13 Movies Like Kill The Irishman You Should Watch Next

Crime films are almost as old as movies themselves. Drawing inspiration from some of the most famous criminals in history, they would arrive on the silver screen while the larger-than-life outlaws they were based on were still wanted by the law. There are plenty of reasons why gangsters have proven such a popular choice for audiences across generations, with their lavish lifestyles, undeniable swagger, and frequent climactic shootouts all creating the perfect recipe for dramatic cinema.

In 2011, "Punisher" director Jonathan Hensleigh helmed a new entry in the genre: "Kill the Irishman." The film told the story of real-life gangster Danny Greene, an Irish mobster who operated out of Cleveland, Ohio. The film starred the late Ray Stevenson as Greene, while Val Kilmer, Christopher Walken, and Vincent D'Onofrio rounded out the stellar cast. A no-holds-barred action thriller, "Kill the Irishman" is a gripping story that chronicles Greene's impossible struggle against rival mafiosos. If you've seen the film and wanted more after the credits started rolling, we've compiled a list of 13 movies like "Kill the Irishman" to watch next.

Similar titles aren't the only thing that "Kill the Irishman" and "The Irishman" have in common. Adapted from Charles Brandt's "I Heard You Paint Houses," a true crime book documenting the legend of mobster Frank Sheeran's life, the film adaptation reached cinemas in 2019 helmed by acclaimed director Martin Scorsese, who has no less than four films on this list, as he made a career on crime dramas based on true stories. 

Clocking in at three and a half hours long, "The Irishman" was released direct-to-Netflix just a few years after Scorsese heavily criticized streaming services for destroying cinema. Nevertheless, the film is as sweeping an epic as any big screen classic, complete with an all-star cast led by the director's longtime collaborator Robert De Niro in the title role; the director utilized cutting-edge CGI to de-age the actor for the film's extended flashback sequences.

The ten-time Oscar-nominated drama begins with Sheeran returning to a simple life in Philadelphia after serving in World War II. It's there that he crosses paths with the Bufalino crime family, headed by Russell Bufalino (Joe Pesci). Over the course of the next two decades, Sheeran gradually navigates his way up the ladder of the crime syndicate, working as a "house painter," or hitman, for the family. But, as he ultimately learns, you can't become one of the mafia's most trusted associates without making some tough sacrifices.

Set against the backdrop of the American Civil War, "Gangs of New York's" setting predates the image of organized crime as we know it. But even far away from the front lines of the nation's bloodiest conflict, the streets of NYC know no peace as rival gangs duke it out for control of their slice of the growing city in this gritty period piece from acclaimed director Martin Scorsese.

In the Five Points neighborhood, the part of the city we now know as lower Manhattan, an old blood feud between the politically-minded and xenophobic Confederation of American Natives and the primarily Irish Dead Rabbit gang is brewing. But when "Amsterdam" Vallon (Leonardo DiCaprio), heir to the proverbial throne of the Rabbits' criminal dealings, returns to his father's old stomping grounds, he's out to exact revenge

It all comes to a head when the infamous Draft Riots break out, a real historical event that saw hundreds of New Yorkers resist the federal government's conscription orders. Amidst the bloody chaos, in which clashes broke out with protestors and government agents battling in the street, a final showdown is waged between the rival gangs. Though it's an entirely fictional story, "Gangs of New York" seamlessly combines real-world events and enthralling gangster drama.

While many of the films in our lineup follow the sleazy dealings of history's most infamous mobsters, 2002's "Road to Perdition" gives audiences something a little different. Led by Tom Hanks, it's pulled not from the pages of history, but instead from a series of graphic novels by Max Alan Collins, who might be best known for taking over the authorship of Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer books in the modern era, and artist Richard Piers Rayner.

In the film, Hanks plays Michael Sullivan, a Thompson-wielding gangster and ruthless killer operating during the era of Prohibition. When his 12-year-old son becomes privy to a grisly gangland hit, it forces both of them to go on the run from Sullivan's former employer, real-life gangster John Rooney (Paul Newman).

With a loose connection to true history, "Road to Perdition" is still worth checking out for fans of the genre. Full of tension and a dark, brooding tone, the excellent cinematography by Conrad Hall, in what would be his final, Oscar-winning contribution, lends itself well to the film's more visual source material. Additionally, the fact that it's not the long arm of the law that our protagonist is running from but is instead his old partners in crime makes it a unique pick that's well worth checking out.

Though Al Capone was the face of Prohibition Era Chicago crime, managing to cement himself as possibly history's most famous gangster, there have been countless others to challenge his claim for the title. One of the most well-known is John Dillinger, whose spree of bank robberies across the Midwest earned him the moniker of "Public Enemy Number One." Whether his legacy is a result of the media spotlight, his ability to evade the law, or how the public rallied behind him at the time is anyone's guess. What we do know is that filmmakers just can't get enough, with "Heat" director Michael Mann producing "Public Enemies" in 2009, one of the latest on-screen adaptations of Dillinger's extraordinary life.

