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| Movies Like Mayday You Need to Watch Next |
If Mayday (2026) left you wanting more wisecracking heroes, unlikely partnerships, Cold War danger and the sort of ridiculous escape plan that somehow works, there is plenty to watch next. Apple TV’s action comedy mixes Ryan Reynolds’ fast-talking charm with Kenneth Branagh’s eccentric turn as an ex-KGB officer, while its 1980s setting, military pursuit and fish-out-of-water humour give it a distinctly old-school adventure feel. Here are 23 movies that hit similar notes, whether through buddy chemistry, espionage, survival, action comedy or characters who really should not be trusted to organise a road trip.
Fans’ reactions to Mayday naturally vary. Some viewers are likely to enjoy its throwback blockbuster spirit, rapid-fire humour and odd-couple dynamic, while others may find its deliberately broad approach a little too comfortable with familiar action-comedy territory. That split is precisely why similar films are worth exploring: depending on which part of Mayday worked for you, there are plenty of alternatives that push the same ingredients in very different directions.
Movies Like MAYDAY
1. Midnight Run (1988)
Midnight Run is probably one of the clearest choices for anyone who enjoyed the mismatched partnership at the centre of Mayday. Robert De Niro plays a bounty hunter forced to transport Charles Grodin’s nervous accountant across the United States, with criminals, police and various complications making the journey considerably harder than expected.
Like Mayday, it turns a dangerous journey into a character-driven comedy where two people who would rather be almost anywhere else gradually develop an unexpected bond. It also has the same glorious feeling that everything is going wrong at precisely the worst possible moment.
2. Air Force One (1997)
If the military and aviation side of Mayday was what caught your attention, Air Force One offers a much more serious version of the formula. Harrison Ford plays the US president, who must take matters into his own hands after his aircraft is seized during a crisis.
The film lacks Mayday’s deliberately cheeky humour, but it shares the aviation setting, political tension, escalating pursuit and lone-hero energy. It is essentially what happens when the jokes are removed and someone decides the president should personally sort out the entire situation.
3. Top Gun (1986)
The influence of 1980s aviation blockbusters is central to Mayday, making Top Gun an obvious next stop. Tom Cruise stars as Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, a talented but impulsive Navy pilot navigating elite training, rivalry and personal complications.
The two films approach their stories differently, but both lean heavily into military aviation, confident pilots and the unmistakable style of the decade. If Mayday’s fighter-jet sequences made you want more aircraft rather than fewer, this is where you should head.
4. The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (2015)
The Man from U.N.C.L.E. takes Cold War espionage and gives it a slick, playful makeover. Henry Cavill plays CIA agent Napoleon Solo, while Armie Hammer is Soviet operative Illya Kuryakin, forcing two very different men to work together against a larger threat.
That uneasy cooperation makes it especially comparable to the relationship between Troy and Nikolai in Mayday. The biggest difference is that these spies are considerably better dressed, which is probably unfair to anyone trying to survive in the frozen Russian wilderness.
5. Red Notice (2021)
Red Notice brings together action, comedy and a trio of characters who spend nearly as much time annoying one another as they do escaping trouble. Dwayne Johnson, Ryan Reynolds and Gal Gadot lead a globe-spanning adventure involving competing agendas and elaborate schemes.
Reynolds’ presence makes the comparison with Mayday particularly easy, but the bigger connection is the film’s willingness to let comedy sit directly alongside large-scale action. If you liked the fast-talking energy of Troy, this is an uncomplicated follow-up.
6. Spy (2015)
Spy puts espionage through a much more comedic lens, following Melissa McCarthy as CIA analyst Susan Cooper when she is unexpectedly pushed into field work. The film combines undercover missions, international locations, physical comedy and a protagonist who is considerably less prepared than the situation demands. Like Mayday, it understands that espionage does not always have to be grim and serious to produce entertaining action. Sometimes the most effective plan is simply surviving long enough to reach the next scene.
