The Best Films Featuring The C.I.A.
“What are the best movies about The C.I.A.?” We looked at 139 of the top Central Intelligence Agency films, aggregating and ranking them so we could answer that very question!
The top 26 films, all appearing on 3 or more “Best CIA” movie lists, are ranked below by how many times they appear. The remaining 100+ movies, as well as the sources we used, are in alphabetical order on the bottom of the page.
Top 26 C.I.A. Movies
26 .) Argo (2012)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Ranker
As the Iranian revolution reaches a boiling point, a CIA ‘exfiltration’ specialist concocts a risky plan to free six Americans who have found shelter at the home of the Canadian ambassador.
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25 .) Body of Lies (2008)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Ranker
The CIA’s hunt is on for the mastermind of a wave of terrorist attacks. Roger Ferris is the agency’s man on the ground, moving from place to place, scrambling to stay ahead of ever-shifting events. An eye in the sky – a satellite link – watches Ferris. At the other end of that real-time link is the CIA’s Ed Hoffman, strategizing events from thousands of miles away. And as Ferris nears the target, he discovers trust can be just as dangerous as it is necessary for survival.
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24 .) Breach (2007)
Lists It Appears On:
- Best Thillers
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
Eric O’Neill, a computer specialist who wants to be made an agent is assigned to clerk for Robert Hanssen, a senior agent with 25 years in the FBI, and to write down everything Hanssen does. O’Neill’s told it’s an investigation of Hanssen’s sexual habits, however Hanssen is really suspected of spying for the Soviet Union and Russia for years and being responsible for the deaths of agents working for the United States.
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23 .) Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- NBC
- Ranker
Television made him famous, but his biggest hits happened off screen. Television producer by day, CIA assassin by night, Chuck Barris was recruited by the CIA at the height of his TV career and trained to become a covert operative. Or so Barris said.
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22 .) Enemy of the State (1998)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Ranker
Hotshot Washington lawyer, Robert Dean becomes a victim of high-tech identity theft when a hacker slips an incriminating video into his pocket. Soon, a rogue National Security agent sets out to recover the tape – and destroy Dean.
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21 .) Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit (2014)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- Ranker
- Wikipedia
Jack Ryan, as a young covert CIA analyst, uncovers a Russian plot to crash the U.S. economy with a terrorist attack.
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20 .) JFK (1991)
Lists It Appears On:
- Best Thillers
- IMDB
- Ranker
New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison discovers there’s more to the Kennedy assassination than the official story.
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19 .) Mr. & Mrs. Smith
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Ranker
After five (or six) years of vanilla-wedded bliss, ordinary suburbanites John and Jane Smith are stuck in a huge rut. Unbeknownst to each other, they are both coolly lethal, highly-paid assassins working for rival organisations. When they discover they’re each other’s next target, their secret lives collide in a spicy, explosive mix of wicked comedy, pent-up passion, nonstop action and high-tech weaponry.
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18 .) Safe House (2012)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Ranker
A dangerous CIA renegade resurfaces after a decade on the run. When the safe house he’s remanded to is attacked by mercenaries, a rookie operative escapes with him. Now, the unlikely allies must stay alive long enough to uncover who wants them dead.
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17 .) Salt (2010)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Ranker
As a CIA officer, Evelyn Salt swore an oath to duty, honor and country. Her loyalty will be tested when a defector accuses her of being a Russian spy. Salt goes on the run, using all her skills and years of experience as a covert operative to elude capture. Salt’s efforts to prove her innocence only serve to cast doubt on her motives, as the hunt to uncover the truth behind her identity continues and the question remains: “Who is Salt?”
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16 .) Taken 2 (2012)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Ranker
In Istanbul, retired CIA operative Bryan Mills and his wife are taken hostage by the father of a kidnapper Mills killed while rescuing his daughter.
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15 .) The Bourne Identity (2002)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Ranker
Wounded to the brink of death and suffering from amnesia, Jason Bourne is rescued at sea by a fisherman. With nothing to go on but a Swiss bank account number, he starts to reconstruct his life, but finds that many people he encounters want him dead. However, Bourne realizes that he has the combat and mental skills of a world-class spy – but who does he work for?
