Static Media
The thriller is a broad, often unpredictable genre, each film within it largely defined by a litany of subgenres and genre mash-ups. But whether taking viewers into the far reaches of the future, the unfamiliar throes of eras past, or the depths of a criminal underworld that exists in our present society, what unifies this vast and widely varied category of films is their singular ability to make our hearts race from opening to closing credits.
As far as streaming services go, Netflix has some of the best thrillers available to stream — in part because they produce a fair amount of them themselves. We’ve combed through their offerings to share with you the 15 best thriller films on their platform, if for no other reason than to alleviate your analysis paralysis and send your movie night on the road to excitement.
El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie
Netflix
Set after the final episode of the landmark AMC crime drama “Breaking Bad,” Netflix and Sony Pictures’ “El Camino” is a tight and well-executed follow-up that provides one last thrill ride for one of television’s most iconic characters. Aaron Paul reprises his career-defining role as drug dealer Jesse Pinkman. The script picks up right where the series finale ends, with Jesse racing away triumphant yet profoundly traumatized from the white nationalist compound where he was tortured and forced to cook meth for months.
The first idea for the spin-off came to writer-director Vince Gilligan as he was finishing the finale’s script, unable to stop himself from wondering whether or not Jesse could realistically maintain his freedom. Shifting between past and present, viewers see him attempt to navigate what remains of this criminal underworld on his own, as well as poignant flashbacks that reveal the full extent of his torment at the hands of Todd Alquist (Jesse Plemons). Though “Bad” fans shouldn’t go in expecting Gilligan to upend the series’ status quo, everyone can rest assured that “El Camino’s” self-contained odyssey is worthy of all that came before.
The Hateful Eight
The Weinstein Company
Appropriately the eighth film by auteur Quentin Tarantino, it’s something of a miracle that “The Hateful Eight” exists at all. In addition to battling harsh winter conditions on the set of the snow-covered period western, he nearly canceled “The Hateful Eight” entirely after a script for the film was leaked online. He pushed forward, creating one of his most distinct and, at the time, controversial films of his career.
The ensemble cast is anchored by regular Tarantino-collaborator Samuel L. Jackson, playing a Civil War veteran-turned-bounty hunter who is forced to wait out a blizzard in a claustrophobic cabin filled with unpredictable and unsettling delinquents of varying morality. Following “Django Unchained,” Tarantino provocatively chose to again confront racism through a western, a choice which he felt was a natural part of the genre. “When you’re making a western, you can’t help dealing with the American zeitgeist,” he told Time Out. “Ten or 20 years from now, hopefully you’ll be able to look at ‘The Hateful Eight’ and get a good picture of the concerns of America at this time.”
The Killer (2023)
Netflix
With slick direction by genre master David Fincher and a deadly effective performance from Michael Fassbender at the forefront, “The Killer” is an off-beat but arresting assassin thriller. Fassbender plays a hilariously banal hitman whose meticulous nature is upset by a rare mistake. In our spoiler-heavy in-depth analysis of “The Killer” and its ending, we characterized it as something of a response to the radical individualism of Fincher’s “Fight Club” — a violent ode to finding peace within one’s system.
“The Killer” sees Fincher reunite with “Se7en” screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker, who adapted the story from a French graphic novel by Alexis Nolent (known professionally as “Matz) and Luc Jacamon. Fifteen years of development hell and Walker’s own reluctance to participate nearly jeopardized its future, but “The Killer” nonetheless arrived as a satisfying streaming title in 2023.
The Platform
Netflix
Known in Spain as “El Hoyo,” 2019’s “The Platform” is an admittedly upsetting thriller that nonetheless will have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish. Director Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia is unapologetic in his depiction of a futuristic dystopia where vulnerable people fight for survival in what is essentially a vertical jail built around an elevator platform. At the beginning of each day, the platform starts at the top of the tower, filled with a limited amount of food. Those inside are then placed on a random level, relying on the charity of those above them — as well as their own instincts — to survive.
In a 2020 interview with Collider, Gaztelu-Urrutia shared that he was surprised by how well “The Platform” was resonating with audiences around the globe, specifically on a thematic level, despite its abstract presentation. “Inequalities occur everywhere in one way or another,” he opined. “If on that platform, instead of food, we would have placed medicines, the film would have been understood in a similar way.” Though “The Platform” isn’t a pleasant watch by any means, its searing commentary and twisted narrative provoke the mind long after the credits roll.
Emily the Criminal
Roadside Attractions
“Emily the Criminal” didn’t cause much of a fuss when it was released in 2022, but this grounded and surprisingly relatable crime thriller is as underrated as they come. “Parks and Recreation” alum Aubrey Plaza stars as Emily, a debt-ridden intern who becomes involved in a ring of dangerous fraudsters.