7. The Nice Guys (2016)
The Nice Guys swaps Cold War espionage for 1970s Los Angeles, but its chaotic partnership makes it an excellent match. Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe play two investigators with very different personalities who become entangled in a conspiracy much bigger than either expected.
The chemistry between the leads carries the film, much like the unlikely relationship between Troy and Nikolai. It is another example of two people who are barely functional separately somehow becoming surprisingly effective together.
8. Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)
For viewers who want the spy elements of Mayday with considerably more style, Kingsman: The Secret Service delivers. Taron Egerton plays a young recruit entering a highly unconventional intelligence organisation, while Colin Firth provides the polished veteran presence. The film combines espionage, comedy, gadgets and extravagant action with a playful attitude towards classic spy cinema. It is less interested in Cold War realism than Mayday, but both understand that a serious mission becomes more entertaining when the characters refuse to behave seriously.
9. The Lost City (2022)
The Lost City follows a romance novelist and a model who find themselves caught up in a real adventure after being dragged into a dangerous search for treasure. Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum carry the film with an odd-couple dynamic that becomes increasingly chaotic as the journey continues.
The connection to Mayday comes through the unlikely partnership, fish-out-of-water humour and constant attempts to stay alive while surrounded by people who appear far more prepared. Naturally, everything becomes worse before it gets better.
10. 6 Underground (2019)
6 Underground is the choice for viewers who want the action dialled considerably higher. Ryan Reynolds leads a team of supposedly dead individuals who operate outside the normal structures of government while attempting to take down a powerful regime. The story jumps between missions, elaborate set pieces and plenty of Reynolds-style humour. It shares Mayday’s combination of large-scale action and sarcastic dialogue, although 6 Underground is far less interested in quietly exploring an unlikely friendship.
11. The Hitman’s Bodyguard (2017)
The Hitman’s Bodyguard puts Ryan Reynolds opposite Samuel L. Jackson in another deliberately dysfunctional partnership. Reynolds plays a security specialist forced to protect Jackson’s unpredictable hitman while travelling through Europe. The two men constantly argue, insult each other and somehow manage to remain alive despite making almost every situation more complicated. Anyone who enjoyed Mayday for the Troy-Nikolai relationship will recognise the same basic idea: put two incompatible personalities together and see how long it takes before the chaos becomes teamwork.
12. The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard (2021)
The sequel The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard expands the formula by adding Salma Hayek to the already unstable mix. The story again relies on frantic escapes, international locations and characters whose biggest obstacle may be their own personalities. It is not as closely connected to the Cold War side of Mayday, but it shares the same broad action-comedy philosophy. If the idea of competent professionals being repeatedly undermined by their own ridiculous behaviour appeals to you, this one knows exactly what it is doing.
13. Spy Game (2001)
Spy Game takes the espionage side of the equation much more seriously. Robert Redford plays CIA officer Nathan Muir, who attempts to save a former operative, played by Brad Pitt, while dealing with political complications inside the agency. Its Cold War backdrop, intelligence operations and shifting loyalties provide a more grounded alternative to Mayday. There are fewer jokes and far more quiet conversations about espionage, but the shared world of intelligence agencies and international manoeuvring makes it a strong choice.
14. Three Kings (1999)
Three Kings follows three American soldiers in the aftermath of the Gulf War as they discover a plan involving stolen Iraqi gold. George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg and Ice Cube lead a darkly comic military adventure that mixes action with satire and an increasingly unpredictable journey. Much like Mayday, it places ordinary human relationships against a larger geopolitical backdrop and allows the characters to question the narratives surrounding them. The result is a military film that refuses to behave exactly like one.
15. Tropic Thunder (2008)
Tropic Thunder is technically about actors pretending to be soldiers, but its action-comedy chaos makes it surprisingly compatible with Mayday. Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr. and Jack Black lead an ensemble trapped in a dangerous situation after their fake movie starts resembling something far more real. The characters are wildly unprepared, egotistical and frequently ridiculous, yet they have to work together. It is essentially a reminder that teamwork does not necessarily require people to like one another.
