Ben Affleck & Matt Damon’s Crime Thriller The Rip Becomes One of the Biggest Films on Streaming

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Netflix began 2026 with a strong start, releasing a new crime thriller starring Ben Affleck and Matt Damon after a busy 2025.

The new crime film premiered on Netflix on January 16th, kicking off the year with a major release. It quickly gained popularity, becoming a streaming hit and reaching the number one spot on Netflix, according to FlixPatrol.

The crime thriller reached number one in 85 countries where Netflix is available, including the United States. It quickly became a hit, surpassing even the popular romance novel adaptation, One Day, by Emily Henry in domestic viewership.

Joe Carnahan, known for directing and writing the action film The A-Team, also directed and wrote The Rip, based on a story he developed with Michael McGrale. The film premiered just before Carnahan’s 2025 thriller, which many consider to be underrated.

The Rip centers around Miami’s narcotics team, who stumble upon over $20 million in cartel money after acting on an anonymous tip. This massive find, known as a ‘rip,’ comes right after the shocking murder of their captain, leading to suspicion and the possibility of a mole within the team. As tensions rise internally, the team also faces increasing danger from external threats.

The movie is inspired by a real event experienced by Officer Chris Casiano. Director David Carnahan explained to Tudum that the film stemmed from a close friend’s personal journey, both as a father and as a leader in the Miami Dade police department’s narcotics division.

He said the story draws inspiration from his own life, as well as his long-held fondness for classic 1970s police thrillers. He particularly admires films that focused on strong characters and the relationships between them, like Serpico, Prince of the City, and more recently, Michael Mann’s Heat – movies that really defined that era.

In addition to Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, The Rip features Steven Yeun (known for Beef and The Walking Dead), Teyana Taylor (One Battle After Another), Scott Adkins (John Wick: Chapter 4), and Kyle Chandler (Godzilla vs. Kong).

Beyond being a hit with streamers, The Rip has also received good reviews. It currently has an 82% ‘Certified Fresh’ rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and 72% of viewers enjoyed it.

How The Rip Used Ben Affleck & Matt Damon’s Real-Life Friendship

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon have worked together as friends and creative partners for more than thirty years. They co-own a production company called Artists Equity and will have appeared in a total of fifteen movies together by year’s end, including a new film written, directed, produced, and starring Affleck. Interestingly, they’re also reuniting with Steven Yeun, whom they previously worked with on The Rip, for an upcoming thriller.

Director Joe Carnahan, reflecting on his long friendship with the film’s star, revealed that their real-life history heavily influenced The Rip. He explained that the movie plays with both their shared past as childhood friends and their established personas as actors, intentionally using and subverting audience expectations along the way.

The director explained that Jason Bourne is inherently a good character. However, the film deliberately plays with that expectation, creating moments where the strong connection between the characters is highlighted. This makes it even more impactful when the audience suspects one of them is compromised, because it’s ‘Matt and Ben’ – actors the audience likes and trusts. The director admitted they intentionally used this dynamic to their advantage.

The actors discussed their creative process and revealed they often find themselves on the same page, largely because they have similar tastes. As Affleck put it with a laugh, they usually ‘agree on being wrong’!

The Rip is streaming on Netflix.

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2026-01-17 20:10