All Tom Clancy Movies And TV Shows Ranked

When it comes to spy novels full of political intrigue, there are few authors who can match Tom Clancy, whose work stretches back to the 1980s. He's responsible for more novels than we can count, and even ventured into the world of video games with series like "Splinter Cell" and "Rainbow Six." But by far, his most popular character is Jack Ryan, a one-time U.S. Marine who becomes a CIA agent tracking terrorists all across the globe.

During the peak of his career, Tom Clancy was a bestseller in the genre. Many of his works — including multiple Jack Ryan stories — have been adapted into films and TV shows, with his first novel becoming a movie within just a few years of its release. Some have topped the charts, earned sequels, and collectively form a franchise that spans decades. But there are more Tom Clancy adaptations than you might realize; in fact, there may even be one or two on this list that you didn't even know about.

These days, Clancy's adaptations remain as popular as ever, with two TV shows debuting within the past few years, and at least one new film in the works. But not all Tom Clancy adaptations are created equal. Some have thrilled audiences and made big money at the box office, while others have disappointed or flopped at the ticket counter. Worse, some have even garnered terrible reviews. But which one is the worst Tom Clancy adaptation, and which is the best? Read on to find out.

You probably haven't heard of the TV movie "NetForce," and that's for good reason: it wasn't very good. It came at a time when there weren't any Tom Clancy movies on the big screen, during the near-decade gap between "A Clear and Present Danger" and "The Sum of All Fears." Though not a great adaptation, "NetForce" does have some bright spots, most notably the presence of "Quantum Leap" star Scott Bakula, who does a pretty good job of playing a Jack Ryan-like hero just a couple of years before he'd become a Starfleet captain in "Star Trek: Enterprise."

Based on Clancy's book of the same name, "NetForce" leverages the growing mystery surrounding the emerging threat of cybercrime in the 1990s. The story, set in the near-future of 2005, sees a new division of the FBI created called NetForce, whose purview is hunting internet criminals. Bakula stars as Alex Michaels, an agent determined to learn who killed his boss and mentor, Steve Day (Kris Kristofferson); and the number one suspect is a tech mogul named Will Stiles (Judge Reinhold). Alex believes that Stiles is working on a new product that would create a back door into any computer in the world, which could be exploited to take over the internet.

Trashed by critics, "NetForce" is simplistic and groanworthy at times — especially when looking back at it today, where its reductive assessments of technology can be downright laughable. Still, it was an early story to explore the dangers of the internet and how the tech industry might one day play a role in manipulating the population.

In the mid-'90s, Tom Clancy movies were big hits, and television producers wanted in on the action. This lead to Clancy's "Op-Center" series getting the TV movie treatment in 1995. Starring "L.A. Law" star Harry Hamlin and "Rocky" veteran Carl Weathers, "OP Center" was a traditional political thriller set in Washington, D.C., revolving around a group of government agents hoping to avert a world war after Russian dissidents steal nuclear warheads from Ukraine to sell to Middle Eastern terrorists.

Hamlin stars in the film as Paul Hood, the newly appointed director of the National Crisis Management Center. Weathers plays the agency's deputy director Brigadier General Mike Rodgers, who has far more experience than Hood and must help him navigate the precarious situation that he doesn't quite understand. Making matters worse, however, is that their highly classified information is being leaked to the Mossad, the paramilitary Israeli intelligence agency, which demands retaliation — lest they start a war on their own. And when it's discovered that the leak may be very close to home, it creates a potential political scandal that makes the entire situation all the more delicate, all while nuclear armageddon hangs in the balance.

Largely thanks to constraints like a smaller budget and TV ratings, "OP Center" is never as intense as it probably could have been. Ultimately, without the ability to showcase the same kind of tense action from bigger-budget theatrical movies, the two-part TV film becomes an extremely talk-heavy snoozefest with more in common with '60s B-movies than '90s action spy flicks.

Following two stellar films about Jack Ryan starring Harrison Ford, Hollywood struggled to get a third film with the "Star Wars" alum up and running. Instead of a sequel, the studio ultimately decided to go the "soft reboot" route with a movie set during Jack Ryan's early days as a CIA analyst tracking down terrorists. Ditching Ford, up-and-coming superstar Ben Affleck was chosen to inherit the role of a younger Jack Ryan, and Morgan Freeman was cast to replace James Earl Jones as Admiral Greer. The result was 2002's "The Sum of All Fears."

Based on a novel of the same name, "The Sum of All Fears" re-engineers the book's Israel-Palestinian conflict with that of a Neo Nazi terrorist group who has taken possession of a nuclear warhead, threatening to unleash it on the United States in a plot to instigate all-out war with Russia. It's all part of an even broader scheme to establish a fascist hegemony in the West, and it's up to Jack Ryan to track down those responsible and avert global annihilation.

