The thriller genre has been a strong genre for Netflix for a long time now, with the streaming service producing some of the most acclaimed shows and movies in recent years. With their gripping plotlines and complex characters, Netflix’s thriller movies have a reputation for entertaining and suspenseful storytelling, and they regularly rank among the service’s most anticipated releases of each year. 2026 looks all set to continue that trend, with several intriguing thrillers set to arrive on the service in the coming months.
Netflix’s thriller movie line-up for the year includes a number of exciting projects featuring some of the biggest names in the industry today, as well as the returns of some of their most popular franchises. These films cover a broad and varied range of styles and sub-genres, promising to deliver something for everyone. So, without further ado, here’s our selection of the most exciting thriller movies coming to Netflix in 2026.
8
‘War Machine’
Release Date: March 6
Not to be confused with the 2017 Brad Pitt-starrer of the same name, War Machine is an all-new sci-fi action thriller directed, co-produced, and co-written by Patrick Hughes. The film follows an elite team of US Army Rangers during the final stage of selection. Their last grueling mission turns into a fight for survival against an unimaginable alien threat, as a combat engineer leads his unit against a deadly killing force from another world.
War Machine boasts an ensemble cast led by Alan Ritchson, with Dennis Quaid, Stephan James, Jai Courtney, Esai Morales, Keiynan Lonsdale, Jarryd Goundrey, and Daniel Webber playing key roles. Based on the film’s trailer, the movie looks like it will be an adrenaline-pumping survival thriller about a group of highly skilled soldiers fighting an otherworldly killing machine. Following its theatrical premiere in Australia in February 2026, War Machine will make its streaming debut on Netflix in March 2026.
7
‘Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man’
Release Date: March 20
A British crime drama directed by Tom Harper and written by Steven Knight, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man is a film sequel to Knight’s cult hit television series Peaky Blinders. Set in a devastated Birmingham during World War II, The Immortal Man sees Tommy Shelby returning from his self-imposed exile to battle new threats and save his family — and possibly even country. Cillian Murphy reprises his iconic role of Tommy Shelby, with Sophie Rundle, Ned Dennehy, Packy Lee, Ian Peck, and Stephen Graham also returning. Rebecca Ferguson, Tim Roth, Jay Lycurgo, and Barry Keoghan join as new cast members.
Easily one of the most highly anticipated films of 2026, The Immortal Man will continue the story of the Peaky Blinders gang in an explosive new chapter. As the film’s trailer suggests, Tommy’s return to his home ground is going to be his biggest challenge yet, as he must face his dark legacy and confront his estranged son, the new gang leader, as well as fascist threats connected to the Nazis. Following its limited theatrical release on March 6, 2026, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man will make its streaming debut on March 20, 2026, exclusively on Netflix.
6
‘Apex’
Release Date: March 24
Directed by Baltasar Kormákur (Katla, Beast) and written by Jeremy Robbins, Apex is a survival action thriller film that follows Sasha, a rock climber who is seeking solace from her grief in the Australian wilderness. But when she suddenly becomes the target of a ruthless, clever hunter, Sasha must run for her life while outwitting her attacker. Charlize Theron stars as the protagonist and serves as the film’s producer, with Taron Egerton as the hunter and Eric Bana in an undisclosed role.
Set in the foreboding, rugged Australian landscape, Apex looks set to be a chilling survivalist thriller, where the protagonist’s limits are put to the test in the most brutal ways imaginable. The film’s pulse-pounding trailer gives a peek at Theron and Egerton’s characters and the deadly game of predator and prey that ensues between them. Apex will be the first of Theron’s 2026 films, soon to be followed by Christopher Nolan’s highly anticipated The Odyssey, where she plays the Greek mythological character Circe.
5
‘The Whisper Man’
Release Date: Summer 2026
Directed by James Ashcroft, The Whisper Man is a crime thriller film based on the bestselling novel by Alex North. Following the abduction of his eight-year-old son, a widowed crime writer seeks the help of his estranged father, a retired police officer, only to discover that his son’s kidnapping is connected to the decades-old case of the titular serial killer. The film features an ensemble cast led by Robert De Niro, Adam Scott, Michelle Monaghan, and Michael Keaton, with John Carroll Lynch, Hamish Linklater, Owen Teague, and Acston Luca Porto in important roles.
