The Best Films About MMA. In this series of sports-themed articles, we’ll be reviewing the best sports films from auto racing and baseball to tennis and surfing. These Best Of lists will include both popular and lesser-known films from a specific sports film subgenre and our plan is to release each list monthly near a major sporting event.
Mixed Martial Arts, or MMA, exploded onto the sports scene in the early 1990s with the debut of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Over time, it has arguably overtaken boxing in both popularity and cultural relevance – especially with younger sports fans. MMA is fought within a ring, cage or fenced area with UFC’s “The Octagon” being the most popular and culturally relevant MMA arena. MMA also incorporates a variety of martial arts and sports skillsets from boxing and Muay Thai to Brazilian jiu-jitsu and Greco-Roman wrestling.
In the sports film subgenre, films such as Bloodsport (1988) and Ong Bak (2004) showed that martial arts disciplines such as Muay Thai and ‘no-holds-barred’ combat had a viable audience. As a result, MMA started to gain relevancy in the early 2010s with the sports drama Warrior (2011) and sports comedy Here Comes the Boom (2012). Though the sport still struggled to become a major theme of sports films over the ensuing decade (compared to other similar sports such as boxing and wrestling), there’s been a recent uptick of MMA-themed films in the 2020’s including Bruised (2020), The Smashing Machine (2025) and Beast (2026).
Once we’ve completed the list of best films by individual sport, we’ll have a cumulative article with the absolute 50 best sports films. For now, you can view our tentative schedule below and we’ll try to fit in some articles for some other sports such as Volleyball and Rowing that aren’t typically depicted in many films:
- Best Films About Football
- Best Films About Baseball
- Best Films About Surfing
- Best Films About Basketball
- Best Films About Summer Olympic Sports
- Best Films About Soccer
- Best Films About Running
- Best Films About Tennis
- Best Films About Auto Racing
- Best Films About Hockey
- Best Films About Wrestling
- Best Films About Winter Olympic Sports
- Best Films About Boxing
- Best Films About Golf
- Best Films About MMA
- The 50 Best Sports Films
For our rankings we’re going to use some criteria to help define and refine our list. First, the film must primarily be about MMA. Many films featuring boxing or films about wrestling are often miscategorized as MMA films, but we are only going to include films specifically about MMA and the specific mixed martial arts disciplines used by MMA fighters.
Second, given there aren’t that many MMA films to date, we will include some films on our list that deal with MMA specific fighting styles including Muay Thai or Vale Tudo (No Holds Barred Combat). We feel these films will also be of interest to fans of MMA sports films as there aren’t enough films in specialized fighting styles to warrant their own Top 10 list.
Third, though MMA incorporates various martial arts disciplines, we will have a separate article in the near future for the best sports film involving competitive martial arts such as kickboxing and karate that includes The Karate Kid (1984), Best of the Best (1989) and Redbelt (2008).
Fourth, the more MMA action in the film, the higher the film will rank on our list. We’ll also give higher ranking to films that feature competitive MMA tournaments vs. illegal street fights or competitions.
Fifth, we’re not including MMA documentaries on this list but we do recommend checking out Smashing Machine (2002), Fightville (2012) and Conor McGregor: Notorious (2017).
Sixth, we’ll also be giving lower priority to films that feature MMA-style fights but are, in essence, strict revenge or action films. Examples here would be Sixty Minutes (2024) and Striking Rescue (2024) that are basically action thrillers with minor instances of competitive MMA combat.
And seventh, we had to follow our rule for all of KBZ’s film listings where we only list films that have a 4.0/10 or higher rating and were made after 1970.
Our complete list of Sports Dramas features over 587+ films from 1942 – 2024 and our complete list of Sports Comedies features over 254+ films from 1968 – 2024. Though we don’t yet break down films by sports discipline, we will list every individual sport-related film in their respective articles. You can also subscribe to our newsletter to get updated as we release future articles on each sport and add the latest and greatest subgenre films to our collection.
