The spy film, also known as the spy thriller, is a genre of film that deals with the subject of fictional

espionage Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering, as a subfield of the intelligence field, is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information ( intelligence). A person who commits espionage on a mission-specific contract is called an ...

, either in a realistic way (such as the adaptations of John le Carré) or as a basis for fantasy (such as many

James Bond The ''James Bond'' franchise focuses on James Bond (literary character), the titular character, a fictional Secret Intelligence Service, British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels ...

films). Many novels in the

spy fiction Spy fiction is a genre of literature involving espionage as an important context or plot device. It emerged in the early twentieth century, inspired by rivalries and intrigues between the major powers, and the establishment of modern intellig ...

genre have been adapted as films, including works by

John Buchan John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir (; 26 August 1875 – 11 February 1940) was a Scottish novelist, historian, British Army officer, and Unionist politician who served as Governor General of Canada, the 15th since Canadian Confederation. As a ...

, le Carré,

Ian Fleming Ian Lancaster Fleming (28 May 1908 – 12 August 1964) was a British writer, best known for his postwar ''James Bond'' series of spy novels. Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co., and his ...

(Bond) and Len Deighton. It is a significant aspect of

British cinema British cinema has significantly influenced the global film industry since the 19th century. The oldest known surviving film in the world, ''Roundhay Garden Scene'' (1888), was shot in England by French inventor Louis Le Prince. Early colour ...

, with leading British directors such as

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English film director. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featu ...

and Carol Reed making notable contributions and many films set in the British Secret Service. Spy films show the espionage activities of

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...

agents and their risk of being discovered by their enemies. From the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

espionage thrillers of the 1940s to the

James Bond films James Bond is a fictional character created by British novelist Ian Fleming in 1953. A British secret agent working for MI6 under the codename 007, Bond has been portrayed on film in twenty-seven productions by actors Sean Connery, David ...

of the 1960s and to the high-tech blockbusters of today, the spy film has always been popular with audiences worldwide. Offering a combination of exciting

escapism Escapism is mental diversion from unpleasant aspects of daily life, typically through activities involving imagination or entertainment. Escapism also may be used to occupy one's self away from persistent feelings of depression or general s ...

, technological thrills, and exotic locales, many spy films combine the action and

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

genres, presenting clearly delineated heroes for audiences to root for and

villain A villain (also known as a " black hat", "bad guy" or "baddy"; The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p.126 "baddy (also baddie) noun (pl. -ies) ''informal'' a villain or criminal in a book, film, etc.". the feminine form is villai ...

s they want to see defeated. They may also involve elements of political thrillers. However, there are many that are comedic (mostly action comedy films if they fall under that genre). James Bond is the most famous of film spies, but there were also more serious, probing works like le Carré's '' The Spy Who Came in from the Cold'' that also emerged from the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

. As the Cold War ended, the newest villain became

terrorism Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of violence against non-combatants to achieve political or ideological aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violence during peacetime or in the context of war aga ...

and more often involved the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

History

The spy film genre began in the

silent era A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, wh ...

, with the paranoia of invasion literature and the onset of the

Great War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. These fears produced the British 1914 ''The German Spy Peril'', centered on a plot to blow up the

Houses of Parliament The Palace of Westminster is the meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is located in London, England. It is commonly called the Houses of Parliament after the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two legislative ch ...

, and 1913's ''O.H.M.S.'', standing for "Our Helpless Millions Saved" as well as On His Majesty's Service (and introducing for the first time a strong female character who helps the hero). In 1928,

Fritz Lang Friedrich Christian Anton Lang (; December 5, 1890 – August 2, 1976), better known as Fritz Lang (), was an Austrian-born film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in Germany and later the United States.Obituary ''Variety Obituari ...

made the film '' Spies'' which contained many tropes that became popular in later spy dramas, including secret headquarters, an agent known by a number, and the beautiful foreign agent who comes to love the hero. Lang's Dr. Mabuse films from the period also contain elements of spy thrillers, though the central character is a criminal mastermind only interested in espionage for profit. Additionally, several of Lang's American films, such as '' Hangmen Also Die'', deal with spies during World War II.

did much to popularize the spy film in the 1930s with his influential thrillers '' The Man Who Knew Too Much'' (1934), '' The 39 Steps'' (1935), ''

Sabotage Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening a polity, government, effort, or organization through subversion, obstruction, demoralization (warfare), demoralization, destabilization, divide and rule, division, social disruption, disrupti ...

