10 Best Chuck Norris Movies

I woke up to the news that Chuck Norris had died, and it shook me. Mostly because, as a millennial, my entire knowledge of the man was the 2005 resurgence of the Chuck Norris meme and jokes, most of which were about how he can never die.

But before all that, Chuck Norris was a movie star. And on top of that, he was an action movie star, a gritty, fighting machine who took on the baddest baddies in the world and made his mark on cinema.

So today, I want to go over the 10 best Chuck Norris movies and talk about what makes them so special.

Let's dive in

10. Breaker! Breaker! (1977)

• Director: Don Hulette
• Writer: Terry Chambers
• Cast: Chuck Norris, George Murdock, Terry O'Connor

In his first starring role ever, Norris plays J.D. Dawes, a truck driver who learns that his younger brother has disappeared in a corrupt town run by a crooked judge. Dawes heads to the town to find him, and then we get a series of brawls and showdowns where he utilizes his martial arts skills to take down the town's dishonest infrastructure one throat kick at a time. It’s a classic.

9. Firewalker (1986)

• Director: J. Lee Thompson
• Writer: Robert Gosnell
• Cast: Chuck Norris, Lou Gossett Jr., Melody Anderson

Firewalker is an action-adventure comedy that stands out in this list for its lightness. Norris and Lou Gossett Jr. play Max Donigan and Leo Porter, two down-on-their-luck fortune hunters who are convinced by a mysterious woman (Melody Anderson) to help her find a lost Aztec hoard of gold. It's kind of a blast.

8. Forced Vengeance (1982)

• Director: James Fargo
• Writer: Franklin Thompson
• Cast: Chuck Norris, Mary Louise Weller, Camila Griggs

Norris plays Josh Randall, a Vietnam vet working as a casino security guard in Hong Kong. Yeah, it's that kind of wild movie. When the casino's owner, who is like a father to him, is murdered by a ruthless crime syndicate trying to take over, Randall goes on a relentless hunt for justice for his buddy. It has some sick action scenes in it where Norris shows no mercy.

7. Eye for an Eye (1981)

1. Director: Steve Carver
2. Writer: James Bruner, William Gray
3. Cast: Chuck Norris, Christopher Lee, Richard Roundtree

They call Norris White Lightning in this one. When his partner is brutally murdered by a powerful drug-smuggling ring, San Francisco cop Sean Kane (Norris) is forced to resign from the force. Now a civilian, but no less dangerous, Kane continues his investigation privately, where he can use force to get answers. The film hits a high point with its climax, where Kane must face off against a sadistic henchman in a sequence that remains maybe his best fight ever. It also stars the legendary Christopher Lee as the sophisticated villain.

6. The Octagon (1980)

• Director: Eric Karson
• Writer: Paul Aaron, Leigh Chapman
• Cast: Chuck Norris, Karen Carlson, Lee Van Cleef

This film is a pure martial arts action-thriller. And it actually has some beautiful cinematography as well. Norris stars as Scott James, a retired karate champion who becomes involved with a wealthy heiress targeted by a mysterious and deadly clan of ninjas. The twist? The ninja clan is led by his own adopted brother.__

5. Good Guys Wear Black (1978)

• Director: Ted Post
• Writer: Mark Medoff, Bruce Lansbury
• Cast: Chuck Norris, Anne Archer, James Franciscus

I think this has one of the best movie titles ever. The story is also fun. John T. Booker (Norris) is a former leader of an elite commando unit during the Vietnam War. Years later, he discovers that the members of his old unit are being systematically murdered to cover up a botched, politically sensitive rescue mission. Booker must come out of retirement to expose the high-ranking politicians responsible for the betrayal. This film helped establish Norris as a bona fide box office star. And it had a tight plot that felt real.

4. Code of Silence (1985)

• Director: Andrew Davis
• Writer: Michael Butler, Dennis Shryack
• Cast: Chuck Norris, Henry Silva, Bert Remsen

Look, Chuck Norris wasn't known as a great actor.... but he was great in this movie. Code of Silence casts him as Eddie Cusack, a tough Chicago detective caught in the middle of a vicious gang war between Italian and Colombian drug cartels. Cusack becomes a target not only of the cartels but also of his own department when he breaks the "code of silence" to testify against a corrupt cop.

3. Missing in Action (1984)

• Director: Joseph Zito
• Writer: James Bruner
• Cast: Chuck Norris, M. Emmet Walsh, David Tress

Even if you've never seen a Chuck Norris movie, this is the movie you know about. This is perhaps Chuck Norris’s most iconic role. He plays Colonel James Braddock, a Vietnam War veteran who escaped from a POW camp after the war ended. He is haunted by the men he left behind, so he launches a one-man mission back into the jungles of Vietnam to find and rescue American soldiers still listed as missing in action. It’s an explosive, high-octane action film that spawned two sequels. And gave us Chuck in a headband, kicking butt.

2. Lone Wolf McQuade (1983)

• Director: Steve Carver
• Writer: B.J. Nelson
• Cast: Chuck Norris, David Carradine, Barbara Carrera

Love seeing Norris finding a way to bring action and westerns together. Norris plays J.J. McQuade, a hard-nosed, reclusive Texas Ranger who prefers to work alone. He crosses paths with a ruthless, sophisticated arms dealer (played with villainous glee by David Carradine). The conflict becomes personal, leading to a legendary, brutal final showdown between the two martial arts masters. This movie also served as a primary inspiration for Norris’s hit TV series, Walker, Texas Ranger, where he virtually plays the same character.

1. The Delta Force (1986)

• Director: Menahem Golan
• Writer: James Bruner, Menahem Golan
• Cast: Chuck Norris, Lee Marvin, Martin Balsam

This is the ultimate ensemble action extravaganza. It was sort of The Expendables before that was a thing. When a real-world, high-profile aircraft hijacking occurs, the U.S. government dispatches the Delta Force, an elite special operations unit led by Colonel Nick Alexander (Lee Marvin) and Major Scott McCoy (Norris). The film balances tense dramatic moments with spectacular action sequences, including the famous scene of Chuck Norris riding a motorcycle equipped with rocket launchers. The Delta Force is a quintessential 80s action masterpiece. It is also another film where Norris just does ridiculous things for our enjoyment. And that's his legacy.

Summing It All Up

Rest in Peace, Chuck Norris. Your name and legend will always be bigger than your movies, but your movies were enough.

They ushered in an era of American Martial Arts that may never be matched, and they brought a lot of badass stunts to the big screen.

Let me know what you think in the comments.