List of films featuring the United States Navy SEALs

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There are a body of films that feature the United States Navy SEALs. The box office successes of Act of Valor in 2012 and Lone Survivor in 2013 led studios to seek out more real-life accounts of Navy SEALs to portray on film. Director Clint Eastwood released American Sniper in late 2014, and Eric Blehm's book about a SEAL Team Six operator, Fearless, also attracted attention from studios. Hollie McKay at Fox News wrote, "Within much of the SEAL community, there is still great hesitancy with regards to the slew of books and films being written and made about their operations. After all, it is not a profession one seeks for fame or fortune." [1]

Contents

List of films

The following films are listed alphabetically:

FilmYearDescription
The Abyss 1989In the science fiction film, a Navy SEAL team and the crew of an underwater oil rig are sent to search for a sunken nuclear submarine. [2]
Act of Valor 2012The film features a series of missions performed by the Navy SEALs. [3]
American Sniper 2014The film is based on the memoirs of Chris Kyle, who was a sniper in the U.S. military and had four tours in the Iraq War. [4]
Behind Enemy Lines II: Axis of Evil 2006A Navy SEAL team that travels to North Korea to destroy a missile site must then fight its way out. [5]
Behind Enemy Lines: Colombia 2009A Navy SEAL team travels to Colombia to spy on a secret meeting in its jungles and is subsequently attacked by a paramilitary group who seeks to disrupt the meeting, which turns out to be peace talks. [6]
Captain Phillips 2013The film dramatizes the real-life Navy SEAL rescue of the Maersk Alabama hijacking by Somali pirates. [3]
Deadly Heroes 1993 Michael Paré portrays a former Navy SEAL who is captured and tortured. [7]
The Finest Hour 1991The film features two men who enter Navy SEAL training and become best friends. [8]
G.I. Jane 1997A woman goes through a Navy SEAL training program in which only men are usually allowed. [9]
Goodbye America 1997The film follows the lives of three members of the Navy SEALs leading up to the 1992 closing of the U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay. [10]
Lone Survivor 2013The film is based on the failed mission of a team of Navy SEALs in Afghanistan in 2005. [3]
Navy SEALs 1990A squad of Navy SEALs are given a chance to stop an enemy leader that has stolen American missiles. [3]
Renegades 2017A group of Navy SEALs discover treasure under a lake in Bosnia. [11]
The Rescue 1988A group of Navy SEALs are captured off the coast of North Korea and imprisoned. Their children infiltrate their prison to rescue them.
The Rock 1996The film's protagonists accompany a team of Navy SEALs to Alcatraz Island to stop an attack by rogue U.S. Force Recon Marines on San Francisco. [12]
SEAL Team 8: Behind Enemy Lines 2014The film features a Navy SEAL team in Africa attempting to stop weapons from falling into the wrong hands. [13]
Seal Team Six: The Raid on Osama Bin Laden 2012The docu-drama shows a team of Navy SEALs raiding Osama bin Laden's compound. [14]
Stratton 2017A British Special Boat Service commando partners with a Navy SEAL to track down an international terrorist cell.
Suicide Squad 2016Super-powered antiheroes fight alongside Navy SEALs when an ancient magical being takes over an American city.
Tears of the Sun 2003A team of Navy SEALs enters a civil war zone in Nigeria to recover U.S. nationals. [15]
Under Siege 1992When the USS Missouri is hijacked by mercenaries, a former Navy SEAL (Steven Seagal) serving as a cook aboard the ship launches a one-man counterattack to retake the vessel. Navy SEALs are deployed in an unsuccessful attempt to reclaim the ship. [16]
Without Remorse 2021Based on the Tom Clancy's novel about a Navy SEAL who uncovers an international conspiracy while seeking justice for the murder of his pregnant wife by Russian soldiers. [3]
Zero Dark Thirty 2012The film's climax dramatizes the real-life occurrence of a team of Navy SEALs raiding Osama bin Laden's compound. [3]

Actors with recurring Navy SEALs roles

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>The Abyss</i> 1989 film by James Cameron

The Abyss is a 1989 American science fiction film written and directed by James Cameron and starring Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and Michael Biehn. When an American submarine sinks in the Caribbean, a US search and recovery team works with an oil platform crew, racing against Soviet vessels to recover the boat. Deep in the ocean, they encounter something unexpected.

Operation Red Wings, informally referred to as the Battle of Abbas Ghar, was a joint military operation conducted by the United States in the Pech District of Kunar Province, Afghanistan. It was carried out from late-June to mid-July 2005 on the slopes of a mountain named Sawtalo Sar, situated approximately 20 miles (32 km) west of the provincial capital of Asadabad. The operation was intended to disrupt the activities of local Taliban-aligned anti-coalition militias (ACM), thus contributing to regional stability and thereby facilitating the September 2005 parliamentary election for the National Assembly of Afghanistan. At the time, Taliban ACM activity in the region was carried out predominantly by a small group led by a local man from Nangarhar Province known as Ahmad Shah, who had aspirations of achieving regional prominence among Muslim fundamentalists. Consequently, Shah and his group were one of the primary targets of the American military operation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taylor Kitsch</span> Canadian actor and model