'' (1937) and ''

The Lady Vanishes ''The Lady Vanishes'' is a 1938 British Mystery film, mystery Thriller (genre), thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Margaret Lockwood and Michael Redgrave. Written by Sidney Gilliat and Frank Launder, based on the 1936 novel '' ...

'' (1938). These often involved innocent civilians being caught up in international conspiracies or webs of saboteurs on the home front, as in '' Saboteur'' (1942). Some, however, dealt with professional spies, as in Hitchcock's ''

Secret Agent Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering, as a subfield of the intelligence field, is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence). A person who commits espionage on a mission-specific contract is called an ''e ...

'' (1936), based on W. Somerset Maugham's '' Ashenden'' stories, or the Mr. Moto series, based on the books of John P. Marquand. In the 1940s and early 1950s, several films were made about the exploits of Allied agents in occupied Europe, which could be considered a subgenre. '' 13 Rue Madeleine'' and '' O.S.S.'' were fictional stories about American agents in German-occupied France. There were several films based on the stories of real-life

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

S.O.E. agents, including '' Odette'' and ''

Carve Her Name With Pride ''Carve Her Name with Pride'' is a 1958 British war Drama (film and television), drama film based on the book of the same name by R. J. Minney. The film, directed by Lewis Gilbert, is based on the true story of Special Operations Executive agen ...

''. A more recent fictional example is '' Charlotte Gray'', based on the novel by

Sebastian Faulks Sebastian Charles Faulks (born 20 April 1953) is a British novelist, journalist and broadcaster. He is best known for his historical novels set in France – '' The Girl at the Lion d'Or'', ''Birdsong'' and '' Charlotte Gray''. He has also pu ...

. Also during the period, there were many detective films ('' The Thin Man Goes Home'' and ''

Charlie Chan in the Secret Service ''Charlie Chan in the Secret Service'' is a 1944 mystery film starring Sidney Toler as Charlie Chan. It is the first film made by Monogram Pictures after the series was dropped by 20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly ...

'' for example) in which the mystery involved who stole the secret blue-prints, or who kidnapped the famous scientist. In the mid-1950s, Alfred Hitchcock returned to the spy genre with '' The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956 film)'', a remake of his 1934 film of the same name. He followed this up in 1959 with ''

North by Northwest ''North by Northwest'' is a 1959 American spy thriller film produced and directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, and James Mason. The original screenplay written by Ernest Lehman was intended to be the basis for ...

'' (1959), widely considered one of the most influential works within the spy genre. The peak of popularity of spy films is often considered to be the 1960s when

fears meshed with a desire by audiences to see exciting and suspenseful films. The espionage film developed in two directions at this time. On the one hand, the realistic spy novels of Len Deighton and John le Carré were adapted into relatively serious

thrillers that dealt with some of the realities of the espionage world. Some of these films included '' The Spy Who Came in from the Cold'' (1965), '' The Deadly Affair'' (1966), '' Torn Curtain'' (1966), and the '' Harry Palmer'' series, based on the novels of Len Deighton. In another direction, the ''

'' novels by

were adapted into an increasingly fantastical series of tongue-in-cheek adventure films by producers Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli, with

Sean Connery Sir Thomas Sean Connery (25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to Portrayal of James Bond in film, portray the fictional British secret agent James Bond (literary character), James Bond in motion pic ...

as the star. They featured secretive and flamboyant supervillains, an archetype that would later become a staple of the explosion of spy movies in the mid-to-late 1960s. The phenomenal success of the ''Bond'' series leads to a deluge of imitators, such as the eurospy genre and several from America. Notable examples include the two '' Derek Flint'' films starring

James Coburn James Harrison Coburn III (August 31, 1928 – November 18, 2002) was an American film and television actor who was featured in more than 70 films, largely action roles, and made 100 television appearances during a 45-year career.AllmoviBi ...

