Best American Action TV Shows

This page is updated regularly. Subscribe, so you don't miss new recommendations. The list of "Best American Action TV Shows" contains films with the following parameters. Style: exciting, serious, suspenseful, captivating, tense and epic. Plot: danger, anti hero, supernatural, heroes, woman with a gun, live action, rivalry, exodus, murder and female nudity. Genre: Action, Drama and Adventure. Country: USA and UK.
Best American Action TV Shows
Best American Action TV Shows
TOP TV Shows: Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan (2018), Banshee (2013), The Last Ship (2014), 24 (2001), Nikita (2010), Blindspot (2015), Teen Wolf (2011), Person of Interest (2011), Reacher (2022), The Mandalorian (2019), The Flash (2014), Cobra Kai (2018), House of the Dragon (2022), Game of Thrones (2011), The Blacklist: Redemption (2017), Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013), Altered Carbon (2018), Warrior (2019), Z Nation (2014), Timeless (2016).

List of Best TV Shows

Watch Trailers From This List to Choose a Movie
Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan (2018)
Genre: Action, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min.
TV show
Story: When CIA analyst Jack Ryan stumbles upon a suspicious series of bank transfers his search for answers pulls him from the safety of his desk job and catapults him into a deadly game of cat and mouse throughout Europe and the Middle East, with a ...
Style: serious, suspense, captivating, exciting, action adventure ...
Audience: boys' night
Plot: cia, espionage, investigation, terrorism, spy, agent, terrorist, conspiracy, twists and turns, cia agent, danger, shooting ...
Time: future, 2010s, 2020s, 21st century
Place: usa, chicago, langley virginia, washington d.c.
Is relevant ?
 8.4
 122K
Banshee (2013)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min.
TV show
Story: Banshee is an American drama television series set in a small town in Pennsylvania Amish country and features an enigmatic ex-con posing as a murdered sheriff who imposes his own brand of justice while also cooking up plans that serve his own ...
Style: exciting, sexy, serious, rough, suspenseful ...
Audience: boys' night
Plot: ex convict, sheriff, tough heroes, female nudity, organized crime, shooting, social relations, gory, cop, double life, sexual activity, small town ...
Time: 2010s, 21st century
Place: pennsylvania, usa, pittsburgh
Is relevant ?
 7.4
 63K
The Last Ship (2014)
Genre: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller, War
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min.
TV show
Story: Their mission is simple: Find a cure. Stop the virus. Save the world. When a global pandemic wipes out eighty percent of the planet's population, the crew of a lone naval destroyer must find a way to pull humanity from the brink of extinction.
Style: stylized, captivating, serious, suspenseful, apocalyptic ...
Audience: boys' night
Plot: battleship, navy, apocalypse, chaos, heroes, danger, plague, military, save the world, survival, shooting, deadly virus ...
Time: 21st century
Is relevant ?
 8.4
 196K
24 (2001)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 44 min.
TV show
Story: 24 is an American television series produced for the Fox network and syndicated worldwide, starring Kiefer Sutherland as Counter Terrorist Unit agent Jack Bauer. Each 24-episode season covers 24 hours in the life of Bauer, using the real time method ...
Style: exciting, cliffhanger, serious, stylized, realistic ...
Audience: teens, boys' night
Plot: terrorism, president, political conspiracy, secret service, terrorist, terrorist plot, government agency, race against time, assassination of president, investigation, assassination attempt, twists and turns ...
Time: 2010s, 2000s, 21st century
Place: los angeles, california, new york, usa, middle east
Is relevant ?
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 7.7
 54K
Nikita (2010)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min.
TV show
Story: Nikita will stop at nothing to expose and destroy Division, the secret U.S. agency who trained her as a spy and assassin.
Style: exciting, stylized, suspenseful, realistic, serious ...
Audience: teens, boys' night, adult
Plot: female killer, hitman, spy, tough girl, female spy, female assassin, strong female lead, mole, double life, secret government organization, female protagonist, heroine ...
Time: 2010s, 21st century
Place: usa
Is relevant ?
 7.3
 79K
Blindspot (2015)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min.
TV show
Story: A vast international plot explodes when a beautiful Jane Doe is discovered naked in Times Square, completely covered in mysterious, intricate tattoos with no memory of who she is or how she got there. But there's one tattoo that is impossible ...
Style: tense, realistic, suspense, detective, deep ...
Audience: teens
Plot: puzzle, investigation, fbi, memory loss, twists and turns, strong female character, terrorist, killings, tattoo, amnesia, secret organization, martial arts ...
Time: 2010s, 21st century
Place: new york, chicago
Is relevant ?
