You can gauge a lot about a culture by their most celebrated badasses. If "over the hill" wasn't exactly the terminology you were hoping for when it comes to the state of our current movie protagonists, then clearly you haven't been paying much attention to the popular trend of reigniting '80s action flicks for the modern audience. While half of this list consists of characters played by actors in their 60s (okay, one is actually 70), we still wouldn't want to go toe-to-toe with the one-man wrecking crews they play onscreen, even if the odds of them breaking a hip in the process are largely in our favor.
The Terminator
![greatest one man wrecking crews, the terminator]()
We're not quite sure what's going on in the newest "Terminator Genisys" trailer, but even though it appears that our favorite T-800 has been around so long that he is literally an old man like the actor who plays him, that only cements his bad-to-the-bone status even more. After all, through five films he's played the same model of cyborg despite numerous upgraded enemies trying to take him out. Sure, he may not technically be a man, but the wrecking crew part fits him like a glove. And from the looks of the young CGI Arnie in the latest film, he'll be back again and again with or without an actual living Schwarzenegger around.
John McClane
![greatest one man wrecking crews, john mcclane die hard]()
The last two "Die Hard" films may have been a little over the top compared to the first three, but regardless of John McClane becoming a bit larger than life since his resurgence, one thing remains the same: you aren't taking him down without a fight. And even then, it's still not going to happen. Whether he's stuck in a confined space or leveling half of Russia, you'd just better pray he's on your side. He may talk a bit too much (often to himself), but that just means he's always going to deliver a great zinger before he blows your ass up. His badass nature knows no bounds. Hell, they've even written a song about it.
Bryan Mills
![greatest one man wrecking crews, bryan mills taken]()
They claim "Tak3n" was the end all to the franchise, but considering Bryan Mills wasn't actually killed off in the end (of course he wasn't), we highly doubt it. After all, Liam Neeson is only 62, making him the youngest one-man wrecking crew on our list thus far. Sadly, the character is simply burdened by a premise that was hard to swallow by a third film. There are only so many people in his life that can be taken from him. Otherwise, what kind of reputation does he really have? Well, besides the kind that can deliver lines like this and actually back them up.
Jason Bourne
![greatest one man wrecking crews, jason bourne]()
Hell hath no fury like a killing machine who can't remember who he is. We know that's not the actual quote, but it applies to Jason Bourne quite well. It's been nearly ten years since we saw him in action, but last year's announcement that he'd be returning to the big screen to give a whole new set of bad guys splitting headaches is one that we couldn't be more excited about. Plus, it totally backs our claim from the previous entry that even when it's said to be the last ride for a famous badass, it never is. But hey, you won't hear us complaining one bit.
007
![greatest one man wrecking crews, james bond 007]()
Otherwise known as "Bond...James Bond," the super spy of many faces has truly stood the test of time. The actors who play him may come and go, but his legacy we seemingly live on forever. While his latest incarnation paints him as a bit more fallible than he's been in the past, it's not as if that makes him any less of a force to be reckoned with. Go up against him and you are still going to die. For that matter, most of the people who side with him still die. But 007 never will, making him a one-man wrecking crew of the strictest sense.
Wolverine
![greatest one man wrecking crews, wolverine x-men]()
When you consider what it actually takes to stop this madman, one-man army might be a more suitable description of the mutant known as Wolverine. While we probably could have filled this entire list with superheroes alone, that wouldn't really be fair considering that most of them work together as a team when the going gets roughest. Yes, we realize that Wolverine is an integral member of the X-Men, but he's still a loner at heart, as evidenced by his two solo films and counting. In those adventures by themselves, he's survived a firing squads, atomic blast, and even performing open heart surgery on himself in the name of living on to kick more ass. It doesn't get much more intimidating than that.
Rama
![greatest one man wrecking crews, rama thr raid]()
If you thought Wolverine was tough, picture someone with no powers at all fighting his way through even worse situations and you have Rama from "The Raid" films. As the lone survivor of both movies, there was no way we were going to exclude him from this list, even though we realize not many people have seen the series. Those who have, however, will most certainly agree that he deserves to be here, especially considering how difficult some of the fight scenes are to stomach as a viewer. Not to mention scenes like this, which literally consist of a solo Rama fighting off dozens of men all by himself. Warning: not for the squeamish.
Machete
![greatest one man wrecking crews, machete]()
Just in case you didn't look it up after reading the intro, "Machete" star Danny Trejo is the 70-year-old actor we were referring to. Let's face it, if you are 70 and still making men pee their pants at the sight of you, of course you are going on this list. In terms of the character himself, it's the ones with nothing to lose who are the most dangerous, and that's Machete in spades. He's so unstoppable that the next time we see him will be in space. How many one-man wrecking crews can say that?
Riddick
![greatest one man wrecking crews, riddick]()
Yeah...we kinda forgot about Riddick in that last write-up. Other than him and Machete, though, we swear there are no more badasses doing their dirty work outside of Earth's atmosphere. It's a damn shame, too, as who wouldn't want to see John McClane ramping a dune buggy into the International Space Station? But we digress. Richard B. Riddick may not be the coolest sounding name on this list, but he's certainly the most ferocious, and even more unkillable. Plus, he has to contend with bad people and freaking aliens, which is certainly a job for more than one man.
