Matt Damon and Ben Affleck’s latest team-up brings cop drama, plenty of mystery, and oodles of tension in a sharp, engaging thriller for Netflix.
The Rip
Directed By: Joe Carnahan
Written By: Joe Carnahan
Starring: Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Steven Yeun, Teyana Taylor, Kyle Chandler, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Sasha Calle
Release Date: January 16, 2026 on Netflix
When a Miami-Dade police Captain Jackie Velez (Lina Esco) is murdered, the specialized unit she was over (the Tactical Narcotics Team) comes under heavy suspicion. As leads seem to go nowhere, the federal agents and internal affairs officers investigating the homicide fear a history of corrupt cops throughout the department is a factor.
Considering the team is made up of only a handful of officers, obviously tensions are incredibly high. Not only are they still reeling from the death of their Captain—a friend—they’ve got pressure from the FBI, along with concerns about their task force being disbanded. Everyone is certainly on edge.
TNT consists of a five main detectives. There’s Lieutenant Dane (Matt Damon), who’s been recently promoted to the role despite having reservations about still being a cop. Sergeant JD Byrne (Ben Affleck) is Dane’s close friend who lost out on the LT spot and had a personal relationship with Captain Velez. Then there’s Ro (Steven Yeun), Numa (Teyana Taylor), and Lolo (Catalina Sandino Moreno) who are eager to do their jobs but also weary at all the suspicion and seeming lack of recognition for their efforts.
When they set out on a bust, the team inadvertently stumbles into something major. Something that may have been the reason Captain Velez was killed; several millions of dollars of Cartel money. The bust (or “Rip”) becomes anything but ordinary, as they find themselves essentially boxed in at a culdesac, with an unknown caller threatening to slaughter them all if they don’t leave within thirty minutes.
With no backup coming, the officers find themselves questioning their loyalty to one another. Is the Cartel really attacking them, or has one of their own gone rogue and looking to steal the money they’ve found? Considering a mystery sits at the heart of the story and drives the characters’ actions, I’ll keep the story details at that. Definitely more fun to go into this one fresh.
By and large, The Rip feels like an old-school crime drama which is both good and bad. Bad in that it relies on some typical cliches for certain bits (though I greatly enjoyed how the main mystery aspect is treated) and it’s action pieces don’t do anything new/groundbreaking. The good, however, is that it’s a pretty top-tier example of this kind of genre fare. Sure, it’s not breaking the mold, but what it gives you is a great time that gets the blood-pumping.
The film brings together an interesting blend of genres. There’s definitely the cop drama element, with corruption and greed at the forefront, along with a little bit of a heist movie tossed in as well. You’ve got the action set pieces, but there’s also a bit of noir over the whole thing. There are numerous twists and turns (which I’m not spoiling), with many of the characters have their own motives you’re never quite sure of. The combination of it all makes for a thrilling movie that keeps you on your toes and is never boring.
It’s made all the more fun to watch thanks to the characters in play. Damon and Affleck’s iconic chemistry is in full force here; completely selling you on the idea of buddy cops who may—or may not—be at odds. While they take the main focus, the rest of the characters manage to be equally engaging.
Within a few short minutes, you absolutely believe the Tactical Narcotics Team have a long history with one another. You can sense the familial nature that comes from a small group working together for years and years…Plus I just love Teyana Taylor and everything she does.
What I enjoyed most about The Rip is how well it handles the mystery aspect of the story. This push and pull between trust and betrayal is the primary driver in the story. This small, usually close-knit team are forced into a close quarters situation with time running against them. This dynamic allows for some tense interactions as it becomes clear their trust in one another is being put to the ultimate test.
The way the story unfolds does a fantastic job of keeping the twists and turns underwraps. Like I said, it uses familiar tropes, but it’s also aware enough to know when to use them to their advantage. So even when I thought I had things figured out—because of how certain cliches would normally pan out—it managed to genuinely surprise me.
Perhaps more importantly, it handles those reveals/twists without feeling cheap, or like a far-fetched deus ex machina. Once the cards are laid out on the table, a lot of previous sequences and character beats click into place. It’s easy to see how things were able to work out, without straining credulity or making you feel dumb for missing something. In this way, it’s smartly written, making use of the familiar to throw you for a loop.
