Tough cop movies and TV shows

The list contains the best, new and most relevant tough cop movies ordered by relevance. The recommendation service has sorted out exciting, detective, suspenseful, suspense, cult classic and realistic films and TV shows about / with tough cop, violence, police, shootout, tough guy, pistol, murder, showdown, blood and police officer plots mostly in Action, Thriller and Crime genres shot in USA, UK, India and other countries.
tough cop
 424
tough cop movies
TOP 10 movies tagged as tough cop: U.S. Marshals (1998), Sleepless (2017), Man of the House (2005), Den of Thieves (2018), A Good Day to Die Hard (2013), Live Free or Die Hard (2007), The Untouchables (1987), Judge Dredd (1995), 48 Hrs. (1982), Die Hard 2 (1990).

List of tough cop movies

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 6.6
 113K
U.S. Marshals (1998)
Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 131 min.
Story: U.S. Marshal Sam Gerard is accompanying a plane load of convicts from Chicago to New York. The plane crashes spectacularly, and Mark Sheridan escapes. But when Diplomatic Security Agent John Royce is assigned to help Gerard recapture Sheridan, it ...
Style: exciting, suspense, suspenseful, serious, entertaining ...
Audience: boys' night, date night
Plot: manhunt, cia, on the run, conspiracy, frame up, agent, fugitive, tough cop, corruption, car chase, murder, u.s. marshal ...
Time: 90s, year 1998, 20th century
Place: new york, chicago, kentucky, usa, manhattan new york city
Is relevant ?
 5.6
 34K
Sleepless (2017)
Genre: Action, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min.
Story: Undercover Las Vegas police officer Vincent Downs is caught in a high stakes web of corrupt cops and the mob-controlled casino underground. When a heist goes wrong, a crew of homicidal gangsters kidnaps Downs’ teenage son. In one sleepless night ...
Style: suspense, neo noir, disturbing, suspenseful, tense ...
Plot: organized crime, undercover cop, kidnapping, police corruption, tough cop, female warrior, rescue, father son relationship, brutality, race against time, police detective, car chase ...
Time: year 2017
Place: las vegas
Is relevant ?
Man of the House (2005)
Genre: Comedy, Crime
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min.
Story: Texas Ranger Roland Sharp is assigned to protect the only witnesses to the murder of a key figure in the prosecution of a drug kingpin -- a group of University of Texas cheerleaders. Sharp must now go undercover as an assistant cheerleading coach ...
Style: humorous, entertaining, teen, semi serious, funny ...
Audience: teens, chick flick, girls' night, boys' night, teen drama
Plot: cheerleading, cheerleader, tough cop, murder, teenager, college, mentor, gangster, working undercover, law enforcement, teenage life, american football ...
Time: year 2005
Place: texas, usa, mexico
Is relevant ?
 7.0
 123K
Den of Thieves (2018)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 140 min.
Story: A gritty crime saga which follows the lives of an elite unit of the LA County Sheriff's Dept. and the state's most successful bank robbery crew as the outlaws plan a seemingly impossible heist on the Federal Reserve Bank.
Style: suspense, captivating, tense, suspenseful, enigmatic ...
Audience: boys' night, adult
Plot: heist, bank robbery, police brutality, tough guy, strip club, shootout, armored truck, police, criminal, investigation, fbi, divorce ...
Time: 2010s
Place: los angeles, california, london
Is relevant ?
Related movie lists
A Good Day to Die Hard (2013)
Genre: Action, Thriller
Country: USA, UK, Hungary
Duration: 98 min.
Story: Iconoclastic, take-no-prisoners cop John McClane, finds himself for the first time on foreign soil after traveling to Moscow to help his wayward son Jack - unaware that Jack is really a highly-trained CIA operative out to stop a nuclear weapons ...
Style: tense, melancholic, realistic, rough, suspenseful ...
Audience: boys' night, teens
Plot: father son relationship, tough cop, two man army, bomb, car chase, cia agent, 007, terrorism, spy, violence, agent, american abroad ...
