First, Krasinski led Prime Video's Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan series for four seasons. Earlier in 2026, he brought his iteration of the character back, with Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan: Ghost War being the first movie in the Jack Ryan franchise to star the actor. Given its success on Prime Video's streaming charts, there is a good chance that Krasinski will return for more Jack Ryan movies.
As for the Jason Bourne franchise, its last movie was 2016's Jason Bourne, which saw Matt Damon return to the title role after a detour with Jeremy Renner in the 2012 spin-off The Bourne Legacy. Since then, the franchise has been dormant, though Damon has stated in 2026 that he is still working on starring in another movie as Jason Bourne.
As both of those spy thriller franchises take a leave of absence while they work out where and how to return, fans of the genre have a few movies to help make the wait easier. These include other major spy franchises, standalone releases, and all kinds of movie stars. For Jason Bourne and Jack Ryan fans, these eight near-perfect spy thriller movies are the perfect match.
8
Zero Dark Thirty
The entries on the list are in no specific order. That said, Zero Dark Thirty is a perfect movie to start with. The film focuses on the intense investigation that went on over nearly a decade to find and kill Osama bin Laden after the harrowing 9/11 attacks. Jessica Chastain stars as Maya, the CIA analyst at the center of it all.
In that sense, Zero Dark Thirty connects to Jack Ryan for fans of that franchise. After all, before he got to go on the field, Jack Ryan was a CIA analyst. Zero Dark Thirty holds a stellar 91% critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes. The political thriller received five Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, Best Actress, and Best Original Screenplay.
7
Skyfall
Skyfall is one of the biggest spy movies to date and perhaps the most memorable of Daniel Craig's tenure as James Bond. Given the character's role as the greatest spy in all fiction, Bond's highest-grossing movie, with $1.1 billion worldwide, just had to be present. Skyfall boasts a fantastic 92% critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes, the 2nd highest for Craig's 007.
Skyfall truly has it all. From a star-studded ensemble with names like Judi Dench and Ralph Fiennes to perhaps the James Bond franchise's most iconic song to explosive set pieces, and more. Craig perfectly explored a complex and layered Bond, with Skyfall's emotional beats hitting as hard as its large-scale action sequences, of which there are many. The movie has Bond look into attacks on MI6.
6
Three Days of the Condor
Three Days of the Condor stars one of the most iconic leading men Hollywood has ever had. The spy thriller followed Robert Redford as Joe Turner, a CIA analyst who goes by the codename Condor. While not exactly a field operative, Condor is thrust into action when he comes into work one day to find his entire team murdered.
Jack Ryan fans will once again find a connection with that hit franchise in the form of Redford's frenetic Three Days of the Condor, which also features actors like Cliff Robertson, Max von Sydow, Faye Dunaway, and more. Based on the 1974 novel Six Days of the Condor by James Grady, Redford's Three Days of the Condor has a high 88% critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes.
5
Spy Game
What better to follow Three Days of the Condor than another Redford spy thriller? In 2001's Spy Game, the legendary actor joins none other than Brad Pitt as CIA operatives running against time. Redford's Nathan Muir is on his last day before retirement, when his former mentee, Pitt's Tom Bishop, is captured for espionage in China and sentenced to die in 24 hours.
To protect the United States' relationship with China, the CIA has no problem letting Bishop take the fall, but Redford's character has something to say about it. This is a movie with electric performances from its leads that explores the comings and goings of their dynamic. Spy Game is much better than its 64% critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes suggests.
4
The Amateur
The Amateur is the most recent release on the list. It is another story of a character who starts the film with a desk job and goes on to become a true action thriller legend. In The Amateur's case, things take a dark turn when Charlie Heller's wife is murdered. That sends Rami Malek's character down a path of revenge.
The CIA cryptographer then proceeds to blackmail Holt McCallany's Director Alex Moore with incriminating info. As a result, he gets his wish, being given the resources and training to go after the men who killed his wife alone. The Amateur is a gritty and star-studded spy thriller, with actors like Jon Bernthal, Rachel Brosnahan, Laurence Fishburne, and Caitríona Balfe. The Amateur has a high 87% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.
