You can pretty much always rely on something from the action genre to deliver in any given year, unless you’re talking about 2020, maybe, when lots of the bigger action movies got delayed (but hey, even then, Tenet did still come out… for better or worse). People like action scenes, and so people like action movies. Barring a global pandemic or something similarly dramatic, you’re likely to get plenty of action every year, and it’s been that way for decades now.
2025 is one such year, because it was a pretty good one for big movies, and even some slightly disappointing ones (cough the eighth Mission: Impossible cough) still delivered some great action sequences, perhaps just not as many as would be ideal. Anyway, what follows isn’t a rundown of the best blockbusters of 2025, nor the best action movies necessarily, but the best action scenes from the year that’s been (and with a limit of one sequence per film, to ensure a bit of variety).
10
‘Predator: Badlands’
Infiltrating the Weyland-Yutani Base
It’s easy to look at Predator: Badlands and feel a bit eh about how mild it is, and how far away from horror it is genre-wise, even though it features tons of monsters… but then again, the Predator series hasn’t always been super horror-focused. They’re usually more tied to the sci-fi and action genres, and some Predator movies have been tense enough to have horrific moments, but it’s Alien you’re after if you want the horror side of things (and even then, not Aliens, which is more of an action/thriller/sci-fi film).
Anyway, Predator: Badlands is approachable when it comes to content, but also a little out-there with its focus on making one of the Predators (or a Yautja) the protagonist, instead of the antagonist, like usual. It’s novel to see a movie with, like, no human characters, only aliens, monsters, and humanoid synths, and though the final big action sequence is a little dimly lit, it is pretty solid stuff (and, if you count synthetics being torn apart as a sort of bloody violence, then you also get a bit of “bloodshed” and less brutal gore here, too).
9
‘Superman’
The Mister Terrific Fight
There are good action scenes in Superman featuring the titular character, sure, but also, Mister Terrific does kind of steal the show at certain points, and is at the center of what’s probably the single best action scene of the movie. It’s presented in a way that feels very reminiscent of certain Guardians of the Galaxy action scenes, needle drop and all, but this is a James Gunn movie we’re talking about, so…
Anyway, beyond that one set piece, Superman (2025) works quite well as a reworking of Superman overall, or maybe like an interesting take on rebooting him, since the film very much isn’t yet another origin story. The future of DC looks a bit uncertain, as it’s always looked, but if the others hit the same sorts of beats Superman (2025) did, maybe it’ll all work out okay.
8
‘The Running Man’
The Hostel Escape
You get quite a bit of running in The Running Man, and you also get Glen Powell in a very small towel, so it’s the movie that never stops giving. Actually, it could stand to give a little more. It’s not one of Edgar Wright’s better movies, though it is fun in parts, and it does that thing some messy blockbusters do where it just continually moves forward at such a speed you don’t really stop to think about how everything’s falling apart until the movie’s over.
Most would single out the Home Alone-esque sequence as the best action scene in this Stephen King adaptation, but Powell’s protagonist trying to escape from a hostel (again, while wearing a tiny towel) is set up a little better, and feels more in line tonally with the rest of the movie. A little goofy, but not overly ridiculous… though the Home Alone-y stuff is still fun, and probably would be in this spot instead if it kicking off in the first place made a bit more sense narratively.
7
‘Ballerina’
Eve vs. John Wick
There were already four John Wick movies, and then the series seemed to end, but maybe not. Anyway, while people wait for a fifth movie that’ll potentially happen (uh, probably?), there was also an interquel/spin-off called Ballerina, with things revolving around a young woman named Eve who’s out for revenge, doing so largely at the same time that the events of John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum are taking place.
So, perhaps naturally, she crosses paths with John himself at one point, and they get into a fight where John Wick pulls his punches, establishing he’s still kind of the boss of the series, and then just seeing him in general is cool. It’s a smaller role, of course, but there’s an interesting fight here and some other action involving Keanu Reeves reprising his most famous role that isn’t Neo from The Matrix, and all that’s neat to see.
6
‘Havoc’
The Club Fight Scene
Look, Havoc was a disappointment. This movie saw Gareth Evans returning to the action genre for the first time since 2014’s The Raid 2, and that movie was phenomenal as a martial arts film, as was its 2011 predecessor. Havoc wasn’t as focused on martial arts, but in its better moments, it did not so much scratch the same itch The Raid movies did, but gently massaged the itchy area in question.