Time: year 2013, 2010s, 21st century
Place: russia, seattle, new york, langley virginia, moscow russia ...
Is relevant ?
Live Free or Die Hard (2007)
Genre: Action, Thriller
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 128 min.
Story: John McClane is back and badder than ever, and this time he's working for Homeland Security. He calls on the services of a young hacker in his bid to stop a ring of Internet terrorists intent on taking control of America's computer ...
Style: exciting, entertaining, realistic, suspenseful, humorous ...
Audience: manly, chick flick, boys' night, teens
Plot: gunfight, hacking, one man army, terrorism, hacker, computer hacker, tough cop, conspiracy, car chase, fbi, lone hero, surveillance ...
Time: year 2007, 2000s, 20th century, 21st century
Place: washington d.c., usa, maryland, baltimore, los angeles ...
Is relevant ?
The Untouchables (1987)
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 119 min.
Story: Young Treasury Agent Elliot Ness arrives in Chicago and is determined to take down Al Capone, but it's not going to be easy because Capone has the police in his pocket. Ness meets Jimmy Malone, a veteran patrolman and probably the most ...
Style: suspense, suspenseful, stylized, clever, tense ...
Audience: boys' night, manly, adult
Plot: mafia, gangster, organized crime, corruption, smuggling, mentor, tough cop, tough law enforcer, gunfight, prohibition, tax evasion, prohibition era ...
Time: 1930s, 1920s, 20th century, year 1987
Place: chicago, usa, america
Is relevant ?
 5.6
 124K
Judge Dredd (1995)
Genre: Action, Crime, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, Netherlands, UK
Duration: 96 min.
Story: In a dystopian future, Dredd, the most famous judge (a cop with instant field judiciary powers) is convicted for a crime he did not commit while his murderous counterpart escapes.
Style: futuristic, exciting, apocalyptic, suspenseful, stylized ...
Audience: boys' night
Plot: cyberpunk, dystopic future, apocalypse, post apocalypse, superhero, police, dystopian future, dystopia, good versus evil, post apocalyptic, tough cop, comic book ...
Time: future, 22nd century
Place: usa, new york
Is relevant ?
 6.9
 85K
48 Hrs. (1982)
Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min.
Story: A hard-nosed cop reluctantly teams up with a wise-cracking criminal temporarily paroled to him, in order to track down a killer.
Style: exciting, detective, funny, neo noir, humorous ...
Audience: boys' night, manly, teens, adult
Plot: prison, buddy cop, reluctant partners, cop, tough cop, violence, revenge, buddy, police investigation, law enforcement, tough guy, partner ...
Time: 80s, 20th century, year 1982
Place: san francisco, usa, bay area
Is relevant ?
 7.1
 382K
Die Hard 2 (1990)
Genre: Action, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 124 min.
Story: John McClane is an off-duty cop gripped with a feeling of déjà vu when on a snowy Christmas Eve in the nation's capital, terrorists seize a major international airport, holding thousands of holiday travelers hostage. Renegade military ...
Style: suspense, suspenseful, exciting, action packed, tense ...
Audience: boys' night, chick flick, manly
Plot: gunfight, christmas, airplane, fight scenes, airport, one man army, police, hostage, terrorism, lone hero, chase, commando ...
Time: 90s, 20th century, year 1990, 80s
Place: washington d.c., washington state, virginia, los angeles, usa
Is relevant ?
Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 128 min.
Story: New York detective John McClane is back and kicking bad-guy butt in the third installment of this action-packed series, which finds him teaming with civilian Zeus Carver to prevent the loss of innocent lives. McClane thought he'd seen it all, ...
Style: suspense, entertaining, suspenseful, action packed, intense ...
Audience: chick flick, manly, boys' night
Plot: gunfight, terrorism, police, heist, race against time, bomb, police officer, car chase, revenge, weapons, puzzle, buddy cop ...
Time: 90s, 20th century
Place: new york, manhattan new york city, usa, north america, harlem ...
Is relevant ?
