TV-MA | 8 episodes | Thriller | 2026
Navy SEALs rescued Captain Richard Phillips and brought the ultimate justice to Osama Bin Laden. They were trained to complete the most arduous sea, air, and land missions, but they were not trained to navigate deep state intrigue and corruption.
Unfortunately, during Season 1 of “The Terminal List,” Lt. Cmdr. James Reece (Chris Pratt) faced exactly such a cabal of crooked politicians and high-ranking officers; the crooks used his SEAL team as guinea pigs and framed him for the murder of his family.
Reece pledged to punish every single person responsible before succumbing to the tumor in his head. He made a list, and he checked it constantly. Technically, Reece is now an outlaw, but the CIA still wants to work with him in the second season of showrunner David DiGilio’s “The Terminal List,” based on executive producer Jack Carr’s novels.
After crossing out the final name on his list, Reece assumed he would simply sail off to his impending death. Instead, he somehow reaches the African shore. There, he seeks refuge in the Mozambique wildlife preserve managed by Rich Hastings (Arnold Vosloo), the uncle of his former SEAL teammate Raife Hastings (Tom Hopper). Hastings was introduced in the prequel series, “The Terminal List: Dark Wolf.”
As expected, Reece has the skills to fix their poacher problem. Eventually, the CIA finds him in Africa, but former SEAL Freddy Strain (Gabriel Luna) offers him a deal.
Al-Qaeda Mastermind
If Reece helps the Agency track down next-generation al-Qaeda mastermind Amin Nawaz (Shadi Janho), he will earn a full pardon and life-saving surgery in exchange. Strain’s boss, Vic Rodriguez (Yul Vazquez), believes Reece is uniquely qualified.
Reece trained Nawaz’s European coordinator, Mohammed Farooq (Dar Salim), as an Iraqi Special Forces officer before his apparent radicalization. Rodriguez hopes that Reece can flip Farooq back to provide intel on Nawaz’s upcoming catastrophic-level terror attack.
Hastings finds himself investigating the same conspiracy from a different angle. The ex-SEAL currently runs a small arms dealing company, but with a conscience. Hastings specializes in procuring military aid for Ukraine, but several weapons from his recent shipments have been diverted to Nawaz’s terrorists.
Since several high-profile politicians sponsored the deliveries, Hastings seeks background from Katie Buranek (Constance Wu), the D.C. journalist who broke Reece’s story.
Hastings’s investigation takes a personal turn for Buranek when Nawaz attacks a NATO delegation. The attack just misses the new owner of her online media company, the oligarch Vasili Andrenov (Costa Ronin).
Adrenov leveraged his combined Ukrainian and Russian heritages as well as his wealth, to host peace talks seeking to end Russia’s war on Ukraine. However, Nawaz’s shadowy Russian patron clearly intends to undermine the negotiations.
Not surprisingly, Season 2 takes place in a fictional world where neither Zelensky nor Putin is head of state. However, the Russian puppet-master collaborating with al-Qaeda certainly has ample real-world precedent. In fact, the conspiracy has roots dating back to the Cold War and the Vietnam War, in which Reece’s father served.
Multiple Storylines
Even though Season 2 continues multiple storylines begun in Season 1, it is relatively easy for new viewers to jump right in. The first episode somewhat drags, as it explores Reece’s lingering psychological trauma. Happily, later installments return to the explosive action that made the first season and the prequel series such breakout hits.
Casting the imposing Pratt and the hulking Hopper as Reece and Hastings inspires confidence right from the start. Both look like credible former SEALs turned special operators.
Yet they each display legit dramatic chops as well as action prowess as their characters confront the ghosts of their service. Pratt, in particular, fully explores the emotional darkness surrounding Reece, even as the series subtly hints at the redemptive power of his faith.
Similarly, Luna invests Strain with the right balance of swagger and modesty. Vosloo remains best known for villains in films like “Hard Target” and “The Mummy” franchise, but he plays an entertainingly grizzled good guy as Hastings’s Uncle Rich.
Olga Kurylenko also successfully deviates from her typical genre roles as Yana Tomenko, Andrenov’s all-business Ukrainian right-hand executive. The series also features several colorfully nasty villains, but revealing their identities too early would constitute spoilers.
Both seasons of “The Terminal List” clearly empathize with the demands placed on the American military. This is hardly surprising, given Carr’s background as a retired SEAL who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.
However, it simultaneously reflects a skepticism of governmental and military bureaucracy that harkens back to the paranoid political thrillers of the 1970s. The series shows a distinct lack of trust in most officers above the rank of lieutenant commander, while politicians are almost entirely hopelessly compromised.
The battery of directors, including former SEAL Ray Mendoza, who codirected “Warfare” and costarred in “Act of Valor,” oversaw many impressive extended action sequences, often shoehorning several within the same episode.
Navy SEALs have recently enjoyed a pop culture moment, thanks to series like “Marshals” and “SEAL Team,” as well as films like “Warfare” and “13 Hours.”
“The Terminal List” represents the trend’s ultimate manifestation. The series aptly captures the SEAL mentality while serving up generous helpings of gritty, muscular stunt work.
Highly recommended for fans of Carr, Pratt, and old-school Tom Clancy.
“The Terminal List: Season 2” streams on Prime Video Oct. 21.
‘The Terminal List: Season 2’
Directors: Paul Cameron, Carl Seaton, Tucker Gates, Ray Mendoza, Ben Wheatley, Marcos Siega, Kate Dennis
Starring: Chris Pratt, Tom Hopper, Gabriel Luna, Constance Wu, Olga Kurylenko
Rating: TV-MA
Running Time: 8 episodes (approx. 50 minutes each)
Release Date: Oct. 21, 2026
Rated: 4 stars out of 5
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