Plaza knew from the moment she finished reading the script that Emily was the perfect role for her, and even dedicated part of her preparatory work toward learning exactly how credit card fraud worked. Writer-director John Patton Ford created the character as a sort of personal folk hero during a time in his life when he was “broke, in debt, [and] working crappy jobs.” Speaking to the British Film Institute, he further characterized “Emily the Criminal” as an indictment of America’s lack of affordable education and its reliance on under or unpaid labor in the form of internships. In May of 2024, a television adaptation was announced with Plaza and Ford producing.
Gerald’s Game
Netflix
From Mike Flanagan and his longtime writing partner Jeff Howard, “Gerald’s Game” is a horror-tinged thriller so precise in its execution that it borders on panic-inducing — weirdly, in a good way. The 2017 film adapts the Stephen King novel of the same name, though Flanagan and Howard have bolstered the inventive tale with a few modern updates and with their own superb character-writing.
Carla Gugino stars as Jesse, a woman left handcuffed to a bed in a secluded lake house after her husband (Bruce Greenwood) has a heart attack during sex. As Flanagan told us in an interview, one of the most difficult parts of adapting this story was translating Jesse’s inner monologue to on-screen action, which the writers accomplished by allowing her vivid, stress-induced hallucinations she could converse honestly with. “…[S]he’s really just talking to herself,” Howard shared in his own interview. “She’s exploring the darkest parts of her mind to figure out how to find the answer to survive.”
A Simple Favor
Based on Darcey Bell’s relentless crime novel, “A Simple Favor” shot to the top of Netflix’s most-watched list last summer — and for good reason. Directed by Paul Feig and starring Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively, it takes viewers through a wild and darkly comic mystery that’s nearly impossible to predict. It’s arguably Feig’s most stylized movie to date, flaunting a number of influences including Alfred Hitchcock. “I had been wanting to do a Hitchcockian thriller,” he told Screen Rant, “but it’s never been a genre I felt I could write… [Bell’s screenplay] was dark and had all these great thriller elements to it, but also had room for black comedy.”
He was particularly inspired by Kendrick’s Stephanie. Awkward and out of her element, she’s the sort of figure that appears throughout his filmography, but the setting of this story gave him a chance to explore a familiar journey in a “more adult” way. Despite unfounded rumors of an on-set feud involving Lively and Kendrick, a Feig-led sequel starring the two is on the way and expected to release in 2025.
The Good Shepherd
Universal Pictures
In the same year he co-led the Martin Scorsese crime thriller “The Departed,” Matt Damon took on the equally challenging role of a CIA officer in the Robert De Niro-directed spy thriller “The Good Shepherd.” A passion project of the “Goodfellas” star that spent nearly a decade in development, it imagines (with the aid of historical fact and educated extrapolation) the early days of the government organization through the eyes of one of its core members.
Writer Eric Roth was initially concerned that diving head first into esoteric American lore would alienate some viewers, hoping that the drama between characters would give audiences something to universally latch on to. Though its approach to history may frustrate those who feel it doesn’t line up with what they’ve personally learned about the CIA’s unknowable inner-workings, “The Good Shepherd” is a uniquely engrossing watch that will leave you wondering about the true nature of one of America’s most powerful institutions.
Burning
CGV Arthouse
Starring “The Walking Dead” and “Invincible'” star Steven Yeun alongside Yoo Ah-in, “Burning” is a South Korean mystery thriller ablaze with career-best performances, eerily realistic characters, and fascinating psychological storytelling that refuses to let audiences go for even a second. It follows a struggling writer (Yoo) as he is drawn into the world of the darkly enigmatic and wealthy interloper Ben (Yeun). “Burning” is directed by Lee Chang-dong, a prolific and acclaimed South Korean filmmaker whose work includes the 2000s films “Oasis” and “Secret Sunshine.”
After nearly a decade away from the director’s chair, however, he returned to find himself somewhat out-of-step with modern cinematic trends — a quirk he turned into “Burning’s” most haunting feature. “To me it seems that films these days are becoming more and more simple, and the audience seems to desire simpler stories,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. “…[S]o I kind of wanted to go against this trend and see if a film can sort of throw endless questions at the audience. Endless questions about a larger mysterious world.” Equal parts destructive and revealing, “Burning” is an unmistakable masterpiece that demands your attention.
Bird Box
Netflix
If you have yet to experience Netflix’s viral survival horror thriller “Bird Box,” it should probably be at the top of your watch list. The crowd-pleasing apocalyptic feature follows Sandra Bullock as a woman whose world is invaded by creatures that compel all who witness them to immediate, horrifically hypnotic deaths. As such, she and her fellow survivors are forced to combat and evade them while constantly wearing blindfolds.
