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U.S. Marshals

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U.S. Marshals

PG-13

Released Mar 6, 1998

2h 13m

Action

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

30%

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43 Reviews

53%

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50,000+ Ratings

An airplane bearing gruff U.S. Marshal Sam Gerard (Tommy Lee Jones) crashes in the wilderness. On board the same flight is Mark Sheridan (Wesley Snipes), a federal prisoner accused of double murder, who escapes during the ensuing chaos, but not before rescuing several people from the wreckage. Gerard is ordered to hunt down the fugitive along with State Department agent John Royce (Robert Downey Jr.), and the two pursue Sheridan relentlessly, despite growing doubts about his guilt.

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Critics Consensus

A rote albeit well-cast action thriller, U.S. Marshals suffers badly in comparison to the beloved blockbuster that preceded it.

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Martin Hoyle

Financial Times

Jones redeems all: he plays the ruthless pursuer with the faintest hint of send-up, the merest suggestion of camp.

Jan 21, 2023

Full Review

Geoff Brown

Times (UK)

This aims to be a sequel to the screen version of The Fugitive, but the job needs more than a lazy revival of Tommy Lee Jones' character.

Jan 20, 2023

Full Review

Mike Clark

USA Today

The movie is basically a clip reel of action production numbers, though admittedly some of these are staged with a ta-da-da-da sense of showmanship.

Rated: 2/4

Jan 9, 2018

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Michael Dwyer

Irish Times

The movie's raison d'etre is to pile one energetic action set-piece atop another. Director Stuart Baird, a long-time film editor who turned director two years ago with the gripping and under-rated Executive Decision, delivers these setpieces with aplomb.

Jan 24, 2023

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Gary Wolcott

Tri-City Herald

Jones has a zillion funny lines, a cast of offbeat assistants to bounce off of and enough action sequences to keep you glued to your seat.

Jan 24, 2023

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Dan DiNicola

The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)

Like most sequels, this one is sharp and fast-paced, but it's a formula nevertheless.

Rated: C+

Jan 19, 2023

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Jerod S

I enjoyed the 90s chase - complete with the twists and tommy lee in a chicken suit.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

05/30/25

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Phil J

A good movie! Worth watching. It has a little bit of everything. Great acting!

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

05/25/25

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Paul D

I just watched it on DVD and enjoyed it immensely. I can’t account for the low ratings the critics gave it or the mediocre ratings audience members gave it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/27/25

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Gabriel S

In 2025, can we call U.S. Marshals a niche classic? Maybe, maybe things were simpler in the late '90s, early 2000s. With Tommy Lee Jones in the lead role, nothing could go wrong with this movie. The story follows U.S. Marshal Samuel Gerard and his team as they pursue a double homicide suspect, Mark Sheridan. Overall, it's a simple plot, but it gradually proves to be complex when a web of corruption seems to be behind the murders that follow Sheridan. The cast features some big names: Tommy Lee Jones and Wesley Snipes at the peak of their careers, and Robert Downey Jr. just beginning to make a name for himself. Acting standards have improved over the years, and actors like Downey have grown in their performances. Snipes is the same Snipes as always, and Lee Jones was already at his max. Director Stuart Baird has a modest career, with only 3 films in his portfolio, all with modest ratings. He seems to work better as an editor, having his hands in various films. In this case, his direction work seems more experimental than vocational. As for the plot itself, the events are interesting, although the final twist is entirely predictable. It works for a simplistic 1998 film, but by today's standards, U.S. Marshals falls below average. In the tone of the time, the ending feels more like an episode of a TV series than a complete film, showing how much things have changed in the twenty-fifth anniversary of the 2000s.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/03/25

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Audience Member

The reviews for this movie do not do it justice. It’s a fantastic movie. I was so excited to see Jones’ rag tag team of Federal Agents back in the saddle again. Jones, Snipes, and RDJ are all great in it and their supporting cast is as well.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/19/25

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Audience Member

Enjoyable hokum with a reasonable cast and fairly standard story

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

10/29/24

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Stuart Baird

Director

Tommy Lee Jones

Chief Deputy Marshal Samuel Gerard

Wesley Snipes

Mark J. Sheridan

Robert Downey Jr.

Special Agent John Royce

Kate Nelligan

U.S Marshal Catherine Walsh

Joe Pantoliano

Deputy Marshal Cosmo Renfro

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Synopsis

An airplane bearing gruff U.S. Marshal Sam Gerard (Tommy Lee Jones) crashes in the wilderness. On board the same flight is Mark Sheridan (Wesley Snipes), a federal prisoner accused of double murder, who escapes during the ensuing chaos, but not before rescuing several people from the wreckage. Gerard is ordered to hunt down the fugitive along with State Department agent John Royce (Robert Downey Jr.), and the two pursue Sheridan relentlessly, despite growing doubts about his guilt.

Director: Stuart Baird
Producer: Anne Kopelson, Arnold Kopelson
Screenwriter: Thomas Fitzroy, John Pogue
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Co: Warner Brothers, Kopelson Entertainment
Rating: PG-13 (Some Scenes of Violence|Brief Language)
Genre: Action, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 6, 1998, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): May 1, 2008
Box Office (Gross USA): $57.8M
Runtime: 2h 13m
Sound Mix: Dolby SR, DTS, Dolby Stereo, Stereo, SDDS, Dolby A, Surround, Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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