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The Best Films About MMA
Films that didn’t make our list (and only for completists): Rage (2003), Ong Back 3 (2010), The Hammer (2010), Rag Doll (2020), Never Back Down: Revolt (2021), Perfect Addiction (2023), American Warrior (2024), Sixty Minutes (2024), The Lockdown (2024), Striking Rescue (2024) and Gladiator Underground (2025).
Films not reviewed for this list: Beautiful Boxer (2003) and Beast (2026).
Honorable Mentions: Kickboxer (1989), The Protector (2005), Chocolate (2008), Never Back Down (2008), Ong Bak 2: The Beginning (2008), Blood and Bone (2009), Muay Thai Chaiya (2010), Never Back Down 2: The Beatdown (2011), The Philly Kid (2012), Fists of Legend (2013), Kickboxer: Vengeance (2016), A Prayer Before Dawn (2017), Kickboxer: Retaliation (2018) and The Cage – Nella gabbia (2024).
Plot: The true story of mixed martial arts and UFC fighter Mark Kerr, whose obsession with greatness made him a legend – and nearly cost him everything.
KBZ’s Take: Though some MMA fans might prefer the documentary about Mark Kerr’s life, The Smashing Machine is a great glimpse into one of MMA’s earliest and underappreciated stars. And though the film recreates some of Kerr’s memorable MMA fights, it’s more of a biopic focused on the dramatic episodes of Kerr’s personal life.
Like most sports biopics, Kerr’s life is an interesting story even non-sports fans will enjoy. And even though it follows a general biopic template, there are some amazing performances in this film from both Dwayne Johnson as Kerr and Emily Blunt as the fiery Dawn.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
Plot: The life and struggles of José Aldo, who rose to the very top of the MMA world, eventually becoming a long-reigning champion in both the WEC and UFC promotions.
KBZ’s Take: This film has very divided opinions within the MMA world with fans either loving or hating this look into the life of MMA star José Aldo. Detractors will note that lead actor José Loreto is too tall to play Aldo or doesn’t look enough like him. Or that the film doesn’t cover other fights of Aldo’s later career including his 13-second knockout by Conor McGregor.
However, as we admittedly aren’t huge MMA fans nor know much about Aldo himself, we would tend to agree with supporters of the film who say it gives a balanced look into the life of the Brazilian superstar and the personal, family and societal issues that drove him to be the best.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
#8
Bruised
Plot: Jackie Justice, a disgraced MMA fighter who has failed at the one thing she’s ever been good at – fighting. When 6-year-old Manny, the son she walked out on years ago, returns to her doorstep, Jackie has to conquer her own demons.
KBZ’s Take: Bruised uses a common theme of sports subgenre films with a former UFC fighter, Jackie Justice (Halle Berry), at the lowest point in her life, doing whatever it takes to make it back to the top. The film will feel very familiar to any sports fan, but we would encourage viewers to stick it out to the end of the film. Though the film takes a while to get going (and is heavy on the drama within Justice’s personal life), it does feature one of the better choreographed MMA fights within the subgenre.
Where to Stream / Buy: Netflix
Plot: Holly has faded to the point of becoming invisible, but she has one chance to restore a disgraced MMA fighter, Shane Blackwell, to his former glory, and in doing so regain her foothold in the world around her.
KBZ’s Take: We often like to list a film that viewers of a specific sports film subgenre might not have seen or heard of. Above the Shadows is one of those films that fans of MMA might not be interested in upon first glance.
However, though the film is basically a fantasy-based romantic drama, it does feature some great MMA action towards the end of the film. It’s also a film we feel is a good compromise for a date night film if you want to watch MMA action and your significant other is into romance. You can thank us later…
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
Plot: A high school biology teacher moonlights as a mixed-martial arts fighter in an effort to raise money to save the school’s music program.
KBZ’s Take: Like all other sports film subgenres, there’s inevitably a point where a film takes a comedic look at the sport. In certain ways, this often helps legitimatize that specific sport into a subgenre in film leading to even more dramatic and comedic films after certain film tropes have been established.