 7.7
 162K
Teen Wolf (2011)
Genre: Action, Drama, Fantasy, Romance, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 41 min.
TV show
Story: Scott McCall, a high school student living in the town of Beacon Hills has his life drastically changed when he's bitten by a werewolf, becoming one himself. He must henceforth learn to balance his problematic new identity with his day-to-day ...
Style: touching, suspenseful, serious, humorous, atmospheric ...
Audience: teens, teen fantasy, teen drama, adult
Plot: werewolf, supernatural, supernatural ability, high school, lycanthropy, youth, high school life, peril, team, friends, life turned upside down, transformation ...
Time: 21st century
Place: usa, mexico, idaho, california, japan ...
Is relevant ?
Person of Interest (2011)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 43 min.
TV show
Story: Person of Interest follows former CIA paramilitary operative, John Reese, who is presumed dead and teams up with reclusive billionaire Finch to prevent violent crimes in New York City by initiating their own type of justice. With the special ...
Style: exciting, captivating, serious, clever, detective ...
Audience: teens, boys' night
Plot: artificial intelligence, surveillance, computer system, hi-tech, partners against crime, privacy invasion, hacker, computer genius, characters in danger, fighting crime, computer, secret ...
Time: 2000s, 2010s, 21st century
Place: new york, usa
Is relevant ?
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 8.1
 203K
Reacher (2022)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 50 min.
TV show
Story: Plot unknown
Style: tense, captivating, disturbing, suspense, anime ...
Plot: one man army, corruption, murder, agent, ex military, police officer, tough guy, muscleman, police, male protagonist, false accusation, false accusation of murder ...
Time: future, 2020s
Place: usa
Is relevant ?
 8.7
 581K
The Mandalorian (2019)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 40 min.
TV show
Story: Plot under wraps
Style: futuristic, exciting, action adventure, suspenseful, enigmatic ...
Audience: kids, adult
Plot: star wars, outer space, space travel, space opera, bounty hunter, space and aliens, warrior, one man army, loner, alien civilization, gunslinger, tough guy ...
Time: 90s, future
Place: space western
Is relevant ?
 7.5
 367K
The Flash (2014)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 43 min.
TV show
Story: After a particle accelerator causes a freak storm, CSI Investigator Barry Allen is struck by lightning and falls into a coma. Months later he awakens with the power of super speed, granting him the ability to move through Central City like an unseen ...
Style: exciting, suspenseful, action adventure, thought provoking, humorous ...
Audience: teens, boys' night, teen drama
Plot: superhero, heroes, time travel, speed, multiverse, supernatural power, superhuman powers, good versus evil, super powers, secret identity, masked superhero, fighting crime ...
Time: 2010s, 2020s, 21st century
Place: chicago, usa
Is relevant ?
 8.5
 203K
Cobra Kai (2018)
Genre: Action, Comedy, Drama, Sport
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min.
TV show
Story: This Karate Kid sequel series picks up 30 years after the events of the 1984 All Valley Karate Tournament and finds Johnny Lawrence on the hunt for redemption by reopening the infamous Cobra Kai karate dojo. This reignites his old rivalry with the ...
Style: light, motivational, exciting, epic, captivating ...
Audience: teen drama
Plot: karate, martial arts, dojo, martial arts training, master apprentice relationship, fight, starting over, middle aged man, teenager, martial artist, father figure, father son relationship ...
Time: 2020s, 90s, 2010s
Place: los angeles, thailand, california, southern california
Is relevant ?
House of the Dragon (2022)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 50 min.
TV show
Story: The prequel series finds the Targaryen dynasty at the absolute apex of its power, with more than 15 dragons under their yoke. Most empires—real and imagined—crumble from such heights. In the case of the Targaryens, their slow fall begins almost ...
Style: exciting, captivating, stylized, tense, dramatic ...
Plot: dragon, knight, kingdom, female nudity, king, legend, medieval, sword and sorcery, serial killer, queen, incest, strength ...
Time: 2020s
Is relevant ?
 9.2
 2.3M
Game of Thrones (2011)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 55 min.
TV show
Story: Seven noble families fight for control of the mythical land of Westeros. Friction between the houses leads to full-scale war. All while a very ancient evil awakens in the farthest north. Amidst the war, a neglected military order of misfits, the ...
Style: epic, captivating, atmospheric, dramatic, stylized ...
Audience: teens, chick flick, girls' night, boys' night, adult
Plot: dragon, medieval, intrigue, incest, fantasy world, kingdom, power struggle, conflict, political intrigue, peril, abuse of power, treason ...
Time: middle ages, 2010s, medieval times, 2000s, year 2011 ...
Place: idaho, hawaii
Is relevant ?
The Blacklist: Redemption (2017)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 43 min.