 6.4
 19K
Coogan's Bluff (1968)
Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime, Thriller, Western
Country: USA
Duration: 94 min.
Story: Coogan (Clint Eastwood) an Arizona deputy sheriff goes to New York to pick up a prisoner. While escorting the prisoner to the airport he escapes and Coogan heads into the City to recapture him.
Style: light, black comedy, exciting, cult classic, entertaining ...
Audience: manly, boys' night
Plot: fish out of water, chase, tough cop, investigation, one against many, police, gunfight, lovers on the run, runaway, cowboy, chases and races, voyeur ...
Time: 20th century, 60s
Place: arizona, new york, usa, manhattan new york city
Is relevant ?
 6.6
 59K
Black Rain (1989)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA, Japan
Duration: 125 min.
Story: Two New York cops get involved in a gang war between members of the Yakuza, the Japanese Mafia. They arrest one of their killers and are ordered to escort him back to Japan. In Japan, however, he manages to escape. As they try to track him down, ...
Style: neo noir, detective, exciting, suspense, tense ...
Audience: boys' night
Plot: yakuza, organized crime, police, culture clash, gunfight, chase, gang war, motorcycle, fish out of water, police investigation, japanese mafia, buddy cop ...
Time: 80s, 20th century, year 1989
Place: japan, new york, osaka japan, los angeles, asia ...
Is relevant ?
 6.6
 43K
Wasabi (2001)
Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: France, Japan
Duration: 94 min.
Story: Hubert is a French policeman with very sharp methods. After being forced to take 2 months off by his boss, who doesn't share his view on working methods, he goes back to Japan, where he used to work 19 years ago, to settle the probate of his ...
Style: funny, realistic, semi serious, exciting, action packed ...
Audience: boys' night, teens
Plot: yakuza, father daughter relationship, justice, police brutality, lone hero, investigation, japanese mafia, police detective, youth, tough guy, culture clash, inheritance ...
Time: year 2001, 21st century
Place: japan, tokyo, france, paris france, asia ...
Is relevant ?
 7.8
 240K
Gotham (2014)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min.
TV show
Story: Before there was Batman, there was GOTHAM. Everyone knows the name Commissioner Gordon. He is one of the crime world's greatest foes, a man whose reputation is synonymous with law and order. But what is known of Gordon's story and his ...
Style: captivating, exciting, tense, detective, neo noir ...
Audience: teens, boys' night
Plot: batman, police, corruption, police corruption, superhero, super villain, police station, mafia, friendship, police detective, organized crime, gang war ...
Time: 90s, 2000s, 20th century, 21st century
Place: new jersey
Is relevant ?
 7.1
 293K
Dredd (2012)
Genre: Action, Crime, Sci-Fi
Country: UK, South Africa, India
Duration: 95 min.
Story: In the future, America is a dystopian wasteland. The latest scourge is Ma-Ma, a prostitute-turned-drug pusher with a dangerous new drug and aims to take over the city. The only possibility of stopping her is an elite group of urban police called ...
Style: futuristic, intense, neo noir, cyber, apocalyptic ...
Audience: manly, family friendly, boys' night
Plot: cyberpunk, post apocalypse, one man army, dystopia, distopia, brutality, organized crime, dystopian future, violent, judge, lone hero, police ...
Time: future, year 2012, 2010s, near future, distant future
Place: usa, america
Is relevant ?
Year of the Dragon (1985)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 134 min.
Story: In New York, racist Capt. Stanley White becomes obsessed with destroying a Chinese-American drug ring run by Joey Tai, an up-and-coming young gangster as ambitious as he is ruthless. While pursuing an unauthorized investigation, White grows ...
Style: neo noir, controversial, intense, brutal, suspense ...
Audience: boys' night, manly
Plot: chinese mafia, triad, organized crime, culture clash, racism, gangster, sexually frustrated woman, murder, violence, police detective, police corruption, vigilante ...
Time: 80s, year 1985
Place: new york, china, vietnam, thailand, bangkok thailand ...
