: Children of the Gods (2009)
An alien similar to Ra appears out of the Stargate, killing five soldiers and kidnapping another, a year after the original Stargate mission. A new team is assembled, including some old members, and they go in search of the missing soldier in order to find out how Ra could still be alive. Meanwhile, the alien Goa'uld kidnap Sha're and Skaara, implanting them with symbiotes and making them Goa'uld hosts.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDouble Threat (2022)
With ruthless mobsters on her tail, a young woman with a split personality becomes entangled with a man on a pilgrimage across the country to scatter his brother's ashes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLive and Let Die (1973)
James Bond must investigate a mysterious murder case of a British agent in New Orleans. Soon he finds himself up against a gangster boss named Mr. Big.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCall 112 (1962)
A gang of pharmacists, intent on seizing Hyun-ju's inheritance, systematically approaches her. The leader of the gang is her ex-husband. Before they can seize her inheritance, internal conflict arises within the gang, and they are all murdered by the leader. Meanwhile, the police, aware of this, launch a nimble investigation. The leader, determined to keep her inheritance, persistently pursues her, but ultimately fails and is arrested. She is rescued from a near-death experience.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller & action
Quantum of Solace (2008)
Betrayed by Vesper, the woman he loved, 007 fights the urge to make his latest mission personal. Pursuing his determination to uncover the truth, Bond and M interrogate Mr. White, who reveals that the organization that blackmailed Vesper is far more complex and dangerous than anyone had imagined.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Tuxedo (2002)
Cabbie-turned-chauffeur Jimmy Tong learns there is really only one rule when you work for playboy millionaire Clark Devlin : Never touch Devlin's prized tuxedo. But when Devlin is temporarily put out of commission in an explosive accident, Jimmy puts on the tux and soon discovers that this extraordinary suit may be more black belt than black tie. Paired with a partner as inexperienced as he is, Jimmy becomes an unwitting secret agent.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller & action
SnoozefestMovies like thisOperation White Shark (1966)
When "The Third Eye" - a criminal organization made up of the world's most vicious killers - kidnaps nuclear scientist Professor Von Kraft, his secret formula for a new atomic weapon that can destroy all human life falls into their evil hands. Making things a tad difficult, however, is that the weapon is located deep beneath the ocean. Nevertheless, the Third Eye plans on experimenting with the device in little more than a week. However, the Secret Service has other ideas and asks "Jerry," their super computer, to locate the best man to stop them: Mark Andrews (RODD DANA), a special forces secret agent who infiltrates the criminal gang under the cover of a robber who just happens to be an expert underwater diver! He also wastes no time romancing all manner of shapely women in the tightest clothes imaginable (when they're wearing more than a modestly placed bed sheet) especially JANINE REYNAUD, the bisexual leader of The Third Eye, who sports a wild wardrobe of very revealing outfits.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller & action
Bitch Slap (2009)
Three bad girls - a down-and-out stripper, a drug-running killer, and a corporate powerbroker - arrive at a remote desert hideaway to extort and steal $200 million in diamonds from a ruthless underworld kingpin.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Liquidator (1965)
Lighthearted spy drama about Boysie Oakes, who takes a nice job with the British Secret Service, enjoys all the perks, and signs all the forms before learning that his job depends on murdering people, and not romancing all the beautiful civilian staff in Whitehall.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & thriller
Der Platz (2021)
Stranded in Cold War-era Berlin, a British counterintelligence officer awaits the day his handlers will finally arrive to collect him. Given no information but a time and place, he diligently keeps his appointment, watching and waiting for something to happen; even as weeks turn to years . . .
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller
Cliff Walkers (2021)
In the puppet state of Manchukuo in the 1930s, four Communist party special agents, after returning to China, embark on a secret mission. Sold out by a traitor, the team find themselves surrounded by threats on all sides.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisArmageddon (1998)
When an asteroid threatens to collide with Earth, NASA honcho Dan Truman determines the only way to stop it is to drill into its surface and detonate a nuclear bomb. This leads him to renowned driller Harry Stamper, who agrees to helm the dangerous space mission provided he can bring along his own hotshot crew. Among them is the cocksure A.J. who Harry thinks isn't good enough for his daughter, until the mission proves otherwise.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Lightning Bolt?
The closest matches to Lightning Bolt are Chief of Station (2024), Get Smart (2008) and No Name on the Bullet (1959). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Lightning Bolt?
Start with Chief of Station (2024), the closest match to Lightning Bolt.
What is the highest-rated movie like Lightning Bolt?
Capricorn One (1977), rated 6.8/10 by 541 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Lightning Bolt?
Chief of Station (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Italian movies like Lightning Bolt?
Yes: Operation White Shark (1966).
How are movies similar to Lightning Bolt chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Lightning Bolt, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.