Best Action Movies on Paramount Plus (February 2026)

Paramount Plus was a relatively late entry into the streaming wars. Built upon a 2020 merger of material provided by Paramount Pictures, ViacomCBS, and PlutoTV, it quickly become one of the biggest streaming services. As of 2026, it is home to some of the greatest Action Movies of all time.

What are the best action movies on Paramount Plus?

There are a wide selection of action movies available through Paramount Plus. Unsurprisingly, most of them were produced by Paramount Pictures or one of their subsidiaries. The following list, presented in chronological order, attempts to offer a balanced variety of both historically notable and award-winning action films.

A Man Called Horse (1970)

The year is 1825 and British big game hunter John Morgan (Richard Harris) undertook an expedition to the American frontier. He ran afoul of the Sioux Nation, who captured him and enslaved him. He finds himself put in the service of the chieftain’s mother and slowly learns the language and ways of his captors.

Realizing his only chance at freedom lies in adopting the ways of the Sioux, he stands and fights when the enemy Shoshone tribe attacks. This allows him to claim the role of warrior and undergo the rites to join the tribe. Thus does Morgan take the name Shunkawakan or “Horse.”

A Man Called Horse was a revolutionary film for its time. Most Westerns until that point treated Native Americans as canon fodder for the likes of John Wayne and Randolph Scott. By contrast, A Man Called Horse made the Sioux Nation into the protagonists and portrayed their culture in a positive light. It also has some of the best action scenes in the history of Westerns.

That being said, A Man Called Horse has not aged well. The film has been criticized for having white actors playing the Native American characters. (The chieftain’s mother, for instance, is played by the Australian Dame Judith Anderson.) Beyond that, historians have criticized the film for its inaccurate portrayal of the Sioux culture, despite the filmmakers’ good intentions.

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)

1938. Archeologist Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) is summoned by businessman Walter Donovan (Julian Glover) who privately financed a team to seek out the Holy Grail. The team’s lead researcher, Dr. Henry Jones (Sean Connery) disappeared while trying to find a waypoint in Venice. Donovan asks Indy to take over his father’s work. This request comes just before Indy receives his father’s diary detailing the lore of the Grail’s resting place in the mail.

Thus begins a quest to find the missing Dr. Jones and the Grail. The hunt will stretch across three continents and once more bring Indy into contention with the Nazis. He will face unexpected enemies and surprising allies, in the race for the artifact his father devoted a lifetime to finding.

Quite honestly, any of the Indiana Jones movies made in the 1980s might merit a place on this list. However, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade has the best pedigree of all the films in the franchise. It returned to the blend of action and comedy first presented in Raiders of the Lost Ark, instead of following the trend set by the dour Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.

However, ‘The Last Crusade’ is generally agreed to have improved on nearly every element from the first Indy film. It was also beloved by audiences and critics alike. In 2025, a Hollywood Reporter article analyzing the extraordinarily successful cinematic summer of 1989 declared that the film had the best stunts of any movie released that year. It also led to a spin-off, with the opening sequence featuring a teenage Indy inspiring The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles television series.

Braveheart (1995)

It is a time of turmoil among the Scots, with their king dead and Edward Longshanks of England claiming Scotland. This matters little to William Wallace (Mel Gibson) who has few goals beyond marrying his childhood sweetheart, Murron, and tending a farm. That changes when Longshanks allows his vassals to demand “first night” rights with any new bride.

When Murron is executed for resisting an English soldier’s advances, Wallace leads a rebellion that destroys the local garrison. This gives way to a wide-spread revolution, as Wallace and his growing army defeat the English forces at Stirling and sack York. Wallace faces enemies from without and within, but while the English may take his life, they will never take his freedom.

Braveheart was a dark horse candidate at the 1995 Oscars. Few expected it to do well, even after Gibson won the Golden Globe for Best Director. It went on to win five Oscars, including Best Director and Best Picture. It was also a box office hit and won largely positive reviews. Many of these singled out the film’s intense action sequences.

However, many historians criticized the film for its inaccuracy in terms of costuming, scenery and the details of Wallace’s life. Perhaps the best example of this is how the film depicts the pivotal Battle of Stirling Bridge on a flat plain with no river or bridge. Gibson defended this decision, saying he was more interested in story than history. Whether you believe that is a good thing or not, it is generally agreed that the best parts of Braveheart are the fight scenes.

Django Unchained (2012)

Texas 1858. The enslaved Django (Jamie Fox) is freed by a bounty hunter in exchange for directions to his current target. However, Django proves a natural at the bounty hunter’s life and soon King Schultz (Christoph Waltz) is taking him under his wing. Soon, the two partners decide to join forces to rescue Django’s wife from Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio); a plantation owner considered cruel even by the standards of the time.

Described by director Quentin Tarantino as “a Southern” rather than a Western, Django Unchained remains his most financially successful movie as of 2026. It is also one of his most critically acclaimed, earning Tarantino his second Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. Beyond that, it features some of the most intensely brutal action scenes of any Tarantino film.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023)

Once, Ed Darvis (Chris Pine) was a respected peacekeeper. However, after his wife was killed by the Red Wizards of Thay following his arrest of one of their order, he tried to build a safer life for his daughter by turning to thievery. Unfortunately, the final job to set them up for life and steal an artifact to resurrect his wife saw Ed imprisoned.

Years later, Ed escapes alongside his ally Holga. They seek out their old crew, only to find that their friend Forge sold them out. Worse yet, he’s raising Ed’s daughter as his own and working with the Red Wizards. This leaves Ed and Holga scrambling to assemble a new crew and thwart Forge’s schemes. However, it may also lead to their finding redemption for their crimes.

While only a modest box office success, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves was a critical hit. The move earned a 91% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s Audience Score was slightly higher, being 92% positive. The movie was praised for its blend of fantasy action and humor. Fans of the game likewise praised the movie for perfectly capturing the chaotic essence of a good role-playing session.

How we picked the best action movies on Paramount Plus in 2026

Legacy and Variety were the main criteria in assembling this list of the best action movies on Paramount Plus. For Legacy, awards won and sequels inspired were considered. For Variety, an effort was made to pick movies from a variety of action subgenres across a wide range of time.

Source: Comingsoon.net