Though a success in theaters, "The Sum of All Fears" didn't meet with the same level of critical applause as the two Ford-led entries in the '90s. Affleck, too, wasn't quite ready to be an action hero; and, despite a decent showing, he paled when compared to his predecessor. As a result, no further sequels were commissioned, and it would be more than a decade before Jack Ryan would return to screens — in yet another reboot.

While the Jack Ryan novels are the biggest source of inspiration for Hollywood when it comes to the work of Tom Clancy, there's another hero in his fictional universe who's been adapted to the screen more than once. First played by Willem Dafoe as a supporting character in 1994's "Clear and Present Danger," the character of John Clarke is a major player in Clancy's bibliography and has been a part of numerous novels, spin-offs, and even video games. And he returned to the screen in 2023 in an Amazon original movie, "Without Remorse," starring Michael B. Jordan.

Updating the book's setting from the 1970s amid the Vietnam War to the 2020s and the war in Syria, "Without Remorse" sees Navy SEAL John Clarke out for vengeance after Russian agents murder his wife. She was targeted as retaliation for Clarke's own mission against them in Aleppo, and with the help of allies both new and old, he's forced into a black ops mission to track down the killers and deliver bloody justice.

Classic run-and-gun action, with over-the-top levels of bravado delivered from stereotypical tough guys, "Without Remorse" is clichéd, to be sure. But it's still satisfying if you just want some popcorn fun and intense military drama. However, it lacks depth despite being a good-looking, polished film with slick action. Following a lackluster response, the proposed "Rainbow Six" sequel seems to have been put in a holding pattern.

Looking to restart the Jack Ryan films for a new audience in the 2010s, studio Paramount decided that directly adapting a Tom Clancy novel wasn't the best approach, and instead went for an original story. Like the previous attempt, "The Sum of All Fears," the film "Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit" was a reboot that went back to the early days of Jack Ryan's career — this time, all the way to the beginning. "Star Trek" star Chris Pine was chosen to inherit the role from Affleck, with Kevin Costner co-starring as Ryan's earliest mentor, Thomas Harper, who brings him into the CIA.

"Shadow Recruit" begins just after 9/11, when a young Jack Ryan is inspired to serve his country and joins the Marines. After a deployment in Afghanistan, however, Ryan is critically injured and leaves the service. Arriving back in the U.S., Ryan is recruited by CIA Agent Thomas Harper (Costner), who recognizes his unique skills for an undercover mission on Wall Street to track terrorists' financial transactions. But when he uncovers evidence of a terrifying Russian plot, he suddenly finds himself embroiled in the high-stakes world of global espionage, and he must decide who he can really trust.

Meeting with mixed reviews, "Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit" was not the franchise starter that Paramount was probably hoping for. But it's not a bad movie, and may actually be a bit underrated. Though it's not the kind of bombastic, fast-paced action movie that some may have expected, it's still a decent spy thriller.

Even if he wasn't the first actor to play the role, there's little doubt that Harrison Ford is Jack Ryan for an entire generation of fans. And prior to Amazon's "Jack Ryan" television series, he was also the only actor to play the role more than once. His second film as Ryan, "Clear and Present Danger," is also the franchise's highest-grossing, and it helped cement Ford as one of the greatest action movie stars of all time.

In "Clear and Present Danger," CIA analyst Jack Ryan has been given a new position, elevated to the role of CIA's Deputy Director after Admiral James Greer (James Earl Jones) is hospitalized with a cancer diagnosis. And his first assignment puts him in the crosshairs of a political scandal as he uncovers evidence of a conspiracy that links his own agency with drug cartels and criminal kingpins in South America. And to stand up for truth and justice, Ryan will have to buck the very system he's fought his whole life for, and make moral choices he never expected, as the criminal plot goes all the way to the top.

With plenty of political intrigue and spy-by-night thrills, "Clear and Present Danger" ups the ante from the previous two Jack Ryan films with a bit more action, not to mention a phenomenal supporting cast that includes Willem Dafoe, Harris Yulin, and Benjamin Bratt. And while it's technically the weakest of this informal trilogy, it's still a stellar outing for Ryan and Ford, as the latter delivers another impressive turn as a man seeking the truth against overwhelming odds.

The first on-screen adventure for Tom Clancy's greatest hero, "The Hunt for Red October" is a submarine thriller, and one of the finest nail-biters of the '80s. This film stars Alec Baldwin as Jack Ryan opposite Sean Connery in one of his best non-Bond film roles. At the time, Baldwin was seen as a major action hero in the making — he was nearly cast as Batman in Tim Burton's 1989 classic – and while that never panned out, "The Hunt for Red October" remains one of his finest movies in the genre.

