The Terminal List season 2 is on the way, but fans still have a long wait ahead of them and might be looking for other action-packed shows. The Terminal List is based on the novel by Jack Carr and stars Chris Pratt as U.S. Navy SEAL James Reece, who returns home following a mission gone wrong and finds himself in the middle of a deadly conspiracy that targets his family, sending him on a relentless quest for revenge. The series mixes elements of modern warfare, political conspiracies, and action-packed set pieces.
The success of the first season has led to the development of The Terminal List season 2, which is expected to start filming in late 2025, as well as a spinoff-prequel series with Taylor Kitsch returning as Reece’s former teammate, Ben Edwards. Anticipation is high for the show’s return, making it an even longer wait. Luckily, The Terminal List is not the only action-packed show on television, as fans have plenty of other series that deliver the thrills while touching on some of the same aspects that made it a hit.
10
The Night Agent (2023-Present)
2 Seasons, 20 Episodes
The Night Agent is a Netflix action series that captures the same mystery thrills of The Terminal List. Gabriel Basso stars as Peter Sutherland, a low-level FBI agent who is assigned to a job standing by the White House emergency phone in case it rings. When Sutherland does receive a call, he is quickly thrust into a vast conspiracy involving a mole at the top of the government, which sends him on the run for his life while trying to uncover the truth.
Part of the reason heroes like Reece and Sutherland work so well is that the villains underestimate them as threats, only to come to regret that. Sutherland is a great underdog to follow on this journey as he continues to prove himself capable of staying one step ahead of the people who are trying to silence him. It is not quite as action-packed a series in terms of the big set pieces, but it does have an electric fast pace.
9
Hanna (2019-2021)
3 Seasons, 22 Episodes
Hanna
- Release Date
-
2019 – 2020
- Network
-
Amazon Prime Video
Based on the 2011 action movie starring Saoirse Ronan, Hanna is another thrilling ride with a very unexpected action hero at its center. Esme Creed-Miles stars as the title character, a young girl who was raised in the wilderness by her father, a former CIA officer. Along with teaching her survival skills, he trained her to be a warrior, finally allowing her to enter the real world where she is forced to go up against the people who have been hunting them her whole life.
It is fascinating to see how this little girl can have the same deadly drive as a character like Reece in The Terminal List, completely dedicated to her mission of revenge and more than capable of handling herself. However, Hanna is also a unique coming-of-age story with the protagonist being introduced to a world outside her own for the first time and discovering shocking truths about her life.
8
Bodyguard (2018)
1 Season, 6 Episodes
While The Terminal List is steeped in the American military and political sphere, Bodyguard delivers similar action in its British setting. Game of Thrones star Richard Madden stars in the series as David Budd, a former soldier battling PTSD whose heroic efforts to stop a terrorist plot gain the attention of controversial politician, Julia Montague (Keeley Hawes), who hires him as a bodyguard. However, as David and Julia find themselves getting too close, they are also exposed to a wider conspiracy.
Both Bodyguard and The Terminal List deal with protagonists and former soldiers who are dealing with trauma from what they experienced in combat, which makes them complex and dark characters to follow on a violent journey. While The Terminal List offers more of a straightforward revenge action thriller, Bodyguard is exceptional at staging intense and suspenseful action set pieces, like the opening train sequence or the harrowing sniper scene.
7
The Punisher (2017-2019)
2 Seasons, 26 Episodes
Jon Bernthal’s The Punisher made his return in Daredevil: Born Again, which likely means there are a lot of fans who have been revisiting his excellent solo series. The Punisher tells the story of Frank Castle, a military man whose refusal to cover up a government conspiracy leads to an assassination attempt that claims the lives of his wife and child. Pushed to the brink and with no mercy in his heart, he sets out on a mission to kill those responsible for his loved ones’ deaths.
In many ways, The Punisher is The Terminal List set in the Marvel universe. Despite its comic book ties, it is far more similar to Chris Pratt’s action series than most of the Marvel shows on Disney+. Both Reece and Castle are highly trained killers who become relentless vigilantes. In both cases, they are made sympathetic anti-heroes, while the show questions the price of revenge.
6
Special Ops: Lioness (2023-Present)
2 Seasons, 16 Episodes
Lioness
- Release Date
-
July 23, 2023
- Showrunner
-
Taylor Sheridan
While Taylor Sheridan took over television with his Yellowstone universe, he has proven that cowboys are not his sole focus. Special Ops: Lioness is a captivating action series set in the dangerous world of modern espionage. Recent Oscar winner Zoe Saldaña stars as Joe McNamara, a CIA officer who runs the Lioness program, which finds female agents who they can put into undercover operations around the world.
