Movies Like The Substitute: Failure Is Not an Option

If you liked The Substitute: Failure Is Not an Option (2001), a action and drama movie directed by Robert Radler, here are 20 movies with a similar feel, based on TMDB's recommendations. Each one links to its cast, trailer and where it's streaming.

1
The Substitute (1996)
★ 7/10Also action and crime
When an inner-city Miami schoolteacher gets her knee broken after standing up to the school's gang leader, her mercenary combat specialist boyfriend goes undercover as a substitute teacher to take down the punk. Soon…
2
The Rookie (1990)
★ 5.9/10Also action and crime
Veteran cop Nick Pulovski is used to playing musical partners; many of the partners he's had in the past have died on the job, and often as a result of Nick's risky tactics. But the rookie who's been assigned to help…
3
The Substitute 2: School's Out (1998)
★ 6.5/10Also action and thriller
When teacher Randall Thomasson is killed during a carjacking, an unexpected visitor shows up at his funeral - his estranged brother, Karl Thomasson. An ex-Green Beret turned mercenary, Karl signs on as a new substitute…
4
A Prayer for the Dying (1987)
★ 5.9/10Also crime and drama
Martin, an I.R.A. hitman, is seen by a Catholic priest while carrying out a hit. He grows a bond with the priest and his niece. But his past and his former employers put all their lives in danger.
5
The Enforcer (2022)
★ 7/10Also action and crime
A noir thriller set in Miami, the film follows an enforcer who discovers his femme fatale boss has branched out into cyber sex trafficking, putting a young runaway he’s befriended at risk. He sacrifices everything to…
6
The Virtuoso (2021)
★ 5.9/10Also thriller and crime
Danger, deception and murder descend upon a sleepy town when a professional assassin accepts a new assignment from his enigmatic boss.
7
Trap House (2025)
★ 6.6/10Also action and crime
An undercover DEA agent and his partner embark on a game of cat and mouse with an audacious, and surprising group of thieves – their own rebellious teenagers, who have begun robbing from a dangerous cartel, using their…
8
The System (2022)
★ 7.3/10Also action and crime
When a young soldier, newly returned from war, gets caught up in a drug bust, he is recruited by the authorities to go undercover in a notoriously dangerous prison in order to figure out what is really going on.
9
The Perfect Weapon (1991)
★ 6.4/10Also action and drama
Jeff, a young delinquent, is enrolled by his father in a kenpo school, in the hopes of teaching the boy some self-discipline. Years later, Jeff's mentor, Kim, is being threatened by one of the Korean mafia families…
10
Absolution (2024)
★ 5.9/10Also action and crime
An aging ex-boxer gangster working as muscle for a Boston crime boss receives an upsetting diagnosis. Despite a faltering memory, he attempts to rectify the sins of his past and reconnect with his estranged children…
11
Hierarchy (2025)
★ 6/10Also action and crime
In an undisclosed area of Texas after two adoptive brothers become entangled in criminal activity, forced to evade law enforcement and the greedy Russian mafia.
12
I Am All Girls (2021)
★ 6.5/10Also drama and thriller
A special crimes investigator forms an unlikely bond with a serial killer to bring down a global child sex trafficking syndicate.
13
Convict (2014)
★ 6.5/10Also action and crime
Set in the dark and old Parramatta prison built by the original convicts our lead character Ray a war veteran finds himself serving 18 months for manslaughter after defending his fiance. He soon realizes that the…
14
Suburbicon (2017)
★ 5.9/10Also thriller and crime
In the quiet family town of Suburbicon during the 1950s, the best and worst of humanity is hilariously reflected through the deeds of seemingly ordinary people. When a home invasion turns deadly, a picture-perfect…
15
Run (1991)
★ 6/10Also action and thriller
When a law student accidentally kills the son of a mob boss in a fight, he finds himself relentlessly pursued by the mob and the police.
16
Hellhound (2024)
★ 6.8/10Also action and crime
Ready to leave his profession behind, Loreno, an assassin, lends help to an old friend, Cetan, and taking one last job in Thailand seeking out a local kingpin. A lapse in judgment means Loreno crosses paths with old…
17
The Losers (2010)
★ 6.3/10Also action and crime
On a mission deep in the Bolivian jungle, a team of elite commandos finds itself on the receiving end of a lethal betrayal. Now presumed dead, the men join forces with a mysterious operative named Aisha to hunt down…
18
Busting (1974)
★ 6.3/10Also crime and drama
Defying orders to lay-off the case, two Los Angeles vice-squad cops go after a local mobster and use unorthodox methods to achieve results.
19
Undisputed II: Last Man Standing (2006)
★ 7.4/10Also action and crime
Heavyweight Champ George "Iceman" Chambers is sent to a Russian jail on trumped-up drug charges. In order to win his freedom he must fight against the jailhouse fighting champ Uri Boyka in a battle to the death. This…
20
The Double (2011)
★ 5.8/10Also action and drama
The mysterious murder of a US senator bearing the distinctive trademark of the legendary Soviet assassin 'Cassius', forces retired CIA operative, Paul Shepherson to team with rookie FBI agent, Ben Geary to solve the…