TV show
Story: Covert operative Tom Keen joins forces with Susan "Scottie" Hargrave, the brilliant and cunning chief of a covert mercenary organization that solves problems that are too dangerous for the government.
Style: suspense, tense, rough, exciting, cliffhanger ...
Audience: adult
Plot: mercenary, partners in crime, redemption, brutality, criminal, murder, danger, mother son relationship, hitman, violence, dishonesty, occupation ...
Is relevant ?
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 45 min.
TV show
Story: Agent Phil Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division) puts together a team of agents to investigate the new, the strange and the unknown around the globe, protecting the ordinary from the ...
Style: exciting, semi serious, suspenseful, stylized, epic ...
Audience: teens, kids, boys' night
Plot: good versus evil, master villain, superhuman powers, save the day, hacker, heroes, superhero, secret government organization, s.h.i.e.l.d., scientist, teamwork, team ...
Time: future, 20th century, 2010s, 1930s, 21st century
Place: usa
Is relevant ?
 7.9
 187K
Altered Carbon (2018)
Genre: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min.
TV show
Story: After 250 years on ice, a prisoner returns to life in a new body with one chance to win his freedom: by solving a mind-bending murder.
Style: futuristic, exciting, tense, captivating, suspenseful ...
Audience: boys' night
Plot: cyberpunk, consciousness, artificial intelligence, investigation, virtual reality, murder, resistance fighter, twists and turns, body swapping, female nudity, doppelganger, multiple storylines ...
Time: future, distant future
Place: san francisco
Is relevant ?
 8.4
 40K
Warrior (2019)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, History
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min.
TV show
Story: A gritty, action-packed crime drama set during the brutal Tong Wars of San Francisco’s Chinatown in the second half of the 19th century. The series follows Ah Sahm, a martial arts prodigy who immigrates from China to San Francisco under mysterious ...
Style: exciting, brutal, atmospheric, captivating, intense ...
Audience: boys' night, chick flick
Plot: martial arts, gang war, rivalry, hand to hand combat, gang member, business, fistfight, fight, kung fu, smuggling, master warrior, criminal ...
Time: 19th century, 1800s, victorian era
Place: san francisco
Is relevant ?
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 6.7
 39K
Z Nation (2014)
Genre: Action, Comedy, Drama, Horror, Romance, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 44 min.
TV show
Story: Three years after the zombie virus has gutted the country, a team of everyday heroes must transport the only known survivor of the plague from New York to California, where the last functioning viral lab waits for his blood.
Style: suspenseful, scary, exciting, tense, absurd ...
Audience: boys' night
Plot: zombie, apocalypse, virus, zombie apocalypse, gory, survival, post apocalypse, supernatural, graphic violence, on the road, chaos, danger ...
Time: future, 21st century
Place: usa
Is relevant ?
 7.6
 47K
Timeless (2016)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min.
TV show
Story: A mysterious criminal steals a secret state-of-the-art time machine, intent on destroying America as we know it by changing the past. Our only hope is an unexpected team: a scientist, a soldier and a history professor, who must use the ...
Style: romantic, exciting, light, surprise ending, intellectual ...
Audience: kids
Plot: time travel, time machine, alternate reality, alternate timeline, murder, female scientist, fighting crime, betrayal, mother daughter relationship, team, shooting, conspiracy ...
Place: san francisco
Is relevant ?
 7.7
 19K
Human Target (2010)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min.
TV show
Story: Human Target is an American action drama television series that was broadcast by Fox in the United States. Based loosely on the Human Target comic book character created by Len Wein and Carmine Infantino for DC Comics, it is the second series based ...
Style: exciting, serious, realistic, action packed, thrilling ...
Audience: boys' night
Plot: bodyguard, hidden identity, teamwork, mercenary, team, heroes, peril, expert, fistfight, characters in danger, coworker, mixed martial arts ...
Time: 21st century
Place: usa, san francisco, bay area
Is relevant ?
 6.2
 129K
Supergirl (2015)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 43 min.
TV show
Story: Twenty-four-year-old Kara Zor-El, who was taken in by the Danvers family when she was 13 after being sent away from Krypton, must learn to embrace her powers after previously hiding them. The Danvers teach her to be careful with her powers, until ...
Style: exciting, suspenseful, humorous, saga, sad ...
Audience: teens, boys' night
Plot: superhero, super powers, female protagonist, heroes, danger, journalist, superheroine, supernatural power, secret identity, superhuman powers, strong female character, alien race ...
Time: 2010s, 21st century
Place: usa
Is relevant ?
 7.8
 16K
Major Crimes (2012)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery
Country: USA
Duration: 43 min.