, '' The Quiller Memorandum'' (1966) with George Segal, and the ''

Matt Helm Matt Helm is a fictional character created by American author Donald Hamilton (1916–2006). Helm is a U.S. government counter-agent, a man whose primary job is to kill or nullify enemy agents—not a spy or secret agent in the ordinary sense of ...

'' series with

Dean Martin Dean Martin (born Dino Paul Crocetti; June 7, 1917 – December 25, 1995) was an American singer, actor, and comedian. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Cool", he is regarded as one of the most popular entertainers of ...

Television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

also got into the act with series like '' The Man from U.N.C.L.E'' and '' I Spy'' in the U.S., and ''

Danger Man ''Danger Man'' (retitled ''Secret Agent'' in the United States for the revived series, and ''Destination Danger'' and ''John Drake'' in other overseas markets) is a British television series that was broadcast between 1960 and 1962, and again ...

'' and '' The Avengers'' in Britain. Spies have remained popular on TV to the present day with series such as '' Callan'', '' Alias'' and '' Spooks''. Spy films also enjoyed something of a revival in the late 1990s, although these were often action films with espionage elements or comedies like ''

Austin Powers ''Austin Powers'' is a series of American satirical spy comedy films created by Mike Myers, who stars as the British spy Austin Powers as well as his arch-nemesis, Dr. Evil. The series consists of '' International Man of Mystery'' (1997), ' ...

''. Some critics identify a trend away from fantasy in favor of realism, as observed in ''

Syriana ''Syriana'' is a 2005 American political thriller film written and directed by Stephen Gaghan, loosely based on Robert Baer's 2003 memoir '' See No Evil''. The film stars an ensemble cast consisting of George Clooney, Matt Damon, Jeffrey Wr ...

'', the ''Bourne'' film series and the ''James Bond'' films starring Daniel Craig since '' Casino Royale'' (2006).

Films

Some of the most popular films include: Movie series (franchises) * '' Bulldog Drummond'' series (1922–1969) – 24 films * '' Mr. Moto'' series (1937–39, 1965) – 9 films * '' The Saint'' series (1938–1943) – 8 films * '' OSS 117'' series (1956–2021) – 10 films * ''James Bond'' (1962–present) – 25 films * '' Harry Palmer'' (1965–1996) – 5 films * ''

'' series (1966–1969) – 4 films * ''

Lupin III , also written as ''Lupin the Third'', ''Lupin the 3rd'', or ''Lupin the IIIrd'', is a Japanese media franchise created by Monkey Punch. The series follows the endeavors of master thief Lupin III (character), Lupin III, grandson of gentleman t ...

'' (1974 – present) – 13 films and 28 TV specials * '' Carl Hamilton'' (1989–present) – 10 films * ''Jack Ryan'' (1990–2014) – 5 films * ''Mission: Impossible'' series (1996–2025) – 8 films * ''

'' (1997–2002) – 3 films * '' Charlie's Angels'' (2000–2019) – 3 films * ''Spy Kids'' series (2001–2023) – 5 films * ''The'' ''Bourne'' series (2002–2016) – 5 films * '' XXX'' (2002–present) – 3 films * ''

Infernal Affairs ''Infernal Affairs'' () is a 2002 Hong Kong crime drama film directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak (director), Alan Mak from a screenplay written by Mak and Felix Chong. The film stars Andy Lau, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Tony Leung, Anthony Wong ( ...

'' (2002–2003) – 3 films * '' Johnny English'' (2003–2018) – 3 films * ''

Fast & Furious ''Fast & Furious'', also known as ''The Fast and the Furious'', is an American Action film, action media franchise centered on a series of films revolving around street racing, heist film, heists, and spy film, spies. The franchise also inclu ...

'' (2013–present) – 6 spy filmsThe first four focused on illegal street racing and the fifth focused on heists and thus they were not spy films * ''

Kingsman Kingsman or King's man may refer to: * Kingsman (rank), a British Army rank Arts and media * Kingsman (franchise), ''Kingsman'' (franchise) ** Kingsman (comic book), ''Kingsman'' (comic book), the basis for the franchise ** ''Kingsman: The Secre ...

