One of the best war movies ever made, and the best in modern times according to many, is currently on a major streaming platform for fans to enjoy. The Hurt Locker, starring the MCU's Jeremy Renner and Anthony Mackie, debuted in 2008 to critical acclaim and became a box-office success.

. Directed by Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty) and written by Mark Boal (who drew on his experience as a journalist embedded with troops and bomb squads during the Iraq War), the war drama follows a bomb disposal team's operations to neutralize improvised explosive devices across hot spots in the Middle East. Tension comes to a head when the team's leader gets killed and replaced by a maverick operative. Alongside Renner as Sergeant First Class William James and Mackie as Sergeant J.T. Sanborn, the movie's ensemble cast includes Ralph Fiennes, Guy Pearce, David Morse, Brian Geraghty, and Evangeline Lilly. The Hurt Locker marked Mackie and Renner's first onscreen team-up before Avengers: Age of Ultron.

The Hurt Locker debuted to universal acclaim and currently has a 96% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie scored nine Academy Awards nominations, winning six, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay. Renner and Mackie's performances in The Hurt Locker received widespread praise. Renner was nominated at the Academy Awards, BAFTAs, and the Screen Actors