In 2024, suspense films still hold spectators’ attention with their complex storylines and dramatic settings. The best novels of this year include compelling stories of espionage and treachery as well as psychological thrillers situated in remote areas. Twists and turns are expertly used by filmmakers to keep audiences on the edge of their seats. The stories frequently examine the intricacies of human nature, delving into issues of deceit, trust, and the fuzziness of boundaries between truth and illusion. These films, which challenge viewers to piece together the mystery as the suspense grows, offer an exciting getaway, enhanced by outstanding performances and state-of-the-art photography.

1. Shaitaan

Devil, also known as Shaitaan, is a 2024 supernatural horror movie produced by Devgn Films, Jio Studios, and Panorama Studios in Hindi. It was directed by Vikas Bahl. Ajay Devgn, R. Madhavan, Jyothika, Anngad Raaj, and Janki Bodiwala—who is reprising her role from the original film—star in the film, which is a remake of the 2023 Gujarati film Vash. When a stranger uses black magic to possess a daughter, a family discovers problems, and they decide to end the possession and find out why the stranger is doing it.

The formal announcement of the film was made in May 2023, and main filming was conducted in London and Dehradun, India, from June to September of the same year. Amit Trivedi created the soundtrack, and Sudhakar Reddy Yakkanti and Sandeep Francis handled the photography and editing.

On March 8, 2024, Shaitaan was released in theaters in time for Maha Shivaratri. Reviews of the film ranged from favorable to mediocre. Having made ₹211 crore globally on a ₹50 crore budget, the movie is the most grossing horror film in Indian history, the second highest grossing Hindi film of 2024, and the fourth highest grossing Indian film of all time.

2. Yodha

Sagar Ambre and Pushkar Ojha are the directors of the 2024 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film Yodha, which translates to “Warrior.” Under the Dharma Productions umbrella, Hiroo Yash Johar, Karan Johar, and Apoorva Mehta produced the film, which Ambre also penned the screenplay for. Sidharth Malhotra, Raashii Khanna, and Disha Patani are the film’s main stars.

On March 15, 2024, Yodha was released in theaters. The movie didn’t do well at the box office.

A Bollywood Hungama critic rated Yodha three out of five stars, saying that while it has a great performance, it is quite technical and complicated. Yodha is not your typical hijack movie.

3. Article 370

Aditya Suhas Jambhale is the director of the 2024 Indian Hindi-language political action thriller Article 370. Aditya Dhar, Arjun Dhawan, and Monal Thaakar also co-wrote the screenplay. The film features Yami Gautam Dhar and Priyamani, in addition to Skand Thakur, Ashwini Kaul, Vaibhav Tatwawadi, Arun Govil, and Kiran Karmarkar. It is produced by Jyoti Deshpande, Aditya Dhar, and Lokesh Dhar. The movie was released on February 23, 2024, globally.

The movie is set against the backdrop of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status being revoked, often known as the “abrogation of Article 370,” which took place in 2019 at the start of the Narendra Modi government’s second term in power.

Although Yami Gautam Dhar’s performance was hailed by reviewers, the film was criticized for factual misrepresentation, portraying storylines that favored the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party because of the impending elections, and neglecting the opinions of Kashmiris.

4. Fighter

Siddharth Anand is the director of the 2024 Indian Hindi-language action movie Fighter, which is based on a script he co-wrote with Ramon Chibb. Lead actors Anil Kapoor, Hrithik Roshan, and Deepika Padukone are in the film, which is produced by Viacom18 Studios and Marflix Pictures. This movie is the first in a planned series of airborne action films.

The movie, which was first announced on January 10, 2021, is Anand’s third project with Roshan, following War (2019) and Bang Bang! (2014). The COVID-19 epidemic caused a delay in pre-production. November 2022 saw the start of filming in Assam, Hyderabad, Jammu and Kashmir, and Mumbai, among other places. October 2023 saw the completion of the film, which included real-life Indian Air Force cadets. The 2019 India-Pakistan border clashes, the 2019 Balakot airstrike, and the 2019 Pulwama incident are all mentioned in the movie. Five tracks make up Vishal-Shekhar’s soundtrack CD for the movie. Satchith Paulose is the cinematographer for the movie. DNEG is in charge of the graphics.

The theatrical release date of Fighter was initially set for September 30, 2022, but due to production delays, it was rescheduled for January 25, 2024, which happened to fall on Republic Day weekend. It has received mixed reviews, but still, it has made ₹211.50 crore (US$26 million) in net revenue in India and ₹337.2 crore (US$42 million) globally, making it the highest-grossing Hindi film of 2024 and the second-highest-grossing Indian film of 2024.

5. Jawan

In his first Hindi film, Atlee co-wrote and directed the action thriller Jawan (/dʒəwɑːn/, which translates to “Soldier“) in 2023. Under Red Chillies Entertainment, Gauri Khan and Gaurav Verma are the producers. Shah Rukh Khan plays a father and a son in the movie who work together to fight social corruption. In supporting parts are Nayanthara, Deepika Padukone, Vijay Sethupathi, Priyamani, and Sanya Malhotra.

September 2021 saw the start of principal photography, which was shot in Pune, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai, Rajasthan, and Aurangabad. Anirudh Ravichander wrote the background score and soundtrack for the movie, while Ruben handled the editing and G. K. Vishnu handled the photography. A few sequences were reshot concurrently for the Tamil version of the movie, including the ones starring Yogi Babu, Sethupathi, and Khan in the song “Zinda Banda” (Tamil for “Vandha Edam”).

