The worst action movies of all time

The Expendables 3 – all muscle, no bite

The first Expendables movie wasn’t great, but it had some watchable moments. The sequel actually delivered on its promise, building goodwill that was instantly wrecked by this lifeless third act.

The Expendables 3 toned everything down—no grit, no blood, no fun—and still thought bigger meant better. Instead, it became a bloated, PG-13 bore that no one really remembers… or wants to.

211 – Nicolas Cage hits snooze

Even with Nicolas Cage’s famously up-and-down career, 211 manages to stand out—in the worst way. This wannabe action-thriller fails to thrill, fumbles the crime angle, and drags from start to finish.

The minute-by-minute heist setup sounds intense but lands totally flat. Even Cage looks bored, and honestly, this movie might work better as a sleep aid than a film.

A Good Day to Die Hard – a franchise killer

The original Die Hard is legendary—tight setting, unforgettable villain, and Bruce Willis at his best. Even the sequels brought something fun to the table… until the fifth film dropped the ball completely.

A Good Day to Die Hard had no spark, no chemistry, and no reason to exist. Bland villains, flat action, and a lifeless father-son dynamic made it painfully forgettable.

Machete Kills – and so does the fun

Robert Rodriguez is no stranger to chaos, but Machete Kills turns that chaos into pure noise. What felt fresh in the original becomes painfully overdone in this pointless, bloated sequel.

It crams in celebrities and wild action but forgets to make any of it actually entertaining. The fun dies fast, and by the end, even Danny Trejo looks tired of it.

Thor: Love and Thunder – a joke that never ends

Thor: Love and Thunder tries to juggle heartbreak, cosmic chaos, and screaming goats—and drops everything in the process. It’s tonally whiplash-inducing, bouncing from dying-cancer-patient pathos to endless punchlines that just don’t land.

Taika Waititi leans into absurdity like it’s a dare, but the laughs wear thin fast. You’ll check your watch more than once and leave wondering if Scorsese was right all along.

Superman IV – the quest for a better script

Sure, it’s a superhero movie, but with all the limp action sequences, Superman IV easily qualifies as one of the worst action films, too. It’s a mess on every level—awkward pacing, bargain-bin effects, and writing that feels like a parody of itself.

Christopher Reeve does his best, but the movie gives him nothing worthwhile. It’s a sad, cheap-looking farewell to an iconic character, and not even bad in a fun way.

Sniper: Special Ops – Seagal snoozes through battle

Sniper: Special Ops somehow manages to fail as both an action flick and a war movie. The plot sounds intense—rescuing a congressman from the Taliban—but the execution is limp and lifeless.

Steven Seagal looks like he wandered in by accident, barely awake while the same dull action plays on repeat. Occasionally it’s so bad it’s funny, but mostly, it’s just a chore to sit through.

Geostorm – weather alert: boredom incoming

Dean Devlin helped create Independence Day, so Geostorm should’ve been a fun disaster flick. Instead, it’s a glacier-paced slog where the storms barely show up until the final act.

Gerard Butler as a genius scientist on a space satellite? Sure, why not? But not even rocket-launcher Ed Harris could save this clunky mess—Shakespeare’s Geostorm might’ve had a better shot.

The Last Airbender – epic fail, element by element

M. Night Shyamalan tackled a beloved animated series and delivered what may be his worst film yet. His style clashed with the epic scope, and the action just never landed with any weight or excitement.

To be fair, cramming a whole season into one movie was probably doomed from the start. But the flat performances and lifeless battles sealed its fate as an infamous disaster.

Samurai Cop – so bad, it’s hilarious… sometimes

Even by B-movie standards, Samurai Cop is wildly inept, with action scenes that feel like unintentional slapstick. Yes, it delivers on the promise of a samurai cop taking on the Yakuza, but that’s about all it gets right.

It’s a cult classic for bad movie lovers, but make no mistake—it’s still terrible. The script is laughable, the acting is off-the-charts bad, and the action barely qualifies as action.

Red One – ho ho no

Dwayne Johnson’s Red One tries to be a festive action romp, but it’s more confusing than cheerful. Profanity, creepy monsters, bad CGI, and random bikini shots make you wonder—who exactly was this made for?

It’s loud, messy, and painfully unfunny, yet still banking on Christmas content being foolproof. If this is holiday magic, we’d rather get coal.

Madame Web – Spider-Verse? more like spider-mess

Madame Web feels like it’s hiding from its own comic book roots, and so does Dakota Johnson. She plays Cassie Webb, never called “Madame Web,” and barely touches a costume—everyone just looks vaguely embarrassed.

The plot’s a bizarre, tangled web of nonsense that even diehard Marvel fans struggled to follow. It’s clunky, confused, and unintentionally hilarious—watching it with Kevin Feige might be the only way to enjoy it.

Meg 2: The Trench – all hype, no bite

The original Meg wasn’t great, but it had its goofy charm. Meg 2, on the other hand, spends over 90 minutes on deep-sea mining drama before it even remembers there’s a giant shark involved.

By the time the megalodon finally shows up, the boredom has already sunk in. It’s less a shark movie and more a sleep aid with fins.

Charlie’s Angels – flashy, loud, and brain-optional

Studios rushed to revive old TV shows as action blockbusters, and Charlie’s Angels led the charge with big names and bigger stunts. Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, and Lucy Liu brought energy—but the movie forgot to bring a plot.

Critics weren’t fooled by the glitz, with Roger Ebert famously calling it “a movie without a brain.” It’s all slow-mo kicks and zero real substance.

Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever – zero plot, zero percent

Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever didn’t just flop—it crashed and burned into a legendary 0% on Rotten Tomatoes. Antonio Banderas and Lucy Liu play rival agents, but even they can’t save this explosion-packed disaster.

Roger Ebert called it “a chaotic mess,” and he wasn’t wrong. It’s all fireballs and no brains—confusing, incoherent, and still somehow boring despite nonstop action.

It’s frustrating when a great story falls apart, especially in movies with endings that totally ruined everything fans loved about them.

Suicide Squad – chaos in a clown car

The Suicide Squad is both the cause of and solution to its own problems—literally. The villain is one of their own, and the big rescue mission? Just their boss in disguise.

What started as David Ayer’s vision was chopped into trailer-fueled nonsense by release. Even the “Extended Cut” couldn’t save it—it just stretched the mess out longer. At least James Gunn came along and cleaned house.

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This slideshow was made with AI assistance and human editing.