An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth. There’s something undeniably satisfying about watching a revenge fantasy and the villain getting their just desserts. Payback is a powerful motivator in cinema, driving characters to the extremes of their morals. Here, we look at 24 of the best movies focused on vengeance.
Kill Bill Vol. 1 and Vol. 2
The Kill Bill collection stars Uma Thurman as The Bride, a woman who has been in a coma for four years after a violent attack by her ex-boss Bill and her former colleagues in their assassination squad. When she wakes, she goes on a brutal revenge mission to tear them down.
John Wick
After the death of his wife, retired hitman John Wick (Keanu Reeves) is given a puppy to remember her by. After a group of Russian gangsters kill her and beat Wick, he hunts them down for payback, immersing himself back into the criminal life. The movie was praised for establishing an underworld with its own rules and rituals.
Gladiator
Roman general Maximus Decimus Meridius is betrayed by Commodus and sold into slavery. With his family murdered, he is forced to fight in gladiatorial combat. Rising through the ranks to fight in front of Commodus, he declares vengeance on him and wins the crowd’s support.
Memento
A psychological thriller, Memento follows amnesiac protagonist Leonard Shelby (Guy Pearce) as he tries to unravel the mystery of who killed his wife with a complex system of notes, photos, and tattoos. Using a reverse narrative, Memento sees Shelby vowing revenge on the perpetrator and going to any lengths to track them down.
The Count of Monte Cristo
An adaptation of Alexandra Dumas’s novel of the same name, The Count of Monte Cristo, stars Jim Caviezel as Edmond Dantès, a falsely imprisoned man who escapes and uses hidden treasure to establish himself as the Count of Monte Cristo, swearing vengeance upon his enemies.
Taken
Liam Neeson stars as Bryan Mills, a retired CIA agent whose daughter and her best friend have been kidnapped by traffickers. Mills then starts a relentless and bloody quest to find them and take revenge on the perpetrators.
The Revenant
When fur trapper Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio) is mauled by a bear and left for dead by the rest of the hunting team, he struggles to survive in the harsh, unforgiving wilderness. After recovering, he teams up with Andrew Henry (Domhnall Gleeson) to track down Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy).
Mad Max: Fury Road
Set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland, Mad Max: Fury Road sees Max (Tom Hardy) join up with Furiosa (Charlize Theron). Although Max’s primary mission is to escape, Furiosa wants revenge on road chief Immortan Joe and will stop at nothing to get it.
Unforgiven
Unforgiven stars Clint Eastwood as an aging outlaw convinced to do one last job. Initially on a mission for revenge on behalf of the bounty setters, it soon gets personal, and he is pulled back into the world of violence and danger.
Carrie
Based on Stephen King’s novel, Carrie focuses on a high school girl who her peers bully. When she gets telekinetic powers, she uses them to exact revenge when they humiliate her again at the school prom in one of the most iconic movie scenes of all time.
Payback
A neo-noir action thriller, Payback tells the story of antihero Porter (Mel Gibson), who is double-crossed by his partner and left for dead. Upon recovery, he sets out to get his share of the money back and inflict vengeance on his betrayers.
The Godfather
Although not the only theme, revenge is one of the key elements driving the plot of The Godfather. Vito’s youngest son, Michael Corleone (Al Pacino), avenges several family betrayals on his way to the top of the Mafia.
True Grit
Teenager Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld) wants revenge on the man who murdered her father, so she hires hunter Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges) to track him down. Along the way, the two bond in this Western movie that was nominated for ten Academy Awards.
Django Unchained
Tarantino’s 2012 Western-style movie sees freed slave Django (Jamie Foxx) team up with bounty hunter Schultz (Christoph Waltz) to find and free his wife from a brutal plantation owner. Django Unchained was a critical and commercial success, grossing $162.8 million in the US and Canada.
Death Wish
Mild-mannered architect Paul Kersey (Charles Bronson) snaps after his wife is killed and his daughter sexually assaulted in a home invasion. Realizing he has the means and will to fight back, Kersey becomes a vigilante, targeting the city’s muggers in revenge.
Léon: The Professional
This English-language French action movie tells the story of the titular Léon (Jean Reno), a professional hitman who takes in 12-year-old girl Mathilda (Natalie Portman) when corrupt DEA agents kill her family. He reluctantly agrees to teach her his skills so she can get revenge on her family’s killers.
V for Vendetta
A masked vigilante known only as V is fighting a totalitarian regime in the UK on a quest for revenge against those in power. Evey Hammond (Natalie Portman), the daughter of activists, gets caught up in the struggle and meets V himself.
The Crow
A rock musician who was murdered is brought back to life to avenge his and his fiancée’s deaths, becoming the city’s vigilante in its battle against crime. Brandon Lee died during filming after being shot by the prop gun, but the producers decided to go ahead with the movie’s release, rewriting several scenes.
Lady Vengeance
The South Korean neo-noir drama Lady Vengeance stars Lee Young-ae as Lee Geum-ja, a woman forced to confess to the murder of a child. Now released from jail, she wants revenge on the real killer, but his crimes go further than she thinks.
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Back from exile in Australia, barber Benjamin Barker (Johnny Depp) wants revenge on the judge who sent him there. He adopts the alias Sweeney Todd but is blackmailed by his former apprentice. Enraged, Todd kills him, starting a long series of murders as he takes vengeance on the world for the loss of his daughter.
Point Blank
Cult classic Point Blank sees Walker (Lee Marvin) work with his friend Mal Reese (John Vernon) to rob the courier of a major crime syndicate. Reese betrays Walker, shoots him, and takes the cash, starting Walker’s long quest for revenge.
Cape Fear
This remake of the 1962 version of Cape Fear stars Robert De Niro as Max Cady, a convicted rapist who is convinced his lawyer Sam (Nick Nolte) purposefully defended him poorly. When he gets out, he stalks Sam and his family to exact twisted vengeance, terrorizing them as he closes in.
Man on Fire
John Creasy (Denzel Washington) is an alcoholic CIA officer who is convinced to take a job as a bodyguard. Initially disinterested, he grows close to his charge, Pita (Dakota Fanning), and is devastated when she is kidnapped. He sets out to find the kidnappers and get revenge.
Law Abiding Citizen
When Clyde Shelton (Gerard Butler) is the victim of a home invasion, he is forced to watch while his wife and daughter are raped and killed. Not content to stop at revenge on the murderers, he also wants vengeance on the corrupt criminal justice system, leading to him turning vigilante.
