Netflix’s fiery new action thriller – which has shades of The Terminal List and The Punisher – is intensely bingable. The Terminal List season two is finally arriving in 2026, four years after the original series debuted. Sure, a well-received prequel (dubbed Dark Wolf ) arrived in 2025, but it only featured franchise hero James Reece (Chris Pratt) in a supporting role.
Author Jack Carr’s Terminal List series has proven wildly popular since the first book was published, and he’s noted a huge range of inspirations for his thriller saga. This includes James Bond, First Blood, The Executioner pulp novels, and even the character the latter series inspired, The Punisher.
The Terminal List and The Punisher share a lot of DNA, with both following military vets who use their skills to wreak havoc when their families are murdered. It’s a particularly busy time for fans of Marvel’s antihero too, since the past year has seen Jon Bernthal fronting multiple Punisher movie and TV show projects, including Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
Carr has also highlighted the work of author A. J. Quinnell as a big influence on The Terminal List, especially Man on Fire. This followed a bodyguard named Creasy, who cuts a bloody path when the young girl he was protecting is kidnapped. The novel has been made into two movies (including a 2004 Denzel Washington banger) and a 7-part Netflix series.
Netflix’s Man On Fire Is The Best Kind Of Remake
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II stepped into Creasy’s shoes for Netflix’s Man on Fire adaptation, which moved the action to Rio de Janeiro. While the story is broadly similar to both Quinnell’s novel and its movie adaptations, the 2026 version did something fresh with the material. Instead of covering the same beats, the show’s first episode ends on a shocking twist that takes a different direction from the previous adaptations.
In short, it’s the best kind of remake; one that’s inviting to newcomers while offering up surprises for fans. At only seven episodes – that never run longer than an hour – Netflix’s Man on Fire is an easy weekend binge-watch. Each episode organically sets up the next chapter, while the new characters help give it a lot of emotional depth.
That’s not to say it’s flawless. Some of the twists are far too easy to predict, while the action can be a tad generic. Still, Abdul-Mateen always grounds it, giving a physically imposing performance that still explores Creasy’s PTSD. For fans of both The Terminal List and The Punisher, Man on Fire is must-see stuff, with all three featuring highly capable men of action who still, nevertheless, aren’t afraid to get emotional.
Man On Fire Season 2 Is Almost Certain
Quinnell penned several Creasy novels, though none have, to date, received adaptations. That could change with the streaming success of Man on Fire. The show only received an average 58% on Rotten Tomatoes, but it was still a sizable hit for the streamer, and its ending left the door open for more. While it’s not unheard of for Netflix to not renew a streaming hit, the odds of a second season are strong.
Famed character actor Scott Glenn (Netflix’s Daredevil) played Creasy in the 1987 movie version of Man on Fire.
With Prime dominating in the TV thriller department (Reacher, The Terminal List, etc.) and The Night Agent coming to an end with season four, Netflix could use a recurring action thriller of its own. Man on Fire was a solid start, but there is definite room for improvement. So long as Abdul-Mateen is open to returning as Creasy for multiple seasons, there’s no reason a Man on Fire TV show couldn’t run for years.
Assuming another series does happen, it would be nice if it were more faithful to Quinnell’s source material. Man on Fire smartly reinvented a story that had become too familiar, but season two would be covering books that have never been adapted, like The Perfect Kill, so a little more faithfulness would be warranted.
Source: Rotten Tomatoes
- Release Date
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April 30, 2026
- Network
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Netflix
- Episodes
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7