'' (2014–2021) – 3 films Movies * '' Spione'' (1928) * '' The Mysterious Lady'' (1928) * '' Dishonored'' (1931) * '' Mata Hari'' (1931) * '' On Secret Service'' (1933) * '' The Lady of Lebanon'' (1934) * '' Madame Spy'' (1934) * '' The Man Who Knew Too Much'' (1934) * '' The 39 Steps'' (1935) * ''

'' (1936) * ''

'' (1938) * '' The Spy in Black'' (1939) * '' Night Train to Munich'' (1940) * '' Virginia City'' (1940) * '' Saboteur'' (1942) * '' The Mask of Dimitrios'' (1944) * '' Ministry of Fear'' (1944) * '' I See a Dark Stranger'' (1946) * '' Notorious'' (1946) * '' 13 Rue Madeleine'' (1947) * '' The Third Man'' (1949) * '' Decision Before Dawn'' (1951) * '' My Favourite Spy'' (1951) * '' 5 Fingers'' (1952) * '' Pickup on South Street'' (1953) * '' Night People'' (1954) * ''

The Man Who Never Was ''The Man Who Never Was'' is a 1956 British espionage thriller film produced by André Hakim and directed by Ronald Neame. It stars Clifton Webb and Gloria Grahame and features Robert Flemyng, Josephine Griffin and Stephen Boyd. It is b ...

'' (1956) * '' The Man Who Knew Too Much'' (1956) * '' Foreign Intrigue'' (1956) * ''

Carve Her Name with Pride ''Carve Her Name with Pride'' is a 1958 British war Drama (film and television), drama film based on the book of the same name by R. J. Minney. The film, directed by Lewis Gilbert, is based on the true story of Special Operations Executive agen ...

'' (1958) * '' The Silent Enemy'' (1958) * '' The Two-Headed Spy'' (1958) * '' The Quiet American'' (1958) * ''

'' (1959) * '' Our Man in Havana'' (1959) * '' The Pigeon That Took Rome'' (1962) * '' The Manchurian Candidate'' (1962) * '' Charade'' (1963) * '' Goldfinger'' (1964) * '' 36 Hours'' (1965) * '' The Spy Who Came in from the Cold'' (1965) * '' Thunderball'' (1965) * '' Arabesque'' (1966) * '' The Deadly Affair'' (1966) * '' The Defector'' (1966) * ''Derek Flint'' series ** '' Our Man Flint'' (1966) ** '' In Like Flint'' (1967) * '' Modesty Blaise'' (1966) * '' The Quiller Memorandum'' (1966) * '' The Silencers'' (1966) * '' Torn Curtain'' (1966) * '' Casino Royale'' (1967) * '' Deadlier Than the Male'' (1967) * '' The President's Analyst'' (1967) * '' You Only Live Twice'' (1967) * '' Hammerhead'' (1968) * '' Ice Station Zebra'' (1968) * ''

Topaz Topaz is a silicate mineral made of aluminium, aluminum and fluorine with the chemical formula aluminium, Alsilicon, Sioxygen, O(fluorine, F, hydroxide, OH). It is used as a gemstone in jewelry and other adornments. Common topaz in its natural ...

'' (1969) * '' Darling Lili'' (1970) * '' The Kremlin Letter'' (1970) * '' The Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe'' (1972) * '' The Odessa File'' (1974) * '' Three Days of the Condor'' (1975) * '' The Eagle Has Landed'' (1976) * '' Marathon Man'' (1976) * '' Telefon'' (1977) * '' Avalanche Express'' (1979) * '' Hopscotch'' (1980) * '' Eye of the Needle'' (1981) * ''

Teheran 43 ''Teheran 43'' (Russian: ''Тегеран-43''; French: ''Téhéran 43, Nid d'espions'') is a 1981 Soviet-French-Swiss political thriller film made by Mosfilm, ''Mediterraneo Cine'' and ''Pro Dis Film'', directed by Aleksandr Alov and Vladimir ...