The Whisper Man marks De Niro’s first film of 2026, and second Netflix project following 2025’s Zero Day. It’s produced by Anthony and Joe Russo’s AGBO Films. Not a lot is known about the movie at the moment, but Netflix has described the film as essentially a story about a father-son relationship built around a chilling crime thriller. Although there is no confirmed release date for the film at the time of writing, The Whisper Man is slated to be part of Netflix’s Summer 2026 schedule.
4
‘Animals’
Release Date: TBD
Directed by Ben Affleck, who also co-wrote it with Connor O. McIntyre and Billy Ray, Animals is a crime thriller film that follows Milo Bradford, a Los Angeles mayoral candidate, whose son is suddenly kidnapped. With only a few hours to arrange the ransom money and most of their money spent on his mayoral campaign, Milo and his wife are forced to make choices that they never thought they would have to consider. Ben Affleck stars in the film as Milo Bradford, with Gillian Anderson as his wife and Kerry Washington as his campaign manager. The movie also features Steven Yeun, Adriana Paz, Ray Fisher, Matt Gerald, and Luis Gerardo Méndez in notable roles.
Animals marks Affleck’s second film of 2026, following Joe Carnahan’s Netflix film RIP, co-starring Matt Damon. Packed with dark and dirty secrets, political power play, and deception, Animals is expected to be a gritty crime thriller with an intensely dramatic narrative. While we’re still short on details about this movie, considering the star power involved, the film is easily one of Netflix’s most intriguing releases of the year.
3
‘11817’
Release Date: TBD
Directed by French filmmaker Louis Leterrier and written by Matthew Robinson, 11817 is a sci-fi horror film that follows a family who suddenly and mysteriously get sealed inside their house with no way out. As modern amenities and essentials begin to run out, the four family members must work together to survive by being resourceful, while also trying to outsmart the inexplicable force that is keeping them trapped. The film stars Greta Lee, Wagner Moura, Gabriel Barbosa, Emma Ho, Noah Alexander Sosnowski, and Riley Chung.
A sci-fi survival thriller, 11817 turns a family’s home into a death trap, challenging the notion of a comfortable living space. As described by the filmmaker himself, the movie “is an ordinary family’s worst nightmare, pushing them to their limits to protect each other and exposing the fragility of security.” 11817 marks Leterrier’s first project of 2026, and Robinson’s second film following Gore Verbinski’s sci-fi comedy Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die, which premiered in February 2026.
2
‘UNABOM’
Release Date: TBD
Directed by Danish filmmaker Janus Metz Pederson, UNABOM is inspired by the real-life story of Ted Kaczynski, aka the Unabomber, a lone wolf domestic terrorist who terrified the country between 1978 and 1995. The film focuses on Kaczynski’s life as he transforms from a mathematics prodigy at Harvard to an infamous, anarchic killer, exploring how an FBI-led manhunt brings his troubled past to light. The film stars Jacob Tremblay as the titular antagonist, with Russell Crowe portraying Harvard professor Henry Murray. The movie also features Shailene Woodley, Annabelle Wallis, Alexander Ludwig, Steven Ogg, and Marc Menchaca in supporting roles.
There have been several films and shows about the life and crimes of the Unabomber, but Netflix’s UNABOM promises a deeper insight into Ted Kaczynski’s personal life before he became a hunted criminal. Inspired by true events, the film explores themes of isolation and ambition and how the two can end up destroying a person. According to the director, “UNABOM is a story about a young man who feels increasingly disenfranchised by society and decides to take up violence as a means of revenge.”
1
‘Enola Holmes 3’
Release Date: Summer 2026
A mystery adventure thriller directed by Philip Barantini and written by Jack Thorne, Enola Holmes 3 is a much-awaited sequel to the 2022 film, Enola Holmes 2, and the third film in the series. The film follows a new sleuthing adventure of the now-famous titular teenage detective, the younger sister to Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes, who heads to Malta to solve her most complicated case yet. Millie Bobby Brown returns as Enola, with Louis Patridge as her love interest, Tewkesbury. The film will also see Himesh Patel, Sharon Duncan-Brewster, Henry Cavill, and Helena Bonham Carter reprising their roles from the previous movies.
Youthful and highly entertaining, Netflix’s Enola Holmes franchise is a film adaptation of the book series The Enola Holmes Mysteries by Nancy Springer. Essentially a pastiche series, the books have no connection to the original Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; rather, they borrow their characters and settings from the canon of Sherlock Holmes, some of which have been loosely adapted into previous films. Enola Holmes 3 is expected to be an adaptation of the book The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets, with Dr. John Watson assuming an important role following his introduction at the end of Enola Holmes 2.