Is relevant ?
 5.9
 20K
The Presidio (1988)
Genre: Action, Crime, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min.
Story: Jay Austin is now a civilian police detective. Colonel Caldwell was his commanding officer years before when he left the military police over a disagreement over the handling of a drunk driver. Now a series of murders that cross jurisdictions force ...
Style: detective, neo noir, exciting, tense, suspense ...
Plot: conspiracy, investigation, military, father daughter relationship, tough cop, buddy cop, hostility, funeral, police chase, tough guy, murder investigation, factory ...
Time: 80s, 20th century
Place: san francisco, bay area, usa, california
Is relevant ?
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Marked for Death (1990)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min.
Story: Just retired from the Drug Enforcement Agency, John Hatcher returns to his hometown and quickly discovers that drugs have infiltrated his old neighborhood. Determined to drive the dealers out, Hatcher crosses paths with a ferocious Jamaican drug ...
Style: suspense, exciting, serious, suspenseful, neo noir ...
Audience: boys' night, manly
Plot: martial arts, vigilante, gangster, murder, violence, good versus evil, revenge, voodoo, jamaican, drug lord, car chase, sword fight ...
Time: 20th century, 80s, 90s
Place: jamaica, usa, chicago, colombia, caribbean ...
Is relevant ?
Kindergarten Cop (1990)
Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime
Country: USA
Duration: 111 min.
Story: Hard-edged cop John Kimble gets more than he bargained for when he goes undercover as a kindergarten teacher to get the goods on a brutal drug lord while at the same time protecting the man's young son. Pitted against a class of boisterous ...
Style: light, funny, humorous, detective, sincere ...
Audience: kids, family outing, girls' night, teens, chick flick
Plot: teacher, fish out of water, children, kindergarten, police, education, mischievous children, small town, bullying, undercover, elementary school, school ...
Time: 90s, 20th century, year 1990
Place: astoria oregon, california, oregon, los angeles
Is relevant ?
 8.2
 940K
Die Hard (1988)
Genre: Action, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 132 min.
Story: NYPD cop, John McClane's plan to reconcile with his estranged wife is thrown for a serious loop when minutes after he arrives at her office, the entire building is overtaken by a group of terrorists. With little help from the LAPD, wisecracking ...
Style: intense, christmas special, exciting, suspense, action packed ...
Audience: boys' night, manly, date night, chick flick, teens ...
Plot: hostage, gunfight, one man army, heist, tough guy, christmas, terrorist, terrorism, police, shootout, robbery, skyscraper ...
Time: 80s, 20th century, year 1988, year 2016
Place: los angeles, california, usa
Is relevant ?
 6.1
 14K
Dark Angel (1990)
Genre: Action, Crime, Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min.
Story: Jack Caine is a Houston vice cop who's forgotten the rule book. His self-appointed mission is to stop the drugs trade and the number one supplier Victor Manning. Whilst involved in an undercover operation to entrap Victor Manning, his partner ...
Style: detective, suspense, rough, serious, suspenseful ...
Audience: boys' night
Plot: reluctant partners, drug lord, heroin, police investigation, buddy cop, evil alien, investigation, good versus evil, humanoid alien, tough cop, space and aliens, alien ...
Time: 80s, 90s
Place: houston texas, austin texas, texas
Is relevant ?
 7.4
 75K
Bullitt (1968)
Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 114 min.
Story: Senator Walter Chalmers is aiming to take down mob boss Pete Ross with the help of testimony from the criminal's hothead brother Johnny, who is in protective custody in San Francisco under the watch of police lieutenant Frank Bullitt. When a ...
Style: suspense, exciting, suspenseful, detective, intense ...
Audience: boys' night, manly
Plot: car chase, ford mustang, chase, burglary, investigation, police, organized crime, police investigation, violence, murder, police procedural, gangster ...
Time: year 1968, 60s, 20th century
Place: san francisco, bay area, usa, chicago, illinois ...
Is relevant ?
