From The Gray Man to Rocky IV
In Netflix’s $200 million action flick The Gray Man, now streaming, MCU stalwart Chris Evans goes head-to-head with fellow Hollywood headliner Ryan Gosling.
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With this cinematic showdown likely to become one of the most buzzworthy streaming titles of the summer, I’ve assembled 25 other face-offs between the biggest names in contemporary cinema that you should see for a quick fix of hard-hitting movie goodness.
1.
Common vs. Keanu Reeves, John Wick: Chapter 2
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Shooting, stabbing, and old-fashioned fisticuffs punctuate this brutal, multi-location fight sequence between Keanu Reeves’ badass assassin and Common’s deadly (and dedicated) counterpart in the second John Wick film.
2.
Tom Hardy vs. Christian Bale, The Dark Knight Rises
3.
Chadwick Boseman vs. Michael B. Jordan, Black Panther
4.
Michael Fassbender vs. Gina Carano, Haywire
5.
Daniel Craig vs. Dave Bautista, Spectre
6.
Sylvester Stallone vs. Dolph Lundgren, Rocky IV
7.
Clive Owen vs. Matt Damon, The Bourne Identity
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There’s no denying Matt Damon has had better fight sequences throughout the Bourne franchise, but his brief but captivating face-off with Clive Owen in The Bourne Identity remains a tone-setting benchmark for suspense within the franchise’s first entry.
8.
Michelle Yeoh vs. Zhang Ziyi, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
9.
Brad Pitt vs. Eric Bana, Troy
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In one of the most pulse-pounding swordfights in movie history, Troy pitted Brad Pitt against Eric Bana, both at the height of their respective fame, against one another in a clash that felt exciting and savage despite anyone familiar with the Achilles tale already knowing of the outcome.
10.
Milla Jovovich vs. Tony Jaa, Monster Hunter
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In one of the more recent entries on this list, this incredibly fun yet overlooked monster movie also features a fun and occasionally humorous fight sequence that you never knew you needed between the aerodynamic Ong Bak star Tony Jaa and the rugged Resident Evil mainstay Milla Jovovich.
11.
Seann William Scott vs. Liev Schreiber, Goon
12.
Thomas Jane vs. Kevin Nash, The Punisher
13.
Jean-Claude Van Damme vs. Scott Adkins, Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning
14.
Jason Momoa vs. Sylvester Stallone, Bullet to the Head
15.
Choi Min-sik vs. Lee Byung-hun, I Saw the Devil
16.
Ryan Reynolds vs. Joel Kinneman, Safe House
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Though this R-rated action thriller sported some pretty decent shootout set pieces, Ryan Reynolds and Joel Kinnaman’s intense knockdown, drag-out fistfight is the clear-cut highlight of Safe House.
17.
Brad Pitt vs. Angelina Jolie, Mr. and Mrs. Smith
18.
N.T. Rama Rao Jr. vs. Ram Charan, RRR
19.
Jackie Chan vs. Jet Li, The Forbidden Kingdom
20.
Uma Thurman vs. Vivica A. Fox, Kill Bill, Volume 1
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Quentin Tarantino set the tone for his kick-ass two-part love letter to the kung-fu and action films of yesteryear with this outstanding face-off between former assassins “Black Mamba” (Uma Thurman) and “Cottonmouth” (Vivica A. Fox).
21.
John Travolta vs. Nicolas Cage, Face/Off
22.
Tom Hardy vs. Joel Edgerton, Warrior
23.
Michael Cera vs. Jason Schwartzman, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
24.
Robert Downey Jr. vs. Chris Evans, Captain America: Civil War
25.
Vin Diesel vs. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Fast Five