'' (1981) * ''

Firefox Mozilla Firefox, or simply Firefox, is a free and open-source web browser developed by the Mozilla Foundation and its subsidiary, the Mozilla Corporation. It uses the Gecko rendering engine to display web pages, which implements curr ...

'' (1982) * '' Top Secret!'' (1984) * '' The Falcon and the Snowman'' (1985) * '' Spies Like Us'' (1985) * '' Target'' (1985) * '' The Fourth Protocol'' (1987) * '' Real Men'' (1987) * '' La Femme Nikita'' (1990) * '' The Russia House'' (1990) * ''

Sneakers Sneakers (American English, US) or trainers (British English, UK), also known by a #Names, wide variety of other names, are shoes primarily designed for sports or other forms of physical exercise, but are also widely used for everyday casual ...

'' (1992) * '' Shining Through'' (1992) * '' Undercover Blues'' (1993) * ''

True Lies ''True Lies'' is a 1994 American action comedy film written and directed by James Cameron. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as Harry Tasker, a U.S. government agent, who struggles to balance his double life as a spy with his familial duties, ...

'' (1994) * '' From Beijing with Love'' (1994) * '' The Long Kiss Goodnight'' (1996) * '' The Peacemaker'' (1997) * '' The Avengers'' (1998) * '' Ronin'' (1998) * '' Enemy of the State'' (1998) * '' Spy Game'' (2001) * '' The Tailor of Panama'' (2001) * '' The Quiet American'' (2002) * '' Undercover Brother'' (2002) * '' I, Spy'' (2002) * '' Confessions of a Dangerous Mind'' (2002) * '' The Recruit'' (2003) * ''Agent Cody Banks'' series ** '' Agent Cody Banks'' (2003) ** '' Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London'' (2004) * '' Spartan'' (2004) * '' Walk on Water'' (2004) * '' The Manchurian Candidate'' (2004) * ''

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

'' (2005) * ''

'' (2005) * '' Black Book'' (2006) * '' The Good Shepherd'' (2006) * ''

The Lives of Others ''The Lives of Others'' (, ) is a 2006 German drama film written and directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck marking his feature film directorial debut. The plot is about the monitoring of East Berlin residents by agents of the Stasi, Ea ...

'' (2006) * '' Breach'' (2007) * '' Charlie Wilson's War'' (2007) * ''

Get Smart ''Get Smart'' is an American comedy television series parodying the Spy fiction, secret agent genre that had become widely popular in the first half of the 1960s with the release of the ''James Bond'' films. It was created by Mel Brooks and Bu ...

'' (2008) * '' Burn After Reading'' (2008) * '' Farewell'' (2009) * '' Knight and Day'' (2010) * ''

Salt In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as r ...

'' (2010) * '' Fair Game'' (2010) * '' The Debt'' (2010) * '' Red'' (2010) * ''

Cars 2 ''Cars 2'' is a 2011 American animated spy comedy film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. It is the sequel to '' Cars'' (2006), the second film in the ''Cars'' franchise, and the 12th animated film from the studio ...

'' (2011) * '' Page Eight'' (2011) * '' Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy'' (2011) * '' Haywire'' (2012) * '' Safe House'' (2012) * '' This Means War'' (2012) * '' Ek Tha Tiger'' (2012) * ''

Argo In Greek mythology, the ''Argo'' ( ; ) was the ship of Jason and the Argonauts. The ship was built with divine aid, and some ancient sources describe her as the first ship to sail the seas. The ''Argo'' carried the Argonauts on their quest fo ...

'' (2012) * '' Vishwaroopam'' (2013) * '' A Most Wanted Man'' (2014) * '' Captain America: The Winter Soldier'' (2014) * ''

Penguins of Madagascar ''Penguins of Madagascar'' is a 2014 American animated spy comedy film produced by DreamWorks Animation and PDI/DreamWorks and distributed by 20th Century Fox. A spinoff of the ''Madagascar'' film series, it was directed by Eric Darnell and ...