TV show
Story: Major Crimes explores how the American justice system approaches the art of the deals as law enforcement officers and prosecutors work together to score a conviction. Los Angeles Police Captain Sharon Raydor heads up a special squad within the LAPD ...
Style: captivating, serious, realistic, detective, tense
Plot: female detective, female protagonist, homicide detective, policewoman, police detective, law enforcement, murder investigation, lapd, murder, fighting crime, investigator, interrogation ...
Time: 2010s, 21st century
Place: los angeles, usa
Is relevant ?
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 7.3
 39K
Colony (2016)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min.
TV show
Story: In the near future a family must make difficult decisions as they balance staying together with trying to survive. They live in Los Angeles, which has been occupied by a force of outside intruders. While some people have chosen to collaborate with ...
Style: exciting, serious, suspenseful, captivating, apocalyptic ...
Plot: alien invasion, rebellion, occupation, space and aliens, colony, distopia, danger, resistance, survival, evil alien, family in danger, intruder ...
Time: future
Place: los angeles, usa, california
Is relevant ?
Battlestar Galactica (2004)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 44 min.
TV show
Story: When an old enemy, the Cylons, resurface and obliterate the 12 colonies, the crew of the aged Galactica protect a small civilian fleet - the last of humanity - as they journey toward the fabled 13th colony, Earth.
Style: futuristic, exciting, stylized, suspenseful, apocalyptic ...
Audience: boys' night
Plot: space travel, outer space, space opera, space and aliens, space wars, cyborgs, space battle, androids and robots, artificial intelligence, extinction, human in outer space, military ...
Time: future, 2000s
Place: space western
Is relevant ?
Spartacus: Gods of the Arena (2011)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Biography, Drama, History, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 331 min.
TV show
Story: Before Spartacus struck down his first opponent in the arena, there were many gladiators who passed through the gates onto the sand.'Spartacus: Gods of the Arena' tells the story of the original Champion of the House of Batiatus: Gannicus ...
Style: exciting, epic, realistic, serious, stylized ...
Audience: teens, boys' night
Plot: ancient history, ancient rome, roman empire, gladiator, arena, roman, slave, heroes, warrior, sword fight, slavery, master warrior ...
Time: ancient times, 1st century b.c., 1st century
Place: hawaii
Is relevant ?
Star Trek: Picard (2020)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 46 min.
TV show
Story: Set twenty years after the events of Star Trek Nemesis, we follow the now-retired Admiral Picard into the next chapter of his life.
Style: exciting, captivating, tense, epic, breathtaking ...
Audience: teens, adult
Plot: star trek, space travel, space, spacecraft, spaceship, alien, exploration, outer space, human in outer space, friendship, space opera, space exploration ...
Time: future, 24th century, 2020s
Is relevant ?
Vikings: Valhalla (2022)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, History, Romance, War
Country: USA
Duration: 51 min.
TV show
Story: Dramatizes the legendary adventures of some of the most famous Vikings who ever lived – Leif Eriksson, Freydis Eriksdotter, Harald Hardrada and the Norman King William the Conqueror. These men and women will blaze a path as they fight for survival ...
Style: tense, heroic, historical drama, sad, costume drama ...
Audience: boys' night
Plot: viking, medieval, battles, norse mythology, legends and myths, warrior, heroes, war, king, fight, ancient, blood ...
Time: medieval times, 11th century
Place: scandinavia, lithuania, latvia, ukraine, europe
Is relevant ?
Xena: Warrior Princess (1995)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
Country: USA
Duration: 45 min.
TV show
Story: Xena: Warrior Princess is an American–New Zealand supernatural fantasy adventure series that aired in syndication from September 4, 1995 until June 18, 2001. The series was created in 1995 by writer-director-producer Robert Tapert under his ...
Style: exciting, sexy, captivating, retro, action adventure ...
Audience: teens, kids
Plot: female warrior, strong female lead, ancient, mythology, greek mythology, good versus evil, heroine, friendship, legends and myths, sword and sorcery, tough girl, danger ...
Time: 90s, 20th century
Place: ancient greece, greece, china, india, europe ...
Is relevant ?
The Terminal List (2022)
Genre: Action, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 55 min.
TV show
Story: Navy SEAL Commander James Reece turns to vengeance as he investigates the mysterious forces behind the murder of his entire platoon. Free from the military’s command structure, Reece applies the lessons he’s learned from nearly two decades of ...
Style: dramatic, suspenseful, tense, captivating, harsh ...
Audience: family friendly
Plot: navy seal, conspiracy, soldier, government conspiracy, war veteran, veteran, heroes, tough guy, death, gunfight, memory, military ...
Time: future, 2020s
Place: san francisco, california, san diego california
Is relevant ?
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