Helmed by action director John McTiernan, "The Hunt for Red October" is his third '80s classic after "Die Hard" and "Predator." Set amid the heightened tensions of the Cold War, the film sees Connery as rogue Russian submarine commander Marko Ramius, who is in charge of a stealth operation when he decides to switch sides and provide his services to the United States. With his Russian superiors hot on his tail, though, it's a race against time as CIA analyst Jack Ryan (Baldwin) must track Ramius down before his sub is destroyed — or before the two rival superpowers ignite World War III.

With the best cast of any movie on this list — including James Earl Jones, Sam Neill, Stellan Skarsgård, Courtney B. Vance, and Tim Curry — "The Hunt For Red October" is a riveting drama that still stands tall decades later. And while Baldwin never returned to play Jack Ryan, he paved the way for all who would follow, proving that Jack Ryan had what it took to be one of Hollywood's greatest cinematic spy hunters.

In 1992, Jack Ryan returned to theaters with a sequel to "The Hunt for Red October." But in place of Alec Baldwin was Harrison Ford, the former whip-wielding relic hunter, reuniting with his "Star Wars" co-star James Earl Jones that returned as Admiral James Greer. Anne Archer steps in to play Ryan's wife, taking over for "Star Trek: The Next Generation" veteran Gates McFadden, while Irish actor Sean Bean takes the role of the film's principal villain.

"Patriot Games" begins with a mostly retired Jack Ryan vacationing with his family in London. But when he witnesses a crime in progress, he takes action to stop a terrorist plot to assassinate a member of the royal family. In the melee, however, Ryan is forced to kill a young man whose brother (Bean) becomes obsessed with getting revenge at all costs, even defying his own superiors. Suddenly caught in the middle of a terrorist power struggle, Ryan reluctantly returns to the CIA to help his old friend, Admiral Greer, hunt down the terrorists and stop a bloodthirsty madman while the lives of his wife and daughter hang in the balance.

A tense and suspenseful action-thriller that remains among the best dramas in Harrison Ford's impeccable filmography, "Patriot Games" benefits from Ford's older, wiser, almost everyman portrayal. It may stand at odds with those more familiar with other versions of Ryan, who is often a guns-blazing action hero, but it's easily the character's best showing on screen. And it might just be one of the 90s' most underrated action movies.

The most recent entry into the pantheon of Tom Clancy screen adaptations, "Splinter Cell: Deathwatch" departs from every other entry on this list as an animated action-adventure. It's also based on a series of video games that Clancy helped develop, rather than an original novel, and was in development hell for decades, with a "Splinter Cell" live-action film becoming an overhyped film that was quietly removed from the release schedule. But it finally arrived as a Netflix original animated series in 2025, with eight episodes debuting to acclaim from critics.

"Splinter Cell: Death Watch" centers on Sam Fisher (Liev Schreiber), an agent of a hitherto unknown clandestine paramilitary intelligence agency that reports to the U.S. president alone. They are called the Fourth Echelon, and their primary mission is covert anti-terrorist action. As the film begins, Fisher has since left the service, but is called back into action to aid a new recruit named Zinnia McKenna (Kirby Howell-Baptiste) when she discovers a vast conspiracy that puts her well outside her depth.

With animation instead of live-action, "Splinter Cell: Deathwatch" has the benefit of an unlimited scope, with breathtaking, breakneck action and plenty of high drama. It never holds back from brutal, uncompromising violence, either, with plenty of blood spilled in a fashion we've never seen in a live-action Tom Clancy adaptation. Video game and movie site IGN raved about the series in their review, particularly praising Schreiber's performance as Fisher. But the best news? The series has already been renewed for a second season.

For decades, fans of Tom Clancy often pointed to Harrison Ford as the best star of a Tom Clancy film, and easily the best actor to portray Jack Ryan — even over heavyweights like Chris Pine, Ben Affleck, and Alec Baldwin. Then, in 2018, came Amazon Prime's small-screen thriller series — the eponymously titled "Jack Ryan," which put "The Office" star John Krasinski into the role. The series turned him from sitcom star to action hero, and delivered the best adaptation of Tom Clancy's work we've ever seen.

Like in the films, Jack Ryan is a former U.S. Marine-turned-desk jockey for the CIA, working under the stern supervision of Admiral James Greer (now played by Wendell Pierce). As the series begins, Greer tasks Ryan with tracking the activity of a fiendish terrorist madman known as Suleiman (Ali Suliman), who wants to turn Syria into a new superstate — with the help of a diabolical biological weapon that he uses to threaten millions of lives. The series takes Ryan from his desk to the field — and eventually, halfway around the world. He tracks Suleiman and others out to destroy the global order, in season-long stories that turn Ryan's movie-length adventures into sprawling, white-knuckle sagas.

Where even Harrison Ford had failed, Krasinski succeeded, delivering a long-lasting portrayal of Jack Ryan. The series ran for four stirring seasons, and there's a movie on the way. He gives an effortless performance as an otherwise ordinary man with extraordinary skills — a dedicated agent with an unwavering commitment to the truth.