The Rip review (2026)

It’s early January, but The Rip seems like a viable Top 10 films of 2026 candidate.

The Rip had a pedigree that suggested it could be more than the usual January cinematic slog. Ben Affleck and Matt Damon reunited on the big screen for the first time since 2023’s Air in a police action thriller directed and written by Joe Carnahan.

Arguably the best films of their extensive careers revolved around action thriller police dramas — The Departed for Damon, The Town for Affleck and Narc for Carnahan — so tackling the genre together seemed like a winning strategy.

The Rip opens with Miami police captain Jackie Velez (Lina Esco) getting gunned down by two masked assailants who clearly knew her whereabouts.

Fearing an inside job, the rest of her Tactical Narcotics Team — Dane (Damon, Oppenheimer), J.D (Affleck, The Accountant 2) Nuema (Teyana Taylor, One Battle After Another), Mike (Steven Yeun, The Walking Dead) and Lolo (Catalina Sandino Moreno, Ballerina) — are questioned in hopes of discovering the traitor.

Dane gets a text about a house with a big cash stash, that needs to be seized — aka a rip — he rallies the team to respond. The house is in the center of a cul de sac that seems strangely too quiet. A young woman, Desi (Sasha Calle, The Flash), responds and allows them to search the house.

Upon searching the house, they find far more than a few hundred thousand dollars hidden in property. This rip is in the several millions. Naturally, that starts to make everyone on the team a little antsy especially as Dane starts acting suspicious and not following protocol.

Desi quickly writes them off as dirty cops save for Mike, who’s also leery of Dane’s actions. Ditto for J.D., who’s been super tight with Dane, but doesn’t like how he’s operating.

J.D. has enough heat on him since he was in a relationship with Jackie and his brother, Del (Scott Adkins, The Killer’s Game), is a federal agent who doesn’t like dirty cops even if he’s related to them. To cover himself, J.D. calls up his DEA pal, Mateo (Kyle Chandler, Godzilla vs. Kong), to do some digging and possibly provide some backup if needed.

Carnahan doesn’t make it easy to determine who’s the shady team member in The Rip. He offers up enough reasonable doubt that any member of the squad could be the guilty party.

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Cinematographer Juanmi Azpiroz (Copshop) does a tremendous job of conveying the sense of shadiness and distrust with the lighting. Characters weave in and out of shadows or are bathed in ambient green and red lights. The ambience of The Rip is a major factor in the storytelling and Azpiroz doubles down on the mystery and intrigue. Clinton Shorter’s score is never distracting while adding subtle accompaniment to complement the scenes.

The Rip also benefits from its stellar cast. It’s no shock that Damon and Affleck play off each other so well. They bring an air to Dane and J.D. like they’ve seen and done it all. As their bond starts to fray, Affleck and Damon bring an additional air of desperation and intensity.

While they probably could have kept The Rip entertaining on their own, the rest of the ensemble more than pulls their weight. Taylor provides a likable charismatic rawness while Sandino Moreno offers a low-key confidence to Lolo. They play off each other so well it feels like Carnahan could explore that dynamic in a prequel or sequel.

Yeun has been a rising star for years, but this performance seems like one that should open up more opportunities. Calle likewise shows solid versatility with her performance.

The Rip clocks in at just under two hours but never feels long. There’s plenty of intense dialogue and exchanges, but Carnahan makes sure the final act delivers strongly on the action front. The year is barely a few weeks old, but The Rip will likely stay a favorite as it delivers on all fronts to make for a very satisfying cop drama.

Rating: 9.5 out of 10

Photo Credit: Netflix

Check out Damon and Affleck’s most recent film, Air, on Blu-Ray at Amazon.

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