Taron Egerton has absolutely dazzled audiences with his talent as a comedic action star in the Kingsman movies. He’s also shown serious dramatic range with phenomenal performances in Testament of Youth and Rocketman, the latter of which earned him a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Musical in 2020. The actor is great at roles that require stealth and emotional range, and so it should be no surprise he’s appeared in his fair share of crime dramas over the past few years.
In fact, one of them just released the season finale on Apple TV+ last month. Another debuted in theaters that same month to great reviews. Egerton isn’t just doing well within the genre. He’s thriving. Here is every crime drama Egerton has ever starred in, ranked by their Rotten Tomatoes scores. We’ve excluded his first crime drama, Inspector Lewis, because Egerton only appears in two episodes in 2013 and the series has nine full seasons. Instead, we’re looking at shows and movies where Egerton is more front and center.
7
‘Billionaire Boys Club’ (2018)
7% Tomatometer
Based on a true story, Billionaire Boys Club is about a group of rich boys who devised their own Ponzi scheme in 1980s Los Angeles. Ansel Elgort (Tokyo Vice) stars as Joe Hunt, founder of the group, with Egerton alongside him as Hunt’s close friend and accomplice, Dean Karny. The cast includes Emma Roberts (American Horror Story), Ryan Rottman (Sister of the Bride), and Jeremy Irvine (Treadstone).
Most of Egerton’s movies rarely miss the mark entirely, but this one did. Audiences didn’t like the Billionaire Boys Club. Critics absolutely hated it, with one critic referring to it as a “wannabe Wolf of Wall Street” that never finds the right tone. The only award Billionaire Boys Club won was the Barry L. Bumstead Award at the Razzies in 2019, which is given to a high-budget film that fails at the box office.
6
‘Robin Hood’ (2018)
14% Tomatometer
Robin Hood is an action adventure movie directed by Otto Bathurst (Lockerbie: A Search for Truth) with a screenplay by Ben Chandler David and James Kelly. Egerton stars as Robin of Loxley, known to all as Robin Hood — taking up the mantle from other actors who have played the role, including Errol Flynn, Kevin Costner, and Russell Crowe. Jamie Foxx (Spider-Man: No Way Home) plays Robin Hood’s trainer, John, and Ben Mendelsohn (Andor) is a well-known villain as the Sheriff of Nottingham. The cast also includes Eve Hewson (The Perfect Couple), Tim Minchin (Squinters), F. Murray Abraham (The White Lotus), and Jamie Dornan (The Tourist).
This is another film that got some pretty rough reviews. It also lost a ton of money at the box office. The plot and pace bore the brunt of most criticism. Action movies are supposed to be thrilling and this just wasn’t that. One critic called the film a “lazy action-movie cliché.” Robin Hood was nominated for Worst Picture, Worst Supporting Actor Jamie Foxx, and Worst Remake, Ripp-Off, or Sequel at the 2019 Razzie Awards. Don’t worry, though. This is the last Razzie nominated movie on the list.
5
‘Legend’ (2015)
60% Tomatometer
This biographical drama follows the rise and fall of Reggie and Ron Kray, twin brothers who gained power as brutal gangsters in London during the 1950s and 1960s. Brian Helgeland (Finestkind) wrote and directed the film, based on the 1972 nonfiction book The Profession of Violence by John Pearson. Tom Hardy (Venom) plays both Kray twins, while Egerton appears as Teddy Smith, a ruthless gangster romantically involved with Ronnie Kray. The cast features Emily Browning (American Gods), Christopher Eccleston (The Leftovers), Colin Morgan (Merlin), David Thewlis (Enola Holmes 2), and Chazz Palminteri (Mulholland Falls).
Legend as a whole received mixed reviews, though critics agree that the film really showcases Hardy’s range and talent as an actor. Hardy did win Best Actor at the British Independent Film Awards. He also won British/Irish Actor of the Year at the London Critics Circle Film Awards and Best Actor at the Toronto Film Critics Association Awards. The performances across the board are solid. The film struggles a little with the storytelling, but not so much so that it becomes a distraction.