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14 .) The Bourne Legacy (2012)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Ranker
New CIA operative, Aaron Cross experiences life-or-death stakes that have been triggered by the previous actions of Jason Bourne.
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13 .) The Hunt for Red October (1990)
Lists It Appears On:
- Best Thillers
- IMDB
- Ranker
A new Soviet nuclear missile sub (a Boomer) heading out on her maiden voyage that is being tracked by a Los Angeles class American submarine suddenly goes silent and “disappears”. This focuses the attention of both U.S. Intelligence and the U.S. Navy on the Russian Sub Commander . When it is determined that the silent Soviet Boomer may be headed for American coastal waters panic ensues. A CIA analyst, Jack Ryan, convinces the brass that the Boomer’s commander may intend something other than a nuclear first strike in mind. A perilous and tense cat-and-mouse game ensues.
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12 .) The Recruit (2003)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Ranker
A brilliant CIA trainee must prove his worth at the Farm, the agency’s secret training grounds, where he learns to watch his back and trust no one.
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11 .) This Means War (2012)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Ranker
Two top CIA operatives wage an epic battle against one another after they discover they are dating the same woman.
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10 .) Charlie Wilson’s War (2007)
Lists It Appears On:
- Best Thillers
- IMDB
- Ranker
- Wikipedia
The true story of Texas congressman Charlie Wilson’s covert dealings in Afghanistan, where his efforts to assist rebels in their war with the Soviets had some unforeseen and long-reaching effects.
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9 .) Clear and Present Danger (1994)
Lists It Appears On:
- Best Thillers
- IMDB
- Movie Mavs
- Ranker
CIA Analyst Jack Ryan is drawn into an illegal war fought by the US government against a Colombian drug cartel.
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8 .) Fair Game (2010)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- NBC
- Ranker
Wife and mother Valerie Plame (Naomi Watts) has a double life as a CIA operative, hiding her vocation from family and friends. Her husband, Joseph Wilson (Sean Penn), writes a controversial article in The New York Times, refuting stories about the sale of enriched uranium to Iraq, Then Valerie’s secret work and identity is leaked to the press. With her cover blown and other people endangered, Valerie’s career and personal life begin to unravel.
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7 .) Mission: Impossible (1996)
Lists It Appears On:
- Best Thillers
- IMDB
- Movie Mavs
- Ranker
When Ethan Hunt, the leader of a crack espionage team whose perilous operation has gone awry with no explanation, discovers that a mole has penetrated the CIA, he’s surprised to learn that he’s the No. 1 suspect. To clear his name, Hunt now must ferret out the real double agent and, in the process, even the score.
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6 .) Munich (2005)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- NBC
- Ranker
During the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, eleven Israeli athletes are taken hostage and murdered by a Palestinian terrorist group known as Black September. In retaliation, the Israeli government recruits a group of Mossad agents to track down and execute those responsible for the attack.
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5 .) Spy Game (2001)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Movie Mavs
- Ranker
Veteran spy Nathan Muir is on the verge of retiring from the CIA when he learns that his one-time protégé and close friend, Tom Bishop, is a political prisoner sentenced to die in Beijing. Although their friendship has been marred by bad blood and resentment, Muir agrees to take on the most dangerous mission of his career and rescue Bishop.
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4 .) Syriana (2005)
Lists It Appears On:
- Best Thillers
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Ranker
The Middle Eastern oil industry is the backdrop of this tense drama, which weaves together numerous story lines. Bennett Holiday is an American lawyer in charge of facilitating a dubious merger of oil companies, while Bryan Woodman, a Switzerland-based energy analyst, experiences both personal tragedy and opportunity during a visit with Arabian royalty. Meanwhile, veteran CIA agent Bob Barnes uncovers an assassination plot with unsettling origins.
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3 .) The Bourne Supremacy (2004)
Lists It Appears On:
- Best Thillers
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Ranker
When a CIA operation to purchase classified Russian documents is blown by a rival agent, who then shows up in the sleepy seaside village where Bourne and Marie have been living. The pair run for their lives and Bourne, who promised retaliation should anyone from his former life attempt contact, is forced to once again take up his life as a trained assassin to survive.
