Schwarzenegger, Willis, Stallone, Cruise, Reeves; for anyone that absolutely loves action-movies (like myself), these names will no doubt bring back memories of some of the greatest movies ever released.
I must have watched hundreds of action-movies, and whenever I see a movie poster for an upcoming action-film, I can’t help but feel a sense of excitement and anticipation (especially if it stars Schwarzenegger or Stallone – my two all-time favourites).
Below, I’ve rounded up some of the best, most memorable (for me, at least) action-movie posters of all-time; hopefully they’ll bring back some memories (and remember, you can get them printed over at one of the many poster printing companies like FastPrint if you like any of them).
#1 – 300
300 tells the story of the Battle of Thermopylae, in which King Leonidas and his army of 300 men fight the Persian king, Xerxes, with his army of more than 300,000 soldiers.
It’s a brutal and action-packed movie with its fair share of bloody and gruesome scenes, and the poster sets you up for this beautifully.
It features imagery of soldiers being pushed off a cliff by King Leonidas and his army, plus bright red typography (which illustrates the bloody nature of the film) and blood splatters-a-plenty.
Also, the poster features the tagline, “Prepare for glory”, which perhaps more appropriately should read, “Prepare for gory”.
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#2 – Bad Boys II
Believe it or not, it’s over 10 years since the release of Bad Boys II (2003), and I personally remember going to see it the day it was released, where I certainly wasn’t disappointed.
Bad Boys II is actually more of an action-comedy, although it has it’s fair share of action-packed scenes, including the classic car chase sequence, which has Michael Bay (the Director) written all over it.
The poster screams action, too, featuring a cool looking Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, both casually walking away from a ball of fire.
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#3 – Drive
Drive was only released four years ago, but it’s already gone on to become one of the most iconic action-movies of all time.
It might not be a classic, blood-splattered, all-guns-blazing type of action-movie – and Ryan Gosling might say very little throughout the entire movie – but when an action scene does take place, it’s really something special.
Movie poster-wise, it’s much the same story, opting for an understated 1980’s-inspired theme rather than the classic, somewhat over-the-top action movie poster.
Ryan Gosling’s jacket is perhaps the most iconic aspect of this poster.
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#4 – Bourne Ultimatum
The Bourne Ultimatum was released in 2007, and was the third Bourne movie in the series.
The interesting thing about this poster is that it seemingly breaks every rule in the book, by having the main star of the movie (Matt Damon) showing just the back of his head, and nothing else.
It’s a concept that likely wouldn’t have worked so well for any other action movie, but considering the fact that the previous two Bourne movies were so successful, we don’t need to see Matt Damon’s face to know that it’s him.
Even the back of Damon’s head is enough to excite any true Bourne fan.
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#5 – Iron Man
Iron Man is another movie with a poster that seemingly breaks all of the rules, but for a different reason: the poster doesn’t actually tell you the name of the movie at all.
Instead, it shows nothing more than the Iron Man mask, along with the date of release. There’s not even a mention of the films main star (Robert Downey Jr.), which is certainly a bit of a risk from a marketing standpoint.
However, Iron Man is such an iconic action-hero that the movie poster needs to do little more than let people know that Iron Man is coming to the big-screen, along with the date of release.
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#6 – Rambo: First Blood
For me, personally, Rambo: First Blood has to be the greatest action-movie of all time (or at least one of the greatest).
I remember watching this movie when it was first released back in 1982 (which is over 30 years ago, might I add!) and being absolutely blown away not only by Stallone’s performance, but also the ridiculously graphic nature of the movie itself.
The movie poster for First Blood is also pretty iconic (at least to me), as it features an illustrated Stallone as Rambo, holding the biggest gun you’ve ever seen.
It also features the slogan, “this time he’s fighting for his life”, which sets up the overall premise of the movie.
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#7 – Die Hard
Die Hard tells the story of New York cop, John McClane, who ends up in a situation where he single-handedly has to defeat a large group of terrorists. The odds are against him, but in true action-movie style, he pulls it off beautifully.
The movie poster for the film is quite simple, and features an iconic shot of Bruce Willis (John McClane) holding a gun, with a menacing look on his face.
It also features the rather lengthy strapline, “Twelve terrorists. One Cop. The odds are against John McClane… That’s just the way he likes it.”
It might not be the catchiest of movie poster straplines ever, but it does introduce the premise of the movie (and the character of John McClane) in perfect detail.
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#8 – Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol is actually the fourth movie in the Mission Impossible franchise, and it certainly has one of the most iconic movie posters of all-time.
It depicts Tom Cruise (the movies main star) clinging from the tallest building in the world by one hand, which is actually a teaser for one of the most gripping scenes in the movie.
However, perhaps the thing that makes this poster even more iconic is the fact that Tom Cruise actually did this (i.e. it isn’t “Photoshopped”).
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#9 – The Mechanic
There’s no doubt about it; Jason Statham is action-movie royalty these days, and in my opinion, his 2011-movie The Mechanic goes down as one of the greatest action movies of recent years.
It also has one of the coolest posters, depicting nothing more than an illustration of a gun, made-up of other guns. There’s even a gun-trigger, too.
It would have been so easy to go down the classic movie-poster route here and feature Statham’s instantly recognisable face, but this gun-illustration is definitely much more standout.
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#10 – Quantum of Solace
There have been some absolutely stunning James Bond movie posters over the years, but this poster for the 2008 movie, Quantum of Solace, is undoubtedly one of the best.
It depicts nothing more than a shadow of a man holding a large weapon, yet it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to make the connection: this is James Bond holding the weapon.
Once again, it’s a tease of a poster that builds anticipation for the latest release in one of the most successful movie franchises of all-time.
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