4
‘Smoke’ (2025)
73% Tomatometer
Smoke is a starring vehicle for Egerton and his most recent crime drama for television. The series, which came out on Apple TV+ in June, was developed by crime author Dennis Lehane, known best for novels like Mystic River, Shutter Island, and Gone, Baby, Gone. Egerton plays arson investigator and former firefighter Dave Gudsen as he follows the cases of two serial arsonists in this dark drama. The cast includes Jurnee Smollett (Lovecraft Country), Rafe Spall (The Ritual), Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine (Dexter: Resurrection), Hannah Emily Anderson (X-Men: Dark Phoenix), Greg Kinnear (The Stand), and John Leguizamo (The Menu).
Smoke is based on a 2021 podcast called Firebug, which chronicles the crimes of a real-life serial arsonist. So far, Smoke has been getting generally positive reviews. Critics seem to like it a little more than audiences. Some note that it takes a few episodes to get into, but eventually picks up speed. Regardless, Egerton and Smollett have great chemistry and give fantastic performances throughout.
3
‘She Rides Shotgun’ (2025)
86% Tomatometer
Remember when we said that Egerton movies rarely miss the mark? Well, this one definitely hits it. She Rides Shotgun has only been out for a month, and it is already certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. The film is directed by Nick Rowland. Jordan Harper (Hightown), Ben Collins (The Night House), and Luke Piotrowski (The Night House) wrote the screenplay based on Harper’s 2017 debut book of the same name. Egerton stars as Nate McClusky, who returns to his estranged daughter’s life after being released from prison. Ana Sophia Heger (Things Heard & Seen) plays Nate’s 11-year-old daughter, Polly, who has been marked for death by a gang associated with her father. The two hit the road in an attempt to outrun his demons.
She Rides Shotgun has received phenomenal reviews so far as a gritty, compelling crime drama with realistic emotional stakes. Egerton and Heger’s performances are possibly two of the best action thriller performances of 2025. If Heger looks familiar, but you can’t figure out why, it’s probably because you saw her play Lark Hughes on the CBS sitcom Life in Pieces from 2017 to 2019. She Rides Shotgun has an 86% rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, but audiences have bumped it up to 91% on the Popcornmeter.
2
‘Carry-On’ (2024)
88% Tomatometer
Carry-On is a Christmas Eve action thriller directed by Jaume Collet-Serra (Jungle Cruise) with a screenplay by T. J. Fixman (Ratchet & Clank). Egerton stars as Ethan Kopek, a TSA officer with a baby on the way who has set aside his dream of becoming a police officer. Stuck working on Christmas Eve, a twist of fate puts Kopek in the middle of a dubious dilemma when an anonymous “Traveler” (Jason Bateman) threatens to kill Kopek’s pregnant girlfriend, Nora (Sofia Carson), if he doesn’t allow a dangerous package to pass through the security check.
This movie is action-packed from beginning to end with shades of Die Hard at every turn. Released just weeks before Christmas, the movie quickly became one of the most-watched English-language films on Netflix. Critics praised the cat-and-mouse games between Kopek and the Traveler, with tension that doesn’t wane as the movie progresses. Egerton received a nomination for Best Actor in an Action Movie at the Critics’ Choice Super Awards for his role.
1
‘Black Bird’ (2022)
98% Tomatometer
Three years before Egerton teamed up with Dennis Lehane for Smoke, the two worked together on the six-part miniseries Black Bird. This Apple TV+ crime drama is based on the memoir In with the Devil: A Fallen Hero, a Serial Killer, and a Dangerous Bargain for Redemption by James Keene with Hillel Levin. Egerton plays Keene, who was serving a 10-year prison sentence when he made a deal with the FBI to befriend suspected serial killer, Larry Hall. Paul Walter Hauser (The Fantastic Four: First Steps) plays Hall in a cast that includes Sepideh Moafi (Notorious), Greg Kinnear, and Ray Liotta (Goodfellas) — who passed away before the show’s release.
Black Bird is certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics and audiences in agreement about the show’s exceptional quality. It’s a character-driven drama that critics compare more closely to The Night Of than Mindhunter. In an age that can feel oversaturated with true-crime adaptations, the praise Black Bird earned feels even more notable. Black Bird was nominated for four Primetime Emmy Awards, winning Outstanding Cinematography for Natalie Kingston and Outstanding Supporting Actor for Paul Walter Hauser. Egerton won a BAFTA Cymru Award for Best Actor.