Though Bullock plays a maternal figure in the film, director Susanne Bier told Polygon that the script’s unconventional approach to this characterization interested her. “There was something really compelling about her playing that sort of woman who is not particularly accessible,” she said. “She’s brutal, she’s harsh, she doesn’t talk nicely to the kids, but she wants [them] to survive at any price…”
With this unique perspective, a stacked ensemble cast, and a seemingly endless supply of memorable scenes and dramatic concepts, “Bird Box” is a blockbuster thriller available at the click of the button. You just might want to hide your eyes from its lackluster Barcelona-based sequel.
I Don’t Feel At Home in the World Anymore
Though you might know him for his roles in “The Florida Project,” “I Care Alot” and “Oppenheimer,” Macon Blair made his directorial debut in 2017 with the crime dramedy “I Don’t Feel At Home in the World Anymore.” Starring Melanie Lynskey and Elijah Wood, it follows two neighbors who take the law into their own hands after local police refuse to help with a minor robbery. It’s a pleasantly small-stakes tale that derives impressive tension and humor from how odd and accessible its characters are.
Blair wanted to make a film within the crime genre for his debut, but didn’t feel drawn to the traditional kinds of characters who populate them. Instead, he infused his heroes and villains with quirks that would make them both empathetic and, ideally, funny. The end result is a strangely comforting mystery with just enough bite to sell you on its premise and keep you guessing where it might go next.
Sea of Love
Universal Pictures
If you’re in the mood for a more classic thriller, look no further than 1989’s “Sea of Love.” The Harold Becker film marked Al Pacino’s return to acting after a hiatus following the abysmal reaction and box-office failure of 1985’s “Revolution.”
Despite his stated lack of enthusiasm, Pacino is on the money as the emotionally jaded homicide detective Frank Keller. With his partner (John Goodman), he must track down a cold blooded serial killer targeting single men looking for love in newspaper personal ads. As dark as this sounds, Becker skillfully bends genre conventions by emphasizing the budding love story between Frank and the emotionally distant Helen Cruger (Ellen Barkin). Pacino has expressed that the key to making the story work was to imbue the love story between Keller and Cruger with an equal or greater weight, giving the thriller a solid emotional purpose as well. “Sea of Love” remains a classic, with Pacino, Goodman, and Barkin delivering simple yet effective performances.
A Walk Among the Tombstones
Universal Pictures
Written and directed by future “Logan” scribe Scott Frank, “A Walk Among the Tombstones” is a brooding neo-noir that easily ranks among the best old man action movies Liam Neeson has signed on to. A large part of “Tombstones'” appeal is its cast. After starring in the hit revenge flick “Taken,” Neeson’s involvement alone was enough to get “Tombstones” greenlit studio executives skeptical of contained adult dramas.
Frank has speculated that Neeson was drawn to the project because of his character’s the moral complexity, which harkens back to the grounded crime films of the ’70s. The director also cast Dan Stevens in one of his earliest major roles as an unusual drug trafficker, explaining the unconventional but genius choice as being driven by the character’s need to be both traditionally off-putting as well as surprisingly enlightened. Rounded out by David Harbour and Boyd Holbrook, “Tombstones” renders an impressive cadre of rough characters, creating a narrative web packed with intensity.
All Good Things
Magnolia Pictures
Though “All Good Things” is far from critically acclaimed, it’s well worth watching for two reasons. First, it features a rare but gripping sort of performance from Ryan Gosling, who plays a deeply disturbed real estate heir based on the late convicted murderer Robert Durst. Second, the film itself played several roles in finally bringing Durst to justice.
As director and acclaimed documentarian Andrew Jarecki said at the time, he wanted to make a film Durst could watch and at least appreciate. Watch and appreciate he did. Durst was so enthralled by Jarecki’s work that he agreed to an interview, which became the HBO docuseries “The Jinx.” Infamously, Durst was caught on a hot mic in the first season’s final episode seemingly admitting to the murders.
Overall, “All Good Things,” with the help of some downright underrated acting from Gosling and Kirsten Dunst, is a eerie and terribly tragic thriller that every Netflix subscriber should watch at least once.
A Prophet
UGC Distribution
After the release of the buzzy but polarizing “Emilia Pérez,” French director Jacques Audiard has earned a slew of new audience members who aren’t quite sure what to make of him as a filmmaker. For those intrigued, we strongly recommend checking out his 2009 thriller “A Prophet,” an angrily defiant film that has only gotten better with age.
Tahar Rahim (another recent victim of viral film failure, thanks to 2024’s “Madame Web”) delivers an unyielding performance as a man who must survive his prison sentence by ingratiating himself to Mafiosos on the inside. Some audiences reacted poorly to his character’s downward moral spiral, which confused Audiard given the universal praise lent to Michael Corleone of “The Godfather.” He wondered to The Guardian if the character’s ethnicity was the cause for discomfort — “Good,” he said of the idea. “I hope it pisses them off. That’s the point.” Indeed, “A Prophet” is a challenging but rewarding film, distilling the complexity, darkness, and edge that makes the thriller genre at large… well, thrilling.