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Like The Terminal List, Lioness deals with a lot of the gray areas of the modern military world, with the games politicians play behind the scenes, often at the cost of lives on the ground. However, both shows also celebrate the people who dedicate their lives to the military. The action in Lioness has great variety, from brutal ambushes to stealth assassinations to huge combat sequences.
5
SEAL Team (2017-2024)
7 Seasons, 114 Episodes
While the reason behind James Reece’s mission of revenge in The Terminal List is the death of his wife and child, his dedication to his fellow SEALs is also a big part of his journey. One of the best shows to take an authentic look at these highly-trained soldiers is SEAL Team. The series follows the members of the elite unit of SEALs as they travel around the world on dangerous missions, putting their lives on the line and looking out for one another.
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Like The Terminal List, the series deals with the hardships these soldiers face at home, with so many sacrifices they have to make. However, amid the harrowing missions and thrilling action moments, it is a moving story of the shared bond these soldiers have, which is stronger than most people can ever imagine.
4
The Old Man (2022-2024)
2 Seasons. 15 Episodes
Oscar-winner Jeff Bridges might not seem like the kind of actor to headline an action-packed thriller series at this point in his career, but he is the best thing about The Old Man. The series follows Bridges as Dan Chase, a former CIA operative who has been in hiding for years. After killing a home invader, he is forced to upend his peaceful life and go on the run while hunting down his former colleagues who want him dead.
It is interesting to look at the similarities in the stories between The Old Man and The Terminal List and see Chase and Reece as the same character separated by decades. Chase is forced to go on his revenge mission later in life, but he proves to still be a capable soldier, handling much younger enemies in intense action sequences. Also, some of the best action in the show comes courtesy of Chase’s two loyal and vicious pet dogs.
3
Reacher (2022-Present)
3 Seasons, 24 Episodes
Reacher
8/10
- Release Date
-
February 3, 2022
- Network
-
Prime Video
Another action series based on a best-selling book series has introduced audiences to one of the most formidable TV action heroes in recent memory. Based on the books by Lee Child, Reacher stars Alan Ritchson as Jack Reacher, a former military police officer who now lives a simple off-the-grid life, traveling across the country and helping those in need. However, while he is a friendly giant to those he aids, he is brutal and relentless when going against the villains.
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Reacher certainly has a lot more humor than The Terminal List, with Ritchson playing into the character’s social awkwardness to great effect. However, Reacher is also a hero who is dedicated to revenge, with all three seasons of the show finding him hunting down the people responsible for killing someone he cared about. While it features some high-octane shootouts, some of the best action comes from Reacher simply using his muscles.
2
Jack Ryan (2018-2023)
4 Seasons, 30 Episodes
John Krasinski is not the first actor to play Jack Ryan, but he is memorable in the role, bringing Tom Clancy’s hero to the small screen for the first time. Jack Ryan finds Krasinski starring as the CIA analyst who is taken away from his desk job to become a field operative, taking on a variety of global threats and political conspiracies. While Ryan is more of a thinking-man hero compared to a man of action like Reece in The Terminal List, his background as a soldier means he is capable of handling dangerous situations.
Jack Ryan could be seen as the show that made The Terminal List possible, as its success on Prime Video likely showed an interest in big-budget action series for the streamer. Jack is a more by-the-book protagonist who is generally not driven by revenge or emotion but likes to think practically about the mission at hand. However, it is also a thrilling globe-trotting adventure with a likable hero at the center.
1
24 (2001-2014)
9 Seasons, 204 Episodes
24
8/10
- Release Date
-
2001 – 2014-00-00
- Showrunner
-
Robert Cochran
Many of the shows already mentioned would not have happened were it not for 24. The inventive thriller series stars Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer, a dedicated agent with the Counter Terrorism Unit (CTU) of the government, who takes on massive threats against the country every day. Each season of the show unfolds over a single day in the life of Bauer, with each of its 24 episodes depicting one hour in that day. It gives audiences a fast-paced and exciting setup.
Like The Terminal List, 24 is not a light romp but rather an intense action-packed show with a stoic hero at the center. Like Reece, Bauer is a man who is not afraid to cross lines if it means saving the day. Of course, he has also gone outside the bounds of his government job at times, taking revenge into his own hands. Starting in the early 2000s, the budget was much smaller than the action shows of today, but 24 still delivered the thrills.
