Paramount+'s 2-Part Action Thriller That's Dominating Streaming Is A Great Genre Throwback

Published Nov 9, 2026, 5:20 PM EST Bee Delores is a Movies Writer for ScreenRant. After earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting from West Virginia University, they went on to grad school for Entertainment Business at Full Sail University. From their extensive studies in branding, artist management, and business, they dove into the deep end of journalism and has landed countless bylines all over the internet. A Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, they also write for their own website, B-Sides & Badlands. Sign in to your ScreenRant account Paramount+ has a bonafide smash on its hands. The two-part action/thriller, One Mile: Chapter One and One Mile: Chapter Two, continues its dominance on the streaming platform. The films sit within the Top 5 on Paramount+ and show no signs of leaving anytime soon. Blending genres, the survivalist epic stars veteran actor Ryan Phillippe (Cruel Intentions, I Know What You Did Last Summer) and Sara Canning (The Vampire Diaries, A Series of Unfortunate Events) and feels both classic and contemporary. Ryan Phillippe should be used to streaming hits, as Phillippe comes off the success of Prime's Motorheads series. Director Adam Davidson has primarily directed TV (Fear the Walking Dead and Community among his many credits) and last helmed a feature with 2016's Recon. While an intimate, low-scale needle runs throughout One Mile, there is also a remarkable cinematic aesthetic that feels much bigger. Davidson, who also directed episodes of Parenthood, Grey's Anatomy, and La Brea, clearly understands the emotional stakes necessary for plotting a tense, action-filled thriller that gives you very little room to breathe. He takes the script (written by T.J. Brady, John Hlavin, and Rasheed Newson) and elevates it with a strong focus on performance above all else. The cast, also including Amélie Hoeferle (Eddington, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes) and Richard Harmon (Final Destination: Bloodlines), proves worthy of the material. Hoeferle is particularly magnetic as the emotionally distant and later truly heroic Alex Beckett, daughter of Danny Beckett (Phillippe). Phillippe attacks the work as though he's combing through the twisty 9-1-1: Nashville show. From supporting to leading characters, there is plenty of meat on the bone for every actor to dig into. Why One Mile: Chapter 1 & 2 Have Been Big Successes On Paramount+ Image via Republic Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection The success of both films lies within the thriller wave of 2026. Released in February, the One Mile double-decker did not gain steam on Paramount+ until October. In the past many months, TV series such as Below (Netflix) and Cape Fear (Apple) and movies like Backrooms, The End of Oak Street, Animals, and Send Help have stormed online with buzzy conversation. The autumn surge also demonstrates the general hunger of audiences for something less in-your-face terrifying and more skin-crawling and nail-biting. While the story begins in the spring, the adventure concludes in the fall, given an almost cozy, crisp tingle with muted tones and reflective cinematography. Peering at FlixPatrol's tracking, the Top 10 now on Paramount+ features mostly a stacked lineup of thrillers with crossover appeal into drama, horror, action, romance, and sci-fi. One Mile lands with a surprising mix of genres that draws in the widest possible demographic. The story never plays it safe, but the well-balanced melting pot invites many different audiences. It's the perfect storm. As the weather grows colder, it's ripe for staying home on a Friday night and enjoying an action/thriller with the whole family. One Mile Is A Throwback Action Movie In 2026 Image via Republic Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection The One Mile movies center on Danny, who recently retired from the army and wants so desperately to reconnect with his daughter, who now eyes several colleges in the fall. During a college tour, Danny and Alex can't find a hotel and decide to camp for the night. They get far more than they bargained for when a cult sets their sights on Alex for a diabolical scheme. One Mile takes cues from its most obvious predecessor, Pierre