‘Rambo Meets The Fugitive’ 94-Minute Action Thriller Punches Its Way Up Streaming Charts

A movie that feels like a combination of Rambo and The Fugitive has become a streaming hit.

Sylvester Stallone made his debut as John Rambo in 1982’s First Blood, launching a franchise that now consists of five movies in total. A prequel called John Rambo is now on the way, with Noah Centineo set to take on the role of the tortured Vietnam War veteran. The Fugitive, on the other hand, was released in 1993 and features Harrison Ford as Dr. Richard Kimble, a surgeon who goes on the run after being wrongly accused of killing his wife. Tommy Lee Jones costars in the film as Samuel Gerard, the U.S. Marshal tasked with catching him.

A few years after Lee won an Oscar for his role in The Fugitive, he starred in The Hunted, a film that is now a top 10 hit on Paramount+ in the U.S. The action thriller currently ranks in eighth place, falling behind titles like Get Hard (2015), Extract (2009), all three Hangover movies, and Rocky’s Cat-astrophe (2026). Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender (2026) is currently the top-ranking title.

The Hunted Is Quickly Climbing Up Streaming Charts 23 Years Later

The Film Is Competing With A Record-Breaking 2022 Hit

Benicio del Toro in camo as Aaron Hallam in The Hunted

Although The Hunted hit theaters more than two decades ago, it’s currently just ahead of a major blockbuster title. Top Gun: Maverick, which was released in 2022, currently occupies ninth place ahead of The Contractor (2022). Maverick was a huge hit, earning glowing reviews and grossing $1.495 billion worldwide. It currently stands as the highest-grossing Tom Cruise movie.

The Hunted, by contrast, was a significant box office disappointment. The film, which hails from director William Friedkin, grossed only $46 million worldwide on an estimated budget of $55 million. The Hunted also fared worse than Maverick with critics. Where the Cruise movie has a 96% on Rotten Tomatoes, Jones’ film has a lackluster 30%.

The Hunted Is The Ultimate Mixture Of Rambo & The Fugitive

Having Tommy Lee Jones As A Star Adds To The Proceedings

Tommy Lee Jones crawling on the ground as Bonham in The Hunted

The Hunter features a compelling premise. Jones stars in the movie as L.T. Bonham, a retired civilian contractor and special forces trainer tasked with stopping a former student who is hunting people for sport. Benicio del Toro costars as the villain, Aaron Hallam, with a supporting cast that includes Connie Nielsen, Leslie Stefanson, José Zúñiga, and John Finn, among others.

The film’s similarities to both Rambo and The Fugitive were noted in a number of reviews. Del Toro’s character is a traumatized war veteran with exceptional survival abilities who faces off against police deep in the woods, not unlike the premise of First Blood. Jones, meanwhile, takes on a Gerard-like character who becomes determined to take Hallam down, evoking his character in The Fugitive.

Though both First Blood and The Fugitive are beloved films, The Hunted‘s mix of these two classics didn’t quite come together critically or commercially. Still, it’s newfound streaming success speaks to how streaming services can help underseen movies connect with audiences years later.