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2 .) Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
Lists It Appears On:
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- Movie Mavs
- Ranker
A chronicle of the decade-long hunt for al-Qaeda terrorist leader Osama bin Laden after the September 2001 attacks, and his death at the hands of the Navy S.E.A.L. Team 6 in May, 2011.
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1 .) The Good Shepard (2008)
Lists It Appears On:
- Best Thillers
- IMDB
- IMDB 2
- NBC
- Ranker
- Wikipedia
Edward Wilson (Damon) believes in America, and will sacrifice everything he loves to protect it. But as one of the covert founders of the CIA, Edward’s youthful idealism is slowly eroded by his growing suspicion of the people around him.
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The 100+ Additional Best Movies About The C.I.A.
| # | Movie | Lists |
| (Titles Appear On 2 Lists each) | ||
| 27 | Act of Valor (2012) | IMDB |
| IMDB 2 | ||
| 28 | Breach (2005) | Ranker |
| Movie Mavs | ||
| 29 | Burn After Reading (2008) |
Best Thillers
|
| IMDB | ||
| 30 | Casino Royale (2006) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 31 | Colombiana (2011) | IMDB |
| IMDB 2 | ||
| 32 | Erased (2012) | IMDB |
| IMDB 2 | ||
| 33 | Green Zone (2010) | IMDB |
| IMDB 2 | ||
| 34 | Jason Bourne (2016) | IMDB |
| IMDB 2 | ||
| 35 | Law Abiding Citizen (2009) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 36 | Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011) | IMDB |
| Ranker | ||
| 37 | Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015) | IMDB |
| IMDB 2 | ||
| 38 | Mission: Impossible II (2000) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 39 | Mission: Impossible III (2006) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 40 | Olympus Has Fallen (2013) | IMDB |
| IMDB 2 | ||
| 41 | Once Upon a Time in Mexico (2003) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 42 | Patriot Games (1992) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 43 | RED (2010) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 44 | RED 2 (2013) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 45 | Ronin (1998) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 46 | Taken (2008) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 47 | Taken 3 (2014) | Ranker |
| IMDB 2 | ||
| 48 | The A-Team (2010) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 49 | The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 50 | The Expendables (2010) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 51 | The Kingdom (2007) | IMDB |
| IMDB 2 | ||
| 52 | The Men Who Stare at Goats (2009) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 53 | The November Man (2014) | IMDB |
| IMDB 2 | ||
| 54 | The Quiet American (2002) | Wikipedia |
| IMDB | ||
| 55 | The Sum of All Fears (2002) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 56 | Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 57 | Traitor (2008) | IMDB |
| IMDB 2 | ||
| 58 | True Lies (1994) | Ranker |
| IMDB | ||
| 59 | Vantage Point (2008) | IMDB |
| IMDB 2 | ||
| 60 | White House Down (2013) | IMDB |
| IMDB 2 | ||
| (Titles Appear On 1 Lists each) | ||
| 61 | 13 Hours (2016) | IMDB |
| 62 | 2 Guns (2013) | IMDB |
| 63 | 24 Hours to Live (2017) | IMDB |