Starring Johnny Depp as the infamous robber, "Public Enemies" follows Dillinger's reign of terror across Depression Era Indiana and beyond, starting with his first successful escape from prison. What follows is a game of cat and mouse, as Dillinger lines his pockets with stolen bank money and manages to stay one step ahead of the FBI, with soon-to-be agency director J. Edgar Hoover (Billy Crudup) leading the charge. Fans of "Kill the Irishman" who enjoyed seeing Danny Greene dodge multiple attempts to take him down, or are simply looking for another solid gangster flick, should add Mann's "Public Enemies" to their watch list.

Many of the best crime films are based on the lives of real-life mobsters, and the 1990 classic "Goodfellas" is no exception. An on-screen retelling of mafia member Henry Hill's life, Ray Liotta is perfectly cast, portraying Hill as he achieves his lifelong dream of joining the Lucchese crime family. Operating out of New York City, life is good for a while as Hill's newfound membership in the gang brings him a life of vice and excess. But what goes up must come back down, and as he becomes more entrenched in the outfit's dealings and everything starts to fall apart, he's left with few ways to escape the life.

Perhaps no film on our list deserves to be watched after "Kill the Irishman" more than "Goodfellas," one of the crown jewels in director Martin Scorsese's filmography. Often the subject of comparison in less-than-positive reviews of director Jonathan Hensleigh's film — Robert Abele of the LA Times called it "the usual 'Goodfellas' knockoff" — there's no denying their similarities. Nor can you deny that "Goodfellas" is the superior of the two.

It wasn't even the only movie in 1990 to tell Henry Hill's story, either, as the Steve Martin film "My Blue Heaven" turned the tale into a comedy. Though all three films have their charms (with "Blue Heaven" earning a spot on Looper's list of underrated gangster flicks), "Goodfellas" is the best of the bunch and an easy challenger for the title of best gangster movie, period.

Though it doesn't set out to be a dramatic retelling of a real person's life, "Casino" is heavily inspired by the criminal exploits of Frank Rosenthal, a crooked Las Vegas casino owner who dominated the industry in the '70s. We watch as his on-screen counterpart, Sam Rothstein, portrayed by Robert De Niro, gradually tightens the mob's grip on the city, doing everything from skimming earnings from the house to straight-up bloodily, violently strong-arming people to get his way. 

Yet another title to make our list from director Martin Scorsese, "Casino" proves that when the acclaimed director wants to make a winner, he sticks with a mobster flick. While all of his works are unmistakably Scorsese, they each lend themselves to different tones that leave them as distinct as they are memorable. "Casino" is no exception, ditching the darker presentation we see in titles like "Goodfellas" and even decades later in "The Irishman" for a glitzier, more bombastic style of storytelling befitting its Sin City setting. That said, even though it's another film based on a very real gangster, there's still a lot that "Casino" leaves out from the true story that inspired it.

Beyond even the best gangster flicks, there are few movies across the world of cinema that are as beloved as "The Godfather." Though not his first filmmaking venture, it's the project that can be credited with making director Francis Ford Coppola a household name, a legacy he'd build upon two years later with "The Godfather Part II," the rare sequel that's even better than the original.

In postwar New York City, Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) returns from the battlefield to his family, only to discover that life at home is just as bloody as it was overseas. His father, Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando), leads the Corleone crime outfit and is eager to bring his son into the fold. Though Michael is hesitant at first, there's practically no way to stop his gradual descent into the illicit family business.

Released over half a century ago, "The Godfather" is remembered for transforming the genre of gangster films forever. While a handful of titles released during Hollywood's Golden Age are still worth watching, the category was by and large saturated with more pulpy examples until Coppola's iconic movie came along. Everything, from the actors' performances to the film's score, was fresh, earning it an impressive 11 Academy Award nominations while making a lasting impact on pop culture.

Many of our favorite gangster movies are told from the perspective of the criminals themselves, with their sordid, blood-soaked journeys to fortune and infamy making for truly riveting stories. But "Donnie Brasco" flips the script on its head, focusing on the titular Donnie Brasco (Johnny Depp), an undercover FBI agent deep behind enemy lines, as the story's protagonist. Set in New York City in the late '70s, the criminal outfit he's embedded into counts Lefty Ruggiero (played impeccably by "Godfather" alum Al Pacino) as one of their top enforcers. But before long, Brasco, whose real name is Joseph Pistone, winds up considering him a true friend, which only complicates his mission to shut down the entire operation for good.

Like a handful of the picks on our list, and much like "Kill the Irishman," "Donnie Brasco" is based on a book, this time written by the real Joseph Pistone. While the on-screen adaptation's success was achieved thanks to a standout performance by Depp — in what remains one of his best roles to date — it's the chemistry that we see develop between him and Pacino's Lefty Ruggiero that cements "Donnie Brasco" as a staple of the genre. It's a role that should have earned Depp's co-star Academy Award recognition, but alas, Pacino won an Oscar for another movie instead.

Rising to infamy in the mid-20th century, Reginald and Ronald Kray were a pair of identical twins and career criminals who terrorized London's East End for years. Even before they committed the crimes that would make them so well known in their native England, they wound up on the wrong side of the law, even doing a stint in jail after dodging their obligations to military service. Their story was adapted once before in the 1990 UK film "The Krays" (starring real-life brothers Martin and Gary Kemp), which was released while the twin brothers were still alive and either behind bars or in the care of a mental hospital.

