These are the best thrillers to watch on Netflix right now

5. Extraction 2

• Genre: Action thriller
• Release date: June 9, 2023
• Director: Sam Hargrave
• Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Idris Elba, Olga Kurylenki, Golshifteh Farahani
• Regions: Everywhere
• How long is it? 2 hours 3 minutes

What it’s about: After miraculously surviving a firefight in Bangladesh, Tyler Rake embarks on a new mission to rescue a mother and her two children from a Georgian prison, controlled by the violent leaders of the country’s ‘Nagazi.’

Why we like it: I didn’t expect Extraction 2 to top the first; Tyler Rake literally killed a man with a rake, for god’s sake. And yet, this is a phenomenal sequel; a head-rocking, brutally audacious action extravaganza that corrects its predecessor’s faults (in other words, this one has a good story) while upping the ante in every way. If you love Just Cause, this is the movie for you.

4. Woman of the Hour

• Genre: Thriller, true crime
• Release date: October 18, 2024
• Director: Anna Kendrick
• Cast: Anna Kendrick, Daniel Zovatto, Tony Hale
• Regions: Everywhere
• How long is it? 1 hour 35 minutes

What it’s about: Based on the real TV dating show appearance of Rodney Alcala (aka The Dating Game Killer), Woman of the Hour explores his past crimes and tells the fictional story of the woman he almost went on a date with.

Why we like it: Most great thrillers can fall under the true crime umbrella, but Woman of the Hour is easily one of Netflix’s best dramatizations in years. The true story behind the Dating Game Killer is horrific and downright unbelievable, but Woman of the Hour manages to ground the drama while adding in its own fictional twists to emanate a deep sense of unease and unpredictability.

3. Gerald’s Game

• Genre: Horror, Thriller
• Release date: September 29, 2017
• Director: Mike Flanagan
• Cast: Carla Gugino, Bruce Greenwood
• Regions: Everywhere
• How long is it? 1 hour 43 minutes

What it’s about: A couple who are drifting apart head to a cabin in the woods for a weekend getaway to try and reconnect. Husband Gerald endeavors to spice things up by handcuffing wife Jessie to the bed. But then he has a heart attack and dies, with the key to the cuffs ending up out of Jessie’s reach. What follows is the weekend from hell as Jessie is trapped without food or drink, and that’s before the wolves appear at her door…

Why we like it: Gerald’s Game is based on Stephen King’s famously unfilmable novel 1992 novel, but writer-director Mike Flanagan found a way, as well as the perfect Jessie in Carla Gugino. Tension, tragedy, and genuine horror make gripping bedfellows throughout, while the infamous “degloving” sequence is one of the most shocking scenes in horror history.

2. Uncut Gems

• Genre: Thriller, crime
• Release date: December 13, 2019
• Director: Josh Safdie, Benny Safdie
• Cast: Adam Sandler, LaKeith Stanfield, Julia Fox
• Regions: UK, Ireland, Canada, Australia, Europe
• How long is it? 2 hours 15 minutes

What it’s about: The owner of a jewelry store in New York gets in too deep when he borrows money from a loan shark, leading him to have to get back an expensive opal gem he gave away.

Why we like it: Uncut Gems blew everyone away when it was first released, and for good reason. The sheer terror and on-the-edge-of-your-seat drama felt like something you’d want to bottle up and relive later on, despite being so unbearable at times. It’s Adam Sandler’s best role by a mile, and some impeccably used comedy and often cringeworthy moments make Uncut Gems one of the wildest rides you can find on the streaming service right now.

1. Rebel Ridge

• Genre: Action thriller
• Release date: August 27, 2024
• Director: Jeremy Saulnier
• Cast: Aaron Pierre, Don Johnson, Anna Sophia Robb, David Denman
• How long is it? 2 hours 11 minutes

What it’s about: Terry Richmond has a simple goal: bailing his cousin out of jail and setting up a new life for them. Unfortunately, Shelby Springs’ corrupt police force gets in the way, leaving him with one option: “I gotta haunt these motherf**kers myself.”

Why we like it: Rebel Ridge is one of the best movies (let alone thrillers) Netflix has ever produced; a proper 21st-century successor to Rambo (First Blood, specifically) that mixes the Dad-coded charms of Reacher and Jeremy Saulnier’s trademark, clinical direction. Plus, it’s impossible not to fall under the hulking, charismatic spell of Aaron Pierre as he stares down Don Johnson’s “sh*t-eating grin.”

Now you know our picks for the best of Netflix’s thriller offering, if you’re looking for more hot takes, check out our list of the best sci-fi movies ever made as well as our best movies of 2024. If you’re more excited about the year ahead, then we’ve got you covered with our list of the most anticipated movies of 2025.