Man on Fire blazes onto Netflix.
Based on author A.J. Quinnell’s book series, which kicked off with the 1980 novel of the same name, action-thriller Man on Fire (streaming now on Netflix) follows John Creasy (The Trial of the Chicago 7’s Yahya Abdul-Mateen II), a former Special Forces soldier trying for a new beginning while battling personal demons, including PTSD.
The story is likely familiar to action lovers: The love-it-or-hate-it 2004 film version starred Denzel Washington and a young Dakota Fanning.
“It’s thrilling action wrapped around the story of a man trying to allow himself to reconnect with the people around him,” show creator Kyle Killen tells Us about the newest iteration. “Quinnell’s novels and the character of John Creasy have been repeatedly adapted because the idea of a broken man seeking redemption is timeless. The opportunity to bring Creasy into 2026 is one we both respect and revere.”
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Joining Abdul-Mateen II on screen will be characters portrayed by Billie Boullet and Alice Braga, with Scoot McNairy (True Detective) and Bobby Cannavale as guest stars.
“Yahya is the kind of actor you want to watch even when he’s standing still,” says Killen. “So much of what Creasy is wrestling with is on the inside, and Yahya is the kind of actor who can communicate all of that without having to say much at all.”
Below, what critics are saying about the seven-episode series:
The Hollywood Reporter: “This Man on Fire isn’t designed to be a complex, brutal, nihilistic portrait of vigilantism and violence. It’s a weirdly upbeat, disappointingly bland set-up for an ongoing series about a damaged mercenary and his unlikely, poorly developed Scooby Gang. Accepted on those limitedly aspirational and rarely convincing terms, but few others, it succeeds.”
The Guardian: “Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is the new Creasy — and his presence is formidable. He has the physical profile required, combined with a stillness in his bearing and an economy in his movement that make him believable as a man who can be trusted never to lose a fistfight. Although his Creasy is unwaveringly stern, he’s not inscrutable. The pain of his past is etched by Abdul-Mateen into every line; the actor’s performance suggests he should branch out from elevated comic-book material (he has previously been in Aquaman, Watchmen and Wonder Man) and explore more straight drama.”
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Variety: “Now with Killen at the helm, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is embodying the vengeful ex-CIA special operative who is out for blood. Focusing on the events of Quinnell’s second Creasy novel, The Perfect Kill, the Netflix show is solid with very capable performances, but it lacks the intrigue and heart that made its immediate predecessor a fan favorite.”