'' (2014) * '' O21'' (2014) * '' Spy'' (2015) * '' The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' (2015) * '' Bridge of Spies'' (2015) * '' Iru Mugan'' (2016) * '' Atomic Blonde'' (2017) * '' Unlocked'' (2017) * ''

Tiger Zinda Hai ''Tiger Zinda Hai'' () is a 2017 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film written and directed by Ali Abbas Zafar based on a story by Zafar and Neelesh Misra. Produced by Aditya Chopra under Yash Raj Films, it serves as a sequel to '' Ek ...

'' (2017) * ''

Red Sparrow ''Red Sparrow'' is a 2018 American spy thriller film directed by Francis Lawrence and written by Justin Haythe, based on the 2013 novel of the same name by Jason Matthews. The film stars Jennifer Lawrence, Joel Edgerton, Matthias Schoenaert ...

'' (2018) * '' Goodachari'' (2018) * '' Operation Finale'' (2018) * '' The Catcher Was a Spy'' (2018) * '' Red Joan'' (2018) * '' Raazi'' (2018) * '' Vishwaroopam 2'' (2018) * '' War'' (2019) * '' Official Secrets'' (2019) * '' One Day: Justice Delivered'' (2019) * '' Kaappaan'' (2019) * '' Saaho'' (2019) * '' Romeo Akbar Walter'' (2019) * '' Satellite Shankar'' (2019) * '' The Courier'' (2020) * '' Tenet'' (2020) * '' London Confidential'' (2020) * '' Black Widow'' (2021) * '' Bell Bottom'' (2021) * '' Yaksha: Ruthless Operations'' (2022) * '' The Gray Man'' (2022) * ''

Sardar Sardar, also spelled as Sardaar (, , 'commander', literally 'headmaster'), is a title of royal family, royalty and nobility that was originally used to denote princes, noblemen, chiefs, kings and other Aristocracy (class), aristocrats. It ha ...

'' (2022) * '' Zarrar'' (2022) * '' Pathaan'' (2023) * '' Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre'' (2023) * '' Heart of Stone'' (2023) * '' Tiger 3'' (2023) * '' Argylle'' (2024) * '' The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare'' (2024) * '' Black Bag'' (2025)

Television series

Some of the most popular television series include: Classic era * ''

'' (1960–1968) * '' The Avengers'' (1961–1969) * '' The Man from U.N.C.L.E.'' (1964–1968) * '' I Spy'' (1965–1968) * ''

The Wild Wild West ''The Wild Wild West'' is an American Western (genre), Western, spy film, spy, and science fiction on television, science fiction television series that ran on the CBS television network for four seasons from September 17, 1965, to April 11, 19 ...

'' (1965–1969) * ''

'' (1965–1970) * '' Mission: Impossible'' (1966–1973) * ''

The Prisoner ''The Prisoner'' is a British television series created by Patrick McGoohan. McGoohan portrays Number Six (The Prisoner), Number Six, an unnamed British intelligence agent who is abducted and imprisoned in a The Village (The Prisoner), mysteri ...

'' (1967–1968) * '' Callan'' (1967–1972) * ''

Seventeen Moments of Spring ''Seventeen Moments of Spring'' () is a 1973 Soviet Union, Soviet twelve-part television series, directed by Tatyana Lioznova and based on the novel of the same title by Yulian Semyonov. The series portrays the exploits of Maxim Isaev, a Soviet ...

'' (1973) * ''

The Six Million Dollar Man ''The Six Million Dollar Man'' is an American science fiction and action television series, running from 1973 to 1978, about a former astronaut, USAF Colonel Steve Austin, portrayed by Lee Majors. After being seriously injured in a NASA test f ...

'' (1973–1978) * ''

The Bionic Woman ''The Bionic Woman'' is an American science fiction film, science fiction Action-adventure fiction, action-adventure television series created by Kenneth Johnson (producer), Kenneth Johnson based on the 1972 novel Cyborg (novel), ''Cyborg'' by ...