| 64 | 3 Days to Kill (2014) | IMDB |
| 65 | A Good Day to Die Hard (2013) | IMDB |
| 66 | Abduction (I) (2011) | IMDB |
| 67 | All the President’s Men | Ranker |
| 68 | Allied (2016) | IMDB 2 |
| 69 | American Assassin (2017) | IMDB |
| 70 | American Gangster (2007) | IMDB 2 |
| 71 | American Made (2017) | IMDB |
| 72 | American Ultra (2015) | IMDB |
| 73 | Apocalypse Now (1979) | IMDB |
| 74 | Atomic Blonde (2017) | IMDB |
| 75 | Bad Company (2002) | IMDB |
| 76 | Brooklyn’s Finest (2009) | IMDB 2 |
| 77 | Carlos | NBC |
| 78 | Charles Wilson | Wikipedia |
| 79 | Collateral Damage (2002) | IMDB |
| 80 | Conspiracy Theory (1997) | IMDB |
| 81 | Daniel | NBC |
| 82 | Deja Vu (2006) | IMDB 2 |
| 83 | Die Another Day (2002) | IMDB |
| 84 | Dr. No | Ranker |
| 85 | Dying of the Light (2014) | IMDB |
| 86 | Eagle Eye (2008) | IMDB 2 |
| 87 | Eye in the Sky (2015) | IMDB 2 |
| 88 | From Paris with Love (2010) | IMDB |
| 89 | Graham Greene | Wikipedia |
| 90 | Hanna (2011) | IMDB |
| 91 | Hannibal (2001) | IMDB 2 |
| 92 | Hitman (I) (2007) | IMDB |
| 93 | In the Line of Fire (1993) | IMDB |
| 94 | Inside Man (2006) | IMDB 2 |
| 95 | Jack Reacher (2012) | IMDB 2 |
| 96 | Jack Reacher: Never Go Back (2016) | IMDB 2 |
| 97 | Kill the Messenger (2014) | IMDB |
| 98 | Knight and Day (2010) | IMDB |
| 99 | Lockout (2012) | IMDB |
| 100 | London Has Fallen (2016) | IMDB 2 |
| 101 | Man on Fire (2004) | IMDB |
| 102 | Patriots Day (2016) | IMDB 2 |
| 103 | Point Break (1991) | IMDB 2 |
| 104 | Red Dragon (2002) | IMDB 2 |
| 105 | Rendition (2007) | IMDB |
| 106 | Robert De Niro | Wikipedia |
| 107 | Scandal | NBC |
| 108 | Se7en (1995) | IMDB 2 |
| 109 | Shooter (I) (2007) | IMDB 2 |
| 110 | Sicario (2015) | IMDB |
| 111 | Snowden (2016) | IMDB |
| 112 | Spies Like Us | Ranker |
| 113 | Swordfish (2001) | IMDB |
| 114 | The American (2010) | IMDB |
| 115 | The Call (II) (2013) | IMDB 2 |
| 116 | The Cold Light of Day (2012) | IMDB |
| 117 | The Company | Wikipedia |
| 118 | The Day of the Jackal | NBC |
| 119 | The Debt (I) (2010) | IMDB |
| 120 | The Departed (2006) | IMDB 2 |
| 121 | The Double (I) (2011) | IMDB |
| 122 | The Equalizer | Ranker |
| 123 | The Falcon and the Snowman | NBC |
| 124 | The Ghost Writer (2010) | IMDB |
| 125 | The Guardian | Wikipedia |
| 126 | The International (I) (2009) | IMDB |
| 127 | The Losers (I) (2010) | IMDB |
| 128 | The Man from UNCLE | IMDB |
| 129 | The Sentinel (2006) | IMDB |
| 130 | The Siege (1998) | IMDB |
| 131 | The Silence of the Lambs (1991) | IMDB 2 |
| 132 | The X Files: I Want to Believe (2008) | IMDB 2 |
| 133 | Three Days of the Condor | Ranker |
| 134 | Training Day (2001) | IMDB 2 |
| 135 | Unknown (I) (2011) | IMDB |
| 136 | Untraceable (2008) | IMDB 2 |
| 137 | X-Men: First Class (2011) | IMDB |
| 138 | xXx: State of the Union (2005) | IMDB |
| 139 | Zero Days (2016) | IMDB |
7 Best CIA Film Sources/Lists
| Source | Article |
| Best Thrillers | CIA – Top 10 Movies about the CIA – top10thrillers.com |
| IMDB | Best CIA, NSA, Secret Service Movies – IMDb |
| IMDB 2 | My favorite/best CIA, FBI, Secret service movies! – IMDb |
| Movie Mavs | Top 5 Best CIA Spy Movies – Movie Mavericks Podcast |
| NBC | “Argo” and 8 Other Real-Life Spy Movies – NBC4 Washington |
| Ranker | Best CIA Movies | List of Top CIA Spy Films – Ranker |
| Wikipedia | CIA in fiction – Wikipedia |