3
Black Bag
Black Bag was also released in 2025, the same year as The Amateur. The spy thriller was directed by Steven Soderbergh and focuses on Michael Fassbender's George T. Woodhouse. The British intelligence officer is given his hardest mission yet, as he must not only go through a list of possible traitors, but also investigate his wife, who is among them.
Playing that key character is Cate Blanchett, with George's wife, Kathryn St. Jean, being their organization's Head of Signals Operations. Black Bag is a spy thriller masterpiece as Fassbender and Blanchett put up a suspenseful, dramatic, and sharp game of cat-and-mouse as the married couple. Black Bag boasts a near-perfect 96% critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes.
2
Casino Royale
The last James Bond movie on the list is Craig's Casino Royale. Much like how Denis Villeneuve's upcoming Bond movie needs to reinvent the franchise, Casino Royale had to start a bold new era. It passed the test with flying colors, as Craig debuted a Bond who was more gritty, but at the same time vulnerable, than the ones before him.
Casino Royale stands at a magnificent 94% critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes, with audiences giving the spy thriller movie a 90% to go with that. Mads Mikkelsen as Le Chiffre made for a villain who was grounded and menacing, leaving behind some of the goofier chapters of the Bond franchise. For Jason Bourne fans, Casino Royale changed course for the 007 franchise after The Bourne Identity defined the spy thriller tone of the era as darker and more mature.
1
Mission: Impossible – Fallout
Finally, Tom Cruise's Mission: Impossible franchise could not be absent, and it is represented here by its best movie, Christopher McQuarrie's Mission: Impossible – Fallout. The spy thriller is as close to perfection in the genre as one will ever find. Its action sequences are mesmerizing, with Cruise attempting some truly shocking stunts as the set pieces keep one-upping each other.
Fallout's cast was the franchise firing on all cylinders, including names like Henry Cavill, who was perfectly bounced off Cruise in the film as the imposing August Walker, and Vanessa Kirby, Rebecca Ferguson, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, and more. Fallout also has great emotional depth, with the return of Michelle Monaghan's Julia being key to Ethan Hunt's growth. It is the ideal spy thriller to end the list, and a fitting choice for Jack Ryan and Jason Bourne fans.
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Created by
Tom Clancy
First Film
The Hunt for Red October
Latest Film
Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit
First TV Show
Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan
Latest TV Show
Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan
First Episode Air Date
August 31, 2018
The Jack Ryan franchise is a series of political action-thriller films and a television series based on the character created by Tom Clancy. Jack Ryan is a CIA analyst who often finds himself thrust into dangerous field assignments, dealing with geopolitical threats and international espionage. The franchise is known for its portrayal of complex global conflicts and has seen multiple actors take on the role of Jack Ryan, making it one of the most enduring and adaptable series in the spy genre.
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Movie(s)
The Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremacy, The Bourne Ultimatum, The Bourne Legacy, Jason Bourne
TV Show(s)
Treadstone
First Film
The Bourne Identity
Genres
Action, Thriller, Drama
Cast
Matt Damon, Jeremy Renner, Franka Potente, Julia Stiles, Brian Cox, Gabriel Mann, Chris Cooper, Clive Owen, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Rachel Weisz, Joan Allen, Tommy Lee Jones, Alicia Vikander, Jeremy Irvine
Character(s)
Jason Bourne, Aaron Cross, Marie Helena Kreutz, Nicky Parsons, Ward Abbott, Danny Zorn, Alexander Conklin, The Professor, Nykwanna Wombosi, Dr. Marta Shearing, Pamela Landy, CIA Director Robert Dewey, Heather Lee, John Randolph
The Bourne Franchise is an action-thriller series conceived by Robert Ludlum in the novel series. Film adaptations began with The Bourne Identity in 2002, with Matt Damon as Jason Bourne, a man who, after regaining his memories, learns that he was a top CIA assassin, with his former employer trying to kill him to tie up loose ends.
Image credit: Claudette Barius / © Focus Features /Courtesy Everett Collection
English (US) ·