'' (1976–1978) * '' The Sandbaggers'' (1978–1980) * '' Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy'' (1979) * '' Danger Mouse'' (1981) * '' Smiley's People'' (1982) * ''

Reilly, Ace of Spies ''Reilly, Ace of Spies'' is a 1983 British television programme dramatizing the life of Sidney Reilly, a Russian-born adventurer who became one of the greatest spies ever to work for the United Kingdom and the British Empire. Among his exploits ...

'' (1983) * '' The Equalizer'' (1985–1989) * ''

MacGyver Angus "Mac" MacGyver is the title character and the protagonist in the TV series ''MacGyver''. He is played by Richard Dean Anderson in the MacGyver (1985 TV series), 1985 original series. Lucas Till portrays a younger version of MacGyver in Mac ...

'' (1985–1992) Modern era * '' Æon Flux'' (1991–1995) * ''La Femme Nikita'' (1997–2001) ** '' Nikita'' (2010–2013) * '' Alias'' (2001–2006) * '' 24'' (2001–2014) * ''

Kim Possible ''Kim Possible'' is an American animated Action comedy TV series, action comedy television series created by Bob Schooley and Mark McCorkle for Disney Channel. The Kim Possible (character), title character is a teenage girl tasked with saving ...

'' (2002–2007) * '' Foyle's War'' (2002–2015) * '' Spooks'' (2002–2011), aka ''MI-5'' * '' Burn Notice'' (2007–2013) * ''

Chuck Chuck () is a masculine given name or a nickname for Charles or Charlie. It may refer to: People Arts and entertainment * Chuck Alaimo, American saxophonist, leader of the Chuck Alaimo Quartet * Chuck Barris (1929–2017), American TV produce ...

'' (2007–2012) * '' The Company'' (2007) * '' Archer'' (2009–2023) * '' Human Target'' (2010–2011) * '' Rubicon'' (2010) * '' Strike Back'' (2010–2020) * ''

Homeland A homeland is a place where a national or ethnic identity has formed. The definition can also mean simply one's country of birth. When used as a proper noun, the Homeland, as well as its equivalents in other languages, often has ethnic natio ...

'' (2011–2020) * '' Person of Interest'' (2011–2016) * ''

The Americans ''The Americans'' is an American historical drama, period spy fiction, spy drama television series created by Joe Weisberg for FX (TV channel), FX. It aired for six seasons from 2013 to 2018. Weisberg and Joel Fields also served as showrunners ...

'' (2013–2018) * ''

The Blacklist ''The Blacklist'' is an American crime thriller television series created by Jon Bokenkamp and developed by John Eisendrath. It stars James Spader as Raymond Reddington, an international criminal and one of the FBI's Most Wanted fugitives ...

'' (2013–2023) * '' The Honourable Woman'' (2014) * '' Turn: Washington's Spies'' (2014–2017) * '' Madam Secretary'' (2014–2019) * '' The Bureau'' (2015–present) * ''Deutschland'' trilogy (2015–2020) ** '' Deutschland 83'' (2015) ** '' Deutschland 86'' (2018) ** '' Deutschland 89'' (2020) * '' London Spy'' (2015) * '' Fauda'' (2015–present) * '' The Night Manager'' (2016) * '' Counterpart'' (2017–2019) * ''

Condor Condor is the common name for two species of New World vultures, each in a monotypic genus. The name derives from the Quechua language, Quechua ''kuntur''. They are the largest flying land birds in the Western Hemisphere. One species, the And ...

'' (2018–present) * ''

Killing Eve ''Killing Eve'' is a British spy thriller television series produced in the United Kingdom by Sid Gentle Films for BBC America and BBC Three (streaming service), BBC Three. The series follows Eve Polastri (Sandra Oh), a British intelligence age ...

'' (2018–present) * '' The Little Drummer Girl'' (2018) * '' The Looming Tower'' (2018) * '' Jack Ryan'' (2018–2023) * '' The Family Man'' (2019–present) * '' The Spy'' (2019) * '' Alex Rider'' (2020–present) * ''

Caliphate A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

'' (2020) * ''

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

'' (2020) * '' La unidad'' (2020–) * '' Andor'' (2022-2025) * '' Slow Horses'' (2022–present)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spy Film Film genres

Film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

Action films by genre

History

Films

Television series

See also

References