And that’s where Here Come the Boom comes in as one of the earliest MMA films in the subgenre. It’s not a classic sports comedy by any means, but it does feature some inside-MMA humor along with some hilarious performances by Kevin James and Henry Winkler.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
Plot: When the head of a statue sacred to a village is stolen, a young martial artist goes to the big city and finds himself taking on the underworld to retrieve it.
KBZ’s Take: We mentioned earlier in this article that we would also include some films on our list that aren’t MMA competition specific but do feature MMA fighting styles such as Muay Thai. And Ong Bak is one of those films that even though we ranked lower due to it’s non-MMA focus, does feature some of the best Muay Thai action that fans of the subgenre should enjoy.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
Plot: Picking up after the events of Never Back Down 2, former MMA champion Case Walker is on the comeback trail to become champion once again.
KBZ’s Take: The Never Back Down film franchise is one of the few sports film series focused on MMA. While not all the films are worth watching – especially Never Back Down: Revolt (2021) – the other three films in the series including Never Back Down (2008), Never Back Down 2: The Beatdown (2011) and Never Back Down: No Surrender are definitely worth checking out.
We selected No Surrender for this spot on our list as we felt it was the best film of the series and much more focused on MMA. There’s some great action in this film and Michael Jai White gives arguably his best performance in the entire series. And though the film does feature some call backs to Never Back Down 2, it’s not required to see that film to follow the plot of this film.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
Plot: Heavyweight champion George `Iceman’ Chambers is framed while boxing in Russia and once again sent to prison. His only way out is to win illegal mixed martial arts matches against another inmate.
KBZ’s Take: While Undisputed (2002) was focused on boxing (and was an honorable mention on our list of the 25 Best Films About Boxing), its sequel shifts its focus to mixed martial arts. And what better way to announce this shift by having two of the greatest mixed martial artists in film – Michael Jai White and Scott Adkins – fighting against each other in a no-holds-barred match.
This isn’t a film you’re going to watch for character development or an intricate plot as the White vs. Adkins fight is what you’re watching it for – and it’s one of the best of the entire subgenre.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
#2
Bloodsport
Plot: Failed hockey player-turned-golf whiz Happy Gilmore – whose unconventional approach and antics on the grass courts the ire of rival Shooter McGavin – is determined to win a PGA tournament so he can save his granny’s house with the prize money. Meanwhile, an attractive tour publicist tries to soften Happy’s image.
KBZ’s Take: Bloodsport is arguably the film that paved the way for growing interest in competitive mixed martial arts as a sport and its eventual ascendancy within sports films. This is a cult classic that was Jean-Claude Van Damme’s breakout film which turned him into one of the top action stars of the 80s and 90s.
The film introduced Vale Tudo (No Holds Barred Combat), Lua, Muay Thai and a variety of other mixed martial arts disciplines to an entire generation that had grown up on martial arts films mainly about Karate or Kung Fu. If there’s one film that can be traced back to the rise in interest for MMA, this is it.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
#1
Warrior
Plot: The youngest son of an alcoholic former boxer returns home, where he’s trained by his father for competition in a mixed martial arts tournament – a path that puts the fighter on a collision course with his estranged, older brother.
KBZ’s Take: Warrior is MMA’s version of Rocky (1976). And that’s not a bad thing as, in many ways, Warrior transcends Rocky’s place as one of the greatest sports films overall with its foundation as a drama about families.
Similar to how romance and drama are the foundations of Rocky, Warrior employs various threads dealing with a broken and dysfunctional family involving estranged brothers in Tommy (Tom Hardy) and Brendan (Joel Edgerton), their alcoholic father (Nick Nolte) and even Brendan’s collapsing personal life. This is the emotional foundation that the film builds upon with its eventual foray into a third act focused on the most exciting and heartbreaking MMA match of the entire subgenre.
Warrior is not only the best film of the MMA sports film subgenre, but also one of the best films about a fractured and broken family attempting to reconcile itself through any means possible.
Where to Stream / Buy: Amazon