John Rambo
![greatest one man wrecking crews, john rambo]()
At the end of the day, there's truly only one way to gauge someone as a one-man wrecking crew: their kill count. While we could have gathered these up for all the guys on this list, we decided to simply save the best for last, as John Rambo's is by far the most amusing. We'll let the data speak for itself, as we're not going to sit and try to persuade you just how dangerous the Vietnam vet is when anyone who's seen even a snippet of his films knows this already. But just in case we haven't hammered home why he's the perfect person to round out our list, know that he will kill again in the near future, and will likely be doing with the help of no one else.
The Terminator
We're not quite sure what's going on in the newest "Terminator Genisys" trailer, but even though it appears that our favorite T-800 has been around so long that he is literally an old man like the actor who plays him, that only cements his bad-to-the-bone status even more. After all, through five films he's played the same model of cyborg despite numerous upgraded enemies trying to take him out. Sure, he may not technically be a man, but the wrecking crew part fits him like a glove. And from the looks of the young CGI Arnie in the latest film, he'll be back again and again with or without an actual living Schwarzenegger around.
John McClane
The last two "Die Hard" films may have been a little over the top compared to the first three, but regardless of John McClane becoming a bit larger than life since his resurgence, one thing remains the same: you aren't taking him down without a fight. And even then, it's still not going to happen. Whether he's stuck in a confined space or leveling half of Russia, you'd just better pray he's on your side. He may talk a bit too much (often to himself), but that just means he's always going to deliver a great zinger before he blows your ass up. His badass nature knows no bounds. Hell, they've even written a song about it.
Bryan Mills
They claim "Tak3n" was the end all to the franchise, but considering Bryan Mills wasn't actually killed off in the end (of course he wasn't), we highly doubt it. After all, Liam Neeson is only 62, making him the youngest one-man wrecking crew on our list thus far. Sadly, the character is simply burdened by a premise that was hard to swallow by a third film. There are only so many people in his life that can be taken from him. Otherwise, what kind of reputation does he really have? Well, besides the kind that can deliver lines like this and actually back them up.
Jason Bourne
Hell hath no fury like a killing machine who can't remember who he is. We know that's not the actual quote, but it applies to Jason Bourne quite well. It's been nearly ten years since we saw him in action, but last year's announcement that he'd be returning to the big screen to give a whole new set of bad guys splitting headaches is one that we couldn't be more excited about. Plus, it totally backs our claim from the previous entry that even when it's said to be the last ride for a famous badass, it never is. But hey, you won't hear us complaining one bit.
007
Otherwise known as "Bond...James Bond," the super spy of many faces has truly stood the test of time. The actors who play him may come and go, but his legacy we seemingly live on forever. While his latest incarnation paints him as a bit more fallible than he's been in the past, it's not as if that makes him any less of a force to be reckoned with. Go up against him and you are still going to die. For that matter, most of the people who side with him still die. But 007 never will, making him a one-man wrecking crew of the strictest sense.
Wolverine
When you consider what it actually takes to stop this madman, one-man army might be a more suitable description of the mutant known as Wolverine. While we probably could have filled this entire list with superheroes alone, that wouldn't really be fair considering that most of them work together as a team when the going gets roughest. Yes, we realize that Wolverine is an integral member of the X-Men, but he's still a loner at heart, as evidenced by his two solo films and counting. In those adventures by themselves, he's survived a firing squads, atomic blast, and even performing open heart surgery on himself in the name of living on to kick more ass. It doesn't get much more intimidating than that.
Rama
If you thought Wolverine was tough, picture someone with no powers at all fighting his way through even worse situations and you have Rama from "The Raid" films. As the lone survivor of both movies, there was no way we were going to exclude him from this list, even though we realize not many people have seen the series. Those who have, however, will most certainly agree that he deserves to be here, especially considering how difficult some of the fight scenes are to stomach as a viewer. Not to mention scenes like this, which literally consist of a solo Rama fighting off dozens of men all by himself. Warning: not for the squeamish.
Machete
Just in case you didn't look it up after reading the intro, "Machete" star Danny Trejo is the 70-year-old actor we were referring to. Let's face it, if you are 70 and still making men pee their pants at the sight of you, of course you are going on this list. In terms of the character himself, it's the ones with nothing to lose who are the most dangerous, and that's Machete in spades. He's so unstoppable that the next time we see him will be in space. How many one-man wrecking crews can say that?
Riddick
Yeah...we kinda forgot about Riddick in that last write-up. Other than him and Machete, though, we swear there are no more badasses doing their dirty work outside of Earth's atmosphere. It's a damn shame, too, as who wouldn't want to see John McClane ramping a dune buggy into the International Space Station? But we digress. Richard B. Riddick may not be the coolest sounding name on this list, but he's certainly the most ferocious, and even more unkillable. Plus, he has to contend with bad people and freaking aliens, which is certainly a job for more than one man.
John Rambo
At the end of the day, there's truly only one way to gauge someone as a one-man wrecking crew: their kill count. While we could have gathered these up for all the guys on this list, we decided to simply save the best for last, as John Rambo's is by far the most amusing. We'll let the data speak for itself, as we're not going to sit and try to persuade you just how dangerous the Vietnam vet is when anyone who's seen even a snippet of his films knows this already. But just in case we haven't hammered home why he's the perfect person to round out our list, know that he will kill again in the near future, and will likely be doing with the help of no one else.