The Best Action Movies Of 2022

Action movies continue to light up big and small screens alike with every new year, and every year there are some that feel special. That's as true as ever in 2022, a year that has delivered a slew of very different, fantastic action movies. The field ranges from kid-friendly adventures to stunningly violent rampages, from superhero movies to period pieces, from franchise updates to mind-blowingly original stories. Whatever kind of action you've been looking for, the year's new releases have got you covered.

It's been an exciting time for movies between the return of big-screen spectacle and the experimental landscape of streaming, and these action movies make the most of that, offering audiences awe-inspiring sequences and white-knuckle thrill rides. We've got a roundup of the new action movies that have most made us gasp, grip our seats, or simply stare at the screen in disbelief — luckily, there wasn't a shortage of any of that. These are the best action movies of 2022.

"RRR" is the rare Indian epic to make a huge splash in the U.S., and it's easy to see why. The film tells the fictionalized story of two real-life revolutionaries, Alluri Sitarama Raju (played by Ram Charan) and Komaram Bheem (N. T. Rama Rao Jr.), who become friends and join forces to take down the British Raj. At more than three hours, the movie's runtime is undeniably intimidating, but it's so good that it flies by.

Like many Indian blockbusters, "RRR" includes several musical numbers, some of which are celebratory and fun, while others are used to give more impact to desperate moments for the heroes. But these songs, along with the breathtaking action scenes, keep "RRR" incredibly entertaining from start to finish.

Those action scenes vary greatly, offering us new and exciting kinds of thrill every few minutes. In one, Raju, serving the British as a police officer, single-handedly takes on a horde of protestors. In another, Bheem unleashes a small zoo of animals on a British party to create chaos. But nothing compares to the scene in which the two men work together, with Raju on Bheem's shoulders, to escape a colonial prison; it's one of the most joyously ridiculous action scenes ever to hit the screen, and therefore one of the best.

Robert Eggers directed two small-scale cult horror classics (the A24 period pieces "The Witch" and "The Lighthouse") before turning his attention to something much, much grander with "The Northman." The movie, based on the Danish legend of Prince Amleth by medieval Danish historian and author Saxo Grammaticus (which also inspired Shakespeare's "Hamlet"), follows Amleth (Alexander Skarsgård) on a quest for revenge after the murder of his father by his uncle.

The movie includes some absolutely astounding action scenes that prove Eggers' talent for filmmaking isn't limited to small-scale dread. A sequence that follows Amleth and a group of fellow Northern berserkers as they raid a village in "the land of the Rus" is incredibly conceived and unflinchingly tracks Amleth's movements. The tension mounts steadily as we watch Amleth climb over a defensive wall, leap to attack a guard on horseback, and take down several combatants on the ground. But that's just one of the many breathtaking — and downright brutal — sequences in a movie that delivers a final fight that literally takes place inside of a volcano.

"Black Adam" made Rotten Tomatoes history with one of the largest disparities between audience and critics ratings ever on the site (the gap has since closed a bit), but it also broke Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's previous box office record, so whether or not critics cared for the movie didn't really end up making a difference. And while critics had their, well, criticisms of the story and the action, as a superhero movie, "Black Adam" delivers.

The movie has to introduce not just the title character (Johnson), but the members of the Justice Society who are sent to contain the threat Adam presents. Fortunately, it's surprisingly smooth (especially when compared to the awkward introductions of other metahumans in "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice"), and the fights between them are some of the most exciting in the DC Extended Universe.

Director Jaume Collet-Serra brings his great sense of action (first proven with the mid-budget films he made with Liam Neeson) to this big budget superhero spectacle. Collet-Serra uses slow motion throughout the movie to make the most of the exciting uses of powers, especially the magic of Doctor Fate (Pierce Brosnan) and the brightly colored storms whipped up by Cyclone (Quintessa Swindell). There's also no shortage of classic punch-ups and explosions. That attention to making the action in "Black Adam" visually unique makes it not just one of the best action movies of 2022, but also one of the best movies in the DCEU.

"Top Gun: Maverick" has done something nearly impossible, and we don't mean destroying several box office records. The follow-up to 1986's "Top Gun" is the extremely rare legacy sequel to be better than its predecessor. In fact, it might just be only the second such movie ever, after "Mad Max: Fury Road."

The movie follows Maverick (Tom Cruise), now a test pilot for the Navy. Despite his great skill as a pilot, he hasn't risen through the ranks due to repeated insubordination. But it's exactly because of that outside-the-box history that he's called to train a group of new Top Gun graduates for an incredibly important and difficult mission. "Maverick" mixes melodrama and action in a story that delivers big feelings and big action scenes. The time that's passed since the original only adds further weight, as the narrative highlights the increasing use of drones instead of piloted aircraft and makes a case for the human factor in dogfights.

And what dogfights they are. "Top Gun: Maverick" has some of the most awe-inspiring and nerve-shattering action scenes of the year. From the training duels between Maverick and his new students, to the film's thrilling finale, there hasn't been on-screen jet fighting action like this before.

"Everything Everywhere All At Once" may well be the breakout hit of 2022. The film, starring the legendary Michelle Yeoh with a memorable supporting turn from Jamie Lee Curtis, was distributed by independent studio A24 but produced by the Russo brothers of MCU fame. It's a bit of a strange movie that combines an interest in multiverses that's so hot in current blockbusters (or at least in the MCU) with a more grounded story about a family.

Yeoh stars as the overwhelmed and unhappy laundromat owner Evelyn, who finds herself called to be a soldier in a multiversal battle against a villain set on destroying existence. What makes "Everything Everywhere All At Once" so special is that it balances its stories about Evelyn's relationships with her husband Waymond (Ke Huy Quan, making his return to acting after a two-decade absence) and daughter Joy (Stephanie Hsu) with the overarching fight to save the multiverse.

Along the way there are some hilarious jokes and unforgettable fight scenes. Its best sequences work as both jokes and fight scenes, like when an alternate-timeline Waymond beats up a bunch of security guards using nothing but a fanny pack. "Everything Everywhere All At Once" is a unique movie that shows we don't have to lose our hold on real human relationships, even in mind-bending sci-fi stories about multiversal destruction.

Inspired by the historical Agojie, an all women military class in the West African kingdom of Dahomey, "The Woman King" takes liberties with its source material to deliver a movie that's more narratively satisfying than it is historically accurate. But it is extremely satisfying. Set in the early 19th century, the film follows the strong willed young Nawi (Thuso Mbedu) as her father offers her up to the Agojie because he cannot find anyone willing to marry her. She trains and meets other women who have been members of the Agojie for years, including the kind but fierce Izogie (Lashana Lynch) and the group's leader General Nanisca (Viola Davis).

But "The Woman King" isn't only a coming-of-age tale — the film also tracks the conflict between Dahomey and the larger neighboring kingdom of Oyo, which has for years subjugated Dahomey. That conflict leads to the movie's numerous thrilling action scenes. The Agojie, unlike many of their enemies, fight with swords, knives, and spears, leading to visceral action sequences that are just as likely to make you wince as cheer. Over the course of the film, the women develop new and unexpected weapons and strategies that they then use to overcome their enemies.

"The Woman King" is equally packed with emotion and action, making it a crowd-pleaser that hearkens back to the cinematic epics of the 20th century.