Director Brian Helgeland's "Legend" was the first time Hollywood took a crack at telling the brother's real-life tale of debauchery and violence. In a dual role, Tom Hardy portrays both Reginald and Ronald Kray as the film showcases the brothers' growing influence over London's underworld. Through sheer brutality, the pair bully their way to the top of the food chain, committing robberies and straight-up murder to maintain their status. While critic and audience reviews for this one trend towards the middle of the road, the universal praise for Hardy's competing performances is enough to make "Legend" a must-see, even if the "Venom" star puts on one of his more bizarre accents for the dual roles.

Hollywood icon Kevin Costner is probably best known for playing cowboys in films like "Silverado" and "Dances with Wolves," not to mention fronting the critically acclaimed Taylor Sheridan crime drama "Yellowstone" for more than four seasons. But Costner became a star by playing a real-life 1930s prohibition-era crime buster in the Brian de Palma classic, "The Untouchables."

Set in gangland Chicago, "The Untouchables" revolves around famed FBI agent Elliott Ness (Costner) and his attempt to assemble a team of scrupulous law enforcers to help him succeed in his mission to take down the most notorious mafia man of all time, Al Capone (Robert De Niro). Despite a deeply corrupt police department, Ness manages to earn the trust of dedicated veteran Irish-American Jimmy Malone (Sean Connery) and the young and idealistic George Stone (Andy Garcia).

With an impeccable cast that includes multiple superstars, "The Untouchables" is, like "Kill the Irishman," a high-stakes story based on the manhunt for an infamous criminal kingpin. Featuring less graphic violence than most of the movies on this list, "The Untouchables" is more of a mix of modern film noir, pulp action, and suspenseful thriller. De Palma's stylish direction is what elevates the film, and Connery earned himself an Academy Award for his performance — the first and only of his illustrious career.

Though he's undoubtedly best remembered for playing the swashbuckling Captain Jack Sparrow, a modern-day pop culture icon and the spiritual successor to roguish heroes like Harrison Ford's whip-wielding relic hunter, Johnny Depp has proven to have an impressive range over the years. After starring in both "Donnie Brasco" and "Public Enemies," he returned to the gangster flick genre once more with 2015's "Black Mass," a true story chronicling one of the most embarrassing pages from the FBI's history books. Of course, he was the second choice for the role after audiences lost out on the chance to see another Oscar-worthy performance from Daniel Day-Lewis, who left after the film's original director, Jim Sheridan, also abandoned the project.

Set in the mid-1970s, "Black Mass" shows us the bitter rivalry between the gangs of North and South Boston that divided the city's criminal underworld. At the head of the South Side's Winter Hill Gang is Whitey Bulger (Depp), a ruthless career criminal who served a stint in Alcatraz. Presented with a rare opportunity by an old friend turned FBI agent, John Connolly (Joel Edgerton), the infamous crook is offered complete immunity from the law if he works with the agency to take down his enemies. But it's never that simple, and the mutually beneficial agreement transforms the lives of both men, with Connolly soon blurring the line between lawman and criminal.

There's no denying that organized crime has a distinctly American place in pop culture, with infamous gangsters like Al Capone making the image of a cigar-chomping bootlegger synonymous with the mafia. That said, it's well understood that gangs and crime syndicates run rampant worldwide, and few films explore the international angle as well as David Cronenberg's "Eastern Promises."

After a teenage mother tragically dies in childbirth in London, the only clue to what caused her death may lie in a journal she left behind. Anna (Naomi Watts), the woman who helped deliver the now-orphaned child, takes it upon herself to try and solve the mystery and, hopefully, secure a promising future for the baby left behind. Instead, it sends her spiraling down a rabbit hole of espionage, shady Russian mobsters, and truly horrific crime that threatens to leave her dead once she uncovers the truth.

A departure from the usual for Cronenberg, who's built a name for himself off of truly stomach-turning films that are heavy on sci-fi and body horror, "Eastern Promises" keeps its feet firmly planted in reality. That said, it doesn't pull any punches and delivers plenty of effectively disturbing scenes, proving that reality can be just as unsettling as fiction.

Set on the mean streets of Harlem during the Vietnam War era, "American Gangster" has Denzel Washington step into the role of Frank Lucas, a cunning gangster who inherits a criminal enterprise after his boss' untimely death. Not content with owning just the New York neighborhood, Lucas manages to become one of the world's biggest drug kingpins while using the United States' own military to smuggle his product into the country under their noses. Meanwhile, Detective Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe) struggles to put the pieces of Lucas's criminal network together while his own home life crumbles around him. Like "Kill The Irishman," "American Gangster" is based on a true story, too.

Praised for its casting — both Washington and Crowe deliver strong performances — "American Gangster" is something of an under-discussed entry in director Ridley Scott's lengthy filmography. Sure, it may not have the far-flung setting of "Gladiator" or "Alien," but it more than delivers on serving up a gritty story with morally ambiguous characters who break the mold of a standard crime film.