Jawan’s original release date of June 2, 2023 was pushed back since post-production work was still outstanding. In celebration of Janmashtami, it was theatrically released on September 7, 2023, in regular, IMAX, 4DX, and various premium formats. Reviewers gave Jawan favorable reviews, praising the musical soundtrack, action scenes, screenplay, and performances by the actors. The movie broke several records at the box office for a Hindi movie, surpassing those established by Khan’s earlier release, Pathaan (2023). It became the highest-grossing Indian film of 2023, the second-highest-grossing Hindi film, and the fifth-highest-grossing Indian film with a total revenue of nearly ₹1,148.32 crore (US$140 million). The movie was nominated for fourteen awards at the 69th Filmfare Awards, including Best Film and Best Director.

6. Trap

M. Night Shyamalan is the writer and director of the forthcoming psychological mystery thriller Trap, which is set in the United States. Josh Hartnett, Ariel Donoghue, Saleka Shyamalan, Hayley Mills, and Allison Pill are among the film’s stars. The story follows a serial murderer who finds out during a concert that he is being sought out by the police while there with his daughter.

A serial murderer known only as “The Butcher” goes to a Lady Raven performance with his daughter, but the Butcher discovers the event is a trap devised by the police to arrest him.

Warner Bros. Pictures plans to release Trap in the United States on August 9, 2024.

7. The Beekeeper

American action thriller The Beekeeper, written and directed by Kurt Wimmer, was released in 2024. Jason Statham, Josh Hutcherson, Bobby Naderi, Phylicia Rashad, Jemma Redgrave, Jeremy Irons, and Emmy Raver-Lampman are among the movie’s stars. Following his compassionate landlady’s suicide, which resulted from her charity donations being lost to a phishing scam, Adam Clay, a former “Beekeeper” operator, launches a vicious campaign to get revenge on those to blame.

On January 12, 2024, Amazon MGM Studios published The Beekeeper in the United States under the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer label. Critics gave the movie favorable reviews, and it has made $152.7 million worldwide.

8. Monkey Man

In addition to serving as director and producer, Dev Patel made his feature film debut in 2024 with the action movie Monkey Man. He co-wrote the screenplay with Paul Angunawela and John Collee. Starring in the movie are Patel, Zakir Hussain, Jatin Malik, Adithi Kalkunte, Sobhita Dhulipala, Ashwini Kalsekar, Pitobash Tripathy, Vipin Sharma, Sikandar Kher, and Sharlto Copley.

Monkey Man delves into topics related to societal issues, such as prejudice, poverty, caste systems, corruption, and the realities of the Indian Hijra population.

On March 11, 2024, Monkey Man made its South by Southwest debut. On April 5, 2024, Universal Pictures distributed the film in theaters across the United States and Canada. Despite a $10 million budget, the picture made $34 million worldwide and garnered favorable reviews from reviewers.

9. Madame Web

Madame Web is an American superhero movie from 2024 that stars the same-named heroine from Marvel Comics. It is the fourth movie in Sony Pictures Releasing’s Spider-Man Universe (SSU), produced by Columbia Pictures and Di Bonaventura Pictures in collaboration with Marvel Entertainment and TSG Entertainment and released by Sony Pictures Releasing. Dakota Johnson plays the lead in this film, which is directed by S. J. Clarkson and features a cast that includes Sydney Sweeney, Isabela Merced, Celeste O’Connor, Tahar Rahim, Mike Epps, Emma Roberts, and Adam Scott. The screenplay was co-written by Dakota Johnson, Claire Parker, and Burk Sharpless. Cassie Webb (Johnson)’s origin story is told throughout the movie as she struggles with her background and tries to protect three young ladies (Sweeney, Merced, and O’Connor) from Ezekiel Sims (Rahim), who wants to murder them before they turn into Spider-ladies and kill him.

Madame Web debuted on February 12, 2024, at the Regency Village Theatre in Westwood, Los Angeles, and was made available for purchase on February 14 in the US. Despite a production expenditure of $80–100 million, the critically criticized movie was a box office failure, grossing over $100 million worldwide.

10. Land of Bad

American war movie Land of Bad, which was co-written by William Eubank and David Frigerio, was released in 2024. Liam Hemsworth, Russell Crowe, Luke Hemsworth, Ricky Whittle, and Milo Ventimiglia are among the movie’s stars. The movie Land of Bad debuted in theaters on February 16, 2024. With a US$18.7 million budget, it brought in $6.5 million.

64% of the 61 reviews from reviewers on review aggregate Rotten Tomatoes are positive, with an average rating of 6.1/10. The conclusion on the website is as follows: “Thanks to some exciting set pieces and a smartly assembled cast, Land of Bad stands as a solid survival thriller in spite of an overall reliance on genre formula.” Based on 10 reviews from critics, Metacritic, which employs a weighted average, gave the movie a score of 57 out of 100, signifying “mixed or average” reviews.

The movie received two stars from Simon Abrams of RogerEbert.com, who stated, “Land of Bad may sell itself as a post-Black Hawk Down rescue mission thriller, but it’s too often a baggy dramatized lecture about what’s really wrong with the American military and modern warfare.”