Morel's similarly themed 2008 film Taken, starring Liam Neeson, as well as John Wick with Keanu Reeves. In many ways, One Mile seems ripped from the '90s alongside other favorites such as The Fugitive, Speed, Face/Off, and Patriot Games. There's a precise, taut acrobatic act at play in these films. They are lean and mean when it comes to story, focusing on mood-building and gripping action sequences. The structure also seems familiar and straightforward; Alex is kidnapped, and Danny seeks to retrieve her from peril. And that's to the film's advantage. There is no need for lengthy exposition. Adam Davidson embraces genre conventions without tinkering with the tasty recipe. High Octane · No Brakes How Well Do You Know Action Movies? “Yippee-ki-yay… let’s see what you’ve got.” 💥ExplosionsWalk away, don’t look back 🏎Car ChasesFloor it 🥊Fist FightsNo mercy 🚁StuntsGet to the chopper 🔥MayhemBurn it all down LOCK AND LOAD → 01 In the 1988 classic Die Hard, NYPD cop John McClane spends Christmas Eve picking off Hans Gruber’s heavily armed crew one by one inside a single Los Angeles high-rise. What is the name of that skyscraper? ANakatomi Plaza BFox Tower CCentury City Tower DPacific Heights ✓ Direct hit! Nakatomi Plaza — the headquarters of the fictional Nakatomi Corporation where McClane (Bruce Willis) is trapped. It was filmed in the real Fox Plaza in Century City, which was still under construction at the time. McClane’s barefoot dash across broken glass remains one of the genre’s defining moments. ✗ Missed! The answer is Nakatomi Plaza. The film was shot in the real Fox Plaza in Century City (then Fox’s own HQ), which is likely why “Fox Tower” sounds plausible — but on screen it’s the fictional Nakatomi Plaza where Hans Gruber’s crew holds the Christmas party hostage. NEXT → 02 Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) introduced the shape-shifting T-1000, a groundbreaking villain that could melt, reform, and morph into anyone. What futuristic material is the T-1000 made of? ATitanium alloy BCarbon nanofiber CLiquid metal DReinforced ceramic ✓ Direct hit! The T-1000 is made of “mimetic poly-alloy” — essentially liquid metal — letting it flow through bars, sprout blades, and impersonate its victims. Robert Patrick’s eerily calm performance and the era-defining morphing CGI made it cinema’s scariest robot. The T-800 (Arnold), by contrast, is metal under living tissue. ✗ Missed! The answer is liquid metal (“mimetic poly-alloy”). That’s what lets the T-1000 pour through prison bars, reform from a shattered frozen state, and mimic anyone it touches. The older T-800 played by Arnold is the one with a hard metal endoskeleton under flesh — the T-1000 is a whole new threat. NEXT → 03 Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) was a near-non-stop desert car chase praised for its practical stunts, winning six Oscars. Which director returned to the franchise he created decades earlier to make it? AZack Snyder BGeorge Miller CDenis Villeneuve DKathryn Bigelow ✓ Direct hit! George Miller created Mad Max with Mel Gibson back in 1979 and returned 36 years later to direct Fury Road, with Tom Hardy as Max and Charlize Theron as Furiosa. The film leaned on real vehicles and stunts in the Namibian desert. Snyder, Villeneuve, and Bigelow are all acclaimed — but the Wasteland belongs to Miller. ✗ Missed! The answer is George Miller — the Australian filmmaker (and former doctor) who launched the series in 1979 and came back to direct Fury Road. Zack Snyder, Denis Villeneuve, and Kathryn Bigelow are all major action/sci-fi directors, but none made Mad Max. NEXT → 04 In John Wick (2014), Keanu Reeves plays a retired hitman pulled back into a brutal underworld war after Russian gangsters break into his home. What act ignites his legendary rampage of revenge? AThey kill his dog BThey kidnap his daughter CThey steal his gold DThey torch his house ✓ Direct hit! They kill his dog — a beagle puppy named Daisy, a final gift from his late wife — and steal his vintage Mustang. That cruelty unleashes “Baba Yaga,” the boogeyman hitman, on the entire criminal underworld. The deceptively simple revenge hook launched one of modern action’s biggest franchises. ✗ Missed! The answer is they kill his dog. The puppy, Daisy, was the last gift from John’s dying wife — so when Iosef’s crew beats