Taylor Kitsch is a Canadian actor and model. He is known for portraying Tim Riggins in the NBC television series Friday Night Lights (2006–2011). He has also worked in films such as X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009), Battleship (2012), John Carter (2012), Savages (2012), Lone Survivor (2013), The Grand Seduction (2014), American Assassin (2017), Only The Brave (2017), and 21 Bridges (2019).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marcus Luttrell</span> U.S. Navy SEAL and author (born 1975)

Marcus Luttrell is a retired United States Navy SEAL who received the Navy Cross and Purple Heart for his actions in June 2005 against Taliban fighters during Operation Red Wings in which he was the lone survivor. Luttrell became an SO1 by the end of his eight-year career in the United States Navy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Erik S. Kristensen</span> United States Navy officer (1972–2005)

Erik Samsel Kristensen was a lieutenant commander of the United States Navy SEALs who was killed in action during Operation Red Wings. He and several other SEALs set off as part of a search and rescue mission, hoping to assist a four-man SEAL team that was engaged in a firefight with Taliban fighters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Luke Grimes</span> American actor (born 1984)

Luke Timothy Grimes is an American actor and musician. He is known for his role as real life Navy SEAL Marc Alan Lee in the acclaimed film American Sniper. He played Christian Grey's brother, Elliot, in the film Fifty Shades of Grey (2015), and its sequels, Fifty Shades Darker (2017) and Fifty Shades Freed (2018). He currently stars as Kayce Dutton in the Paramount Network drama series Yellowstone (2018–present).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Kyle</span> American military sniper (1974–2013)

Christopher Scott Kyle was a United States Navy SEAL sniper. He served four tours in the Iraq War and was awarded several commendations for acts of heroism and meritorious service in combat. He had 160 confirmed kills and was awarded a Silver Star, three Bronze Star Medals with "V" devices for valor, 2x Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal with "V" device, as well as numerous other unit and personal awards.

<i>Lone Survivor</i> (book) 2007 book by Marcus Luttrell

Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10 (2007) is a non-fiction book written by Marcus Luttrell with assistance from novelist and ghostwriter Patrick Robinson and published by Little, Brown and Company. The narrative takes place in Afghanistan, following Luttrell and a group of U.S. Navy SEALs. It has since seen a 2013 film adaptation of the same name, with Mark Wahlberg starring as Luttrell.

<i>Lone Survivor</i> 2013 film by Peter Berg

Lone Survivor is a 2013 American biographical war film based on the 2007 nonfiction book of the same name by Marcus Luttrell with Patrick Robinson. Set during the war in Afghanistan, it dramatizes the unsuccessful United States Navy SEALs counter-insurgent mission Operation Red Wings, during which a four-man SEAL reconnaissance and surveillance team was given the task of tracking down the Taliban leader Ahmad Shah. The film was written and directed by Peter Berg, and stars Mark Wahlberg, Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch, Ben Foster, and Eric Bana.

Marc Alan Lee was a United States Navy SEAL. He was the first SEAL to lose his life in Operation Iraqi Freedom when he was killed in a fierce firefight while on patrol against insurgents in Ramadi. Lee was posthumously awarded the Silver Star, the Bronze Star Medal with Valor and the Purple Heart. On March 20, 2013, the Marc A. Lee Training Center building was dedicated at the Naval Amphibious Base Coronado.

<i>American Sniper</i> (book) 2012 autobiography by Chris Kyle

American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History is a work of autobiographical creative nonfiction by United States Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, written with Scott McEwen and Jim DeFelice. The book was published by William Morrow and Company on January 2, 2012 and appeared on The New York Times Best Seller list for 37 weeks.

<i>American Sniper</i> 2014 biographical film

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<i>13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi</i> 2016 film by Michael Bay

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<i>Without Remorse</i> (film) 2021 film by Stefano Sollima

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew Axelson</span> Recipient of the Navy Cross

Matthew Gene "Axe" Axelson was an enlisted United States Navy SEAL who was awarded the U.S. Navy's second highest decoration, the Navy Cross and the Purple Heart, for his actions during the War in Afghanistan. Serving as a sniper in the operation, Axelson was killed in action during the firefight phase of Operation Red Wings.

<i>The Terminal List</i> American action thriller television series

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References

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  4. Deerwester, Jayme (May 3, 2014). "Cooper gets into character for 'American Sniper'". USA Today . Retrieved May 4, 2014.
  5. Staff (April 8, 2007). "Presidential candidate Bill Richardson arrives in North Korea". USA Today . Associated Press . Retrieved December 27, 2014.
  6. Latchem, John (January 14, 2009). "Behind Enemy Lines: Colombia (DVD Review)". Home Media Magazine . Retrieved October 7, 2014.
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  10. Gaydos, Steven (June 1, 1997). "Review: 'Goodbye America'". Variety . Retrieved December 27, 2014.
  11. Busch, Anita (March 23, 2015). "J.K. Simmons Leads Navy SEALs Charlie Bewley & Diarmaid Murtagh In Luc Besson's 'The Lake'". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved July 28, 2015.
  12. Howe, Desson (June 7, 1996). "'The Rock' Bottom". The Washington Post . Retrieved January 16, 2014.
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