That’s all to say that expecting greatness here will lead to disappointment, and even expecting something action-packed but clearly imperfect… like, no, you need to temper those expectations even more. There’s a club sequence in Havoc that goes big, not to mention also going along for a while, and Tom Hardy commits to it, but it’s just about the only bright spot in the movie… and, again, not as bright as the best parts of the martial arts films Evans has directed before.
5
‘Sinners’
The Vampire Battle
Image via Warner Bros
Wait, isn’t Sinners a horror movie? Primarily, yes. It’s not quite a twist that vampires are involved, since you get a pretty ominous scene early on before things flash back to before everything got messy, and it’s enough to figure out something supernatural is afoot. Still, the first act is comparatively peaceful, being more of a period drama and sometimes even flirting with being a gangster movie (the two leads are trying to escape that kind of life, at least).
The final act of Sinners gets very violent, messy, and expectedly bloody, with the big battle against the vampires being inevitable and highly satisfying.
Also, music plays a big part in Sinners, so you could almost (not quite) call it something of a musical, or at least a movie with some big music numbers. And then the final act gets very violent, messy, and expectedly bloody, with the big battle against the vampires being inevitable and highly satisfying. Though an honorable mention is in order for another action scene that comes even closer to the end of the movie: a big old shootout that’s extremely well done, not to mention quite cathartic.
4
‘Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning’
The Biplane Fight
As mentioned in a somewhat salty manner back in the introduction, the eighth Mission: Impossible movie came out in 2025, and it was a bit of a disappointment by the high standards of the series. Honestly, the only Mission: Impossible movie worse than Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning is the second movie, but even then, that one might still be more fun thanks to the excessive John Woo-ness of it all. Oh, and it’s not as long and drawn-out, either.
But look, it’s a Tom Cruise action movie that’s not The Mummy, and so Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning was still bound to have some memorable moments. And the big action sequence that ends the film – involving two biplanes and a fight in midair – is immense. It’s not quite worth watching the whole movie for, and it’s probably just best skipped to, instead (the submarine set piece also leaves a mark). Still, if you’re talking about the best action scenes of 2025, rather than the year’s best action movies, this scene should be here. ‘Tis what it is.
3
‘F1’
The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
If something has a lot of car-related racing or action, it can count as an action movie of sorts, and that’s why F1 is here. This movie is difficult to Google, even if you add the year to it, but it’s very much a piece of fiction, rather than a documentary or even a drama based on real events. That being said, F1 does aim to feel as authentic as possible, when it comes to showcasing the racing action the title all but promises.
The structure is sound, and so it’s easy to single out the last big race of the movie as the most exciting and satisfying as an action set piece. F1 benefits from being seen on the biggest screen possible, and might well require even further deafening audio to truly appreciate. It’s technically one of the stronger movies of the year, execution-wise, and Hans Zimmer’s score also adds a good deal to the whole proceedings, too.
2
‘Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair’
The House of Blue Leaves Fight
Is this cheating? Maybe, but hear it out. Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair did technically get screened before 2025, and Vol. 1 and Vol. 2, of course, came out in 2003 and 2004, respectively. But seeing both volumes condensed into one movie was made more widely available in 2025, and The Whole Bloody Affair does change up the biggest action sequence of the revenge epic that was originally structured as a duology.
The big fight sequence near the end of the story’s first half is a bit longer in this uncut “Whole Bloody Affair” version, and it’s also in color, instead of switching to black and white, as seen in Vol. 1. So, you do technically get more action in what was already a phenomenal action sequence, and The Whole Bloody Affair only got something like a wide release (well, if you’re in America, at least) in 2025, so whatever, it’s being included here.
1
‘One Battle After Another’
The Climactic Car Chase
If you enter into One Battle After Another expecting one action scene after another, you might come away a little disappointed, not because of the quality, but because of the quantity. It’s not entirely an action movie, instead being more of a darkly comedic thriller about a single dad being haunted by his past as a revolutionary, particularly when an enemy from said past re-emerges and starts pursuing his daughter.
It’s a series of stressful events, but some parts are played for laughs, mainly due to different characters proving either very capable (or almost entirely incapable) of handling the outlandish situations they find themselves in. The best burst of action in One Battle After Another comes near the end, with a particularly striking car chase. Any attempts to explain it will make it sound too simple or maybe even boring, but it works in the same effortless way the (also simple on paper) iconic car chase from Bullitt worked, albeit without feeling like it was ripping that one off. It’s one of the best scenes of the year, and probably the best action sequence of 2025, too.
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