John and kills the dog (also stealing his car), it triggers the full “Baba Yaga” rampage. It’s the purest revenge setup in modern action cinema. NEXT → 05 The Mission: Impossible franchise is famous for its star performing his own death-defying stunts — scaling the Burj Khalifa, clinging to a plane at takeoff, and a HALO jump. Who plays super-spy Ethan Hunt? AMatt Damon BKeanu Reeves CJason Statham DTom Cruise ✓ Direct hit! Tom Cruise has played Ethan Hunt since 1996, famously insisting on doing his own stunts — hanging off the Burj Khalifa, strapped to an Airbus A400M, and performing a real HALO skydive. Matt Damon is Jason Bourne, Keanu is John Wick, and Statham headlines the Transporter and Expendables films. ✗ Missed! The answer is Tom Cruise. Matt Damon plays a different super-spy (Jason Bourne), Keanu Reeves is John Wick, and Jason Statham has his own action stable. Cruise’s real, no-CGI stunt work — the plane, the building, the skydive — is the M:I series’ signature. NEXT → 06 In The Matrix (1999), Morpheus offers Neo a choice between two pills: one returns him to blissful ignorance, the other reveals the harsh truth of reality. Which pill does Neo swallow to wake up? AThe blue pill BThe red pill CThe green pill DThe black pill ✓ Direct hit! Neo takes the red pill to learn the truth — that humanity is enslaved in a simulation by machines. The blue pill would have let him wake up in bed believing “whatever you want to believe.” “Taking the red pill” has since become a permanent piece of pop-culture shorthand. ✗ Missed! The answer is the red pill. Morpheus’ line is the key: the blue pill ends the story safely in bed, but the red pill shows “how deep the rabbit hole goes.” Neo chooses red, unplugs from the Matrix, and the phrase has outlived the film as a cultural metaphor. NEXT → 07 Ridley Scott’s Gladiator (2000) won Best Picture and gave us the roaring line “Are you not entertained?!” Which actor took home the Best Actor Oscar for playing the betrayed general-turned-gladiator Maximus? AGerard Butler BMel Gibson CRussell Crowe DBrad Pitt ✓ Direct hit! Russell Crowe won the 2001 Best Actor Oscar as Maximus Decimus Meridius, the Roman general enslaved and forced to fight for his freedom — and his revenge on the emperor Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix). Gerard Butler later anchored 300, but the sands of the Colosseum belong to Crowe. ✗ Missed! The answer is Russell Crowe, who won Best Actor for Maximus. Gerard Butler led the similar-spirited 300, Mel Gibson made Braveheart, and Brad Pitt fought at Troy — all sword-and-sandal adjacent, but Gladiator’s Maximus is Crowe. NEXT → 08 The Fast & Furious saga grew from a street-racing crime film into a globe-trotting blockbuster series obsessed with “family.” Vin Diesel anchors it as the gravel-voiced crew leader — what is the character’s name? ADominic Toretto BBrian O’Conner CLuke Hobbs DHan Lue ✓ Direct hit! Vin Diesel plays Dominic “Dom” Toretto, the loyalty-obsessed leader whose mantra is family. Brian O’Conner was the late Paul Walker’s undercover-cop-turned-ally, Luke Hobbs is Dwayne Johnson’s lawman, and Han Lue (Sung Kang) is the snack-loving fan favorite. But the wheel belongs to Dom. ✗ Missed! The answer is Dominic Toretto. Brian O’Conner is Paul Walker’s character, Luke Hobbs is Dwayne Johnson’s, and Han Lue is Sung Kang’s. Vin Diesel’s Dom — and his relentless “family” speeches — has been the heart of the franchise since 2001. REVEAL MY SCORE → Mission Complete · Stand Down Your Action Hero Rank 💥 / 8 One-man army — or first to get caught in the crossfire? ⤴ RELOAD As a result, One Mile captures the simplicity of exhilarating storytelling in its purest form. The script goes down easy with no frills or unnecessary character moments. Every scene serves a purpose to drive the plot forward, like all classic action/thrillers typically do. Because Davidson and his creative team unearth a story that fits within the scope of the '90s in 2026, it feels shockingly refreshing. It's certainly not surprising that audiences gravitate toward this simple storytelling style. Release Date February 20, 2026 Cast C. Thomas Howell Stanley Dixon Runtime 86 minutes Director Adam Davidson Writers John Hlavin Producers Aaron Kaplan, Adam Davidson, Brian Morewitz, Chad Oakes, Jaiden Kaplan, Michael Frislev, Michael Lohmann