Related movie lists
 5.2
 44K
The Medallion (2003)
Genre: Action, Comedy, Fantasy
Country: Hong Kong, USA
Duration: 88 min.
Story: A Hong Kong detective suffers a fatal accident involving a mysterious medallion and is transformed into an immortal warrior with superhuman powers.
Style: entertaining, stylized, humorous, semi serious, action packed ...
Audience: boys' night, teens
Plot: martial arts, interpol, superhuman powers, chase, immortality, locket, kung fu, tough cop, heroes, rescue, supernatural, magic ...
Time: year 2003
Place: hong kong, ireland, dublin ireland, asia
Is relevant ?
 5.8
 79K
Cobra (1986)
Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: USA, Israel
Duration: 87 min.
Story: A tough-on-crime street cop must protect the only surviving witness to a strange murderous cult with far reaching plans.
Style: slasher, suspense, grindhouse, intense, melancholic ...
Audience: boys' night, manly, chick flick
Plot: serial killer, murder, car chase, one man army, hostage, police investigation, violence, vigilante, tough cop, gang, rivalry, gunfight ...
Time: 80s, 20th century
Place: los angeles, california, usa
Is relevant ?
Monsoon Shootout (2013)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: India, UK, Netherlands, France
Duration: 92 min.
Story: A rookie cop joins the crime branch of the Mumbai police department, and on his first assignment is faced with the dilemma of whether he should shoot a murder suspect who is attempting to escape or not.
Style: serious, realistic, thought provoking, captivating, suspense thriller ...
Plot: moral dilemma, tough cop, idealism, destiny, road not taken, decision, society, hopes, gangster boss, corrupt official, police, organized crime ...
Time: 21st century
Place: india, mumbai india
Is relevant ?
 5.9
 2K
Gen-X Cops (1999)
Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong
Duration: 114 min.
Story: Four young officers of the Hong Kong Police are joined together to fight against organised crime using all possible means, even if this would lead them to break the law… Their first assignment is to eliminate a gang of criminals who have stolen a ...
Style: exciting, stylized, serious, suspenseful, suspense ...
Audience: boys' night, teens
Plot: police, undercover, tough cop, police investigation, save the day, tough law enforcer, female martial artist, partners against crime, martial arts, kung fu, cop, bad guy ...
Time: 90s
Place: hong kong, china, singapore, asia
Is relevant ?
Touch Chesi Chudu (2018)
Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime
Country: India
Duration: 147 min.
Story: The film revolves around a police officer called Karthikeya (Ravi Teja), who struggles to maintain a balance between his personal and professional life. Until one incident changes his life forever.
Style: exciting, suspenseful, captivating, suspense
Plot: tough cop, chase, fight, justice, one man army, kidnapping, heroic bloodshed, murder, police, violence, police officer, twists and turns ...
Is relevant ?
 7.0
 22K
The Hidden (1987)
Genre: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min.
Story: An alien is on the run in America. To get his kicks, it kills anything that gets in its way, and uses the body as a new hiding place. This alien has a goal in life; power. Hotly pursued by another alien (who's borrowed the body of a dead FBI ...
Style: exciting, suspense, suspenseful, surprise ending, atmospheric ...
Audience: boys' night
Plot: alien, car chase, buddy cop, fbi, chase, mind control, violence, alien invasion, revenge, monster, space and aliens, twists and turns ...
Time: future, 80s
Place: los angeles
Is relevant ?
 5.8
 32K
Hard to Kill (1990)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min.
Story: Mason Storm, a 'go it alone' cop, is gunned down at home. The intruders kill his wife, and think they've killed both Mason and his son too. Mason is secretly taken to a hospital where he spends several years in a coma. His son ...
Style: suspense, serious, exciting, suspenseful, cult classic ...
Audience: boys' night
Plot: hospital, martial arts, revenge, vigilante, one man army, coma, murder, violence, hitman, conspiracy, mixed martial arts, police corruption ...
Time: 80s, year 1983, year 1990, 90s
Place: los angeles, chicago, california
Is relevant ?
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