16. The Rock (1996)
The Rock combines military action, espionage and an unlikely partnership between Nicolas Cage and Sean Connery. When a former British intelligence operative teams up with an FBI chemist to prevent a crisis on Alcatraz Island, the pair have very different skills and personalities but little choice except to cooperate. The connection with Mayday lies in that forced alliance and the mixture of serious stakes with moments of dry humour. It also delivers the kind of unapologetically muscular 1990s action that Mayday clearly looks back towards.
17. Argo (2012)
Argo is another strong option if the geopolitical and escape elements of Mayday appealed more than its comedy. Ben Affleck directs and stars as a CIA operative attempting to extract Americans from revolutionary Iran using an elaborate cover operation. The film is far more grounded and tense, but both stories involve American intelligence interests, international danger and a desperate attempt to move people through territory where they are not welcome. It is the sort of film that proves a fake plan can become remarkably complicated when everyone's survival depends on it.
18. Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre (2023)
Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre brings together Jason Statham, Aubrey Plaza, Hugh Grant and Josh Hartnett for a globe-trotting intelligence mission involving an unusual team and plenty of dry humour. Its polished action, eccentric characters and playful spy-movie attitude make it an easy recommendation for Mayday viewers. The film is less concerned with realism than with keeping the momentum going, which is very much part of the appeal. Sometimes you just need a group of highly capable people making increasingly questionable decisions at speed.
19. The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare (2024)
The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare follows a covert team assembled during the Second World War for missions that conventional forces could not easily handle. Henry Cavill leads an ensemble built around contrasting personalities, unconventional tactics and a healthy disregard for doing things the ordinary way. Like Mayday, it mixes historical conflict with swaggering humour and action, while making the team dynamic just as important as the mission itself. The period is different, but the old-school adventure spirit is strikingly similar.
20. The A-Team (2010)
The A-Team turns military action into a full-scale comic-book-style adventure, following four former soldiers who become fugitives after being framed for a crime they did not commit. Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Quinton Jackson and Sharlto Copley form the central team, with each member bringing a different brand of chaos to the operation. Its combination of military hardware, elaborate escapes and comedy makes it a natural recommendation for anyone who enjoyed the lighter side of Mayday. Logic occasionally takes a holiday, but the explosions apparently remembered to pack.
21. Hunt for the Red October (1990)
The Hunt for Red October is a more serious Cold War thriller, centred on a Soviet submarine captain attempting to defect while American intelligence tries to understand his intentions. Sean Connery and Alec Baldwin lead a tense story built around military strategy, mistrust and the possibility of catastrophic consequences. It lacks Mayday’s comedy and road-trip structure, but its Cold War atmosphere and clash between American and Soviet interests make it an especially relevant companion watch.
22. American Made (2017)
American Made stars Tom Cruise as Barry Seal, a pilot whose involvement with covert government operations turns his life into an increasingly absurd adventure. The film blends aviation, political intrigue, crime and dark humour while presenting a protagonist who continually finds himself deeper in trouble than before. Its connection to Mayday is obvious through the pilot at the centre of a dangerous international story, although Seal's world is considerably less straightforward than Troy's. If you enjoyed watching a pilot navigate situations that seem to become more ridiculous by the minute, this is worth adding to the queue.
23. The Last Boy Scout (1991)
The Last Boy Scout closes the list with another Bruce Willis-led action comedy built around an unlikely partnership. Willis plays a private investigator who joins forces with a former American football player after a case develops into something much larger. The film combines sarcasm, action, conspiracy and two men who would probably benefit from a quiet afternoon but instead find themselves surrounded by trouble. Its cynical humour and buddy dynamic make it a fitting final recommendation for viewers who liked Mayday for the personalities as much as the explosions.
For viewers looking for the closest overall match, Midnight Run, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., The Hitman’s Bodyguard, The A-Team and Top Gun are probably the strongest places to start. They cover the major ingredients that make Mayday distinctive: unlikely partnerships, military or intelligence intrigue, fast-moving escapes, aviation and plenty of humour when everyone probably ought to be concentrating. Which of these films comes closest to the Mayday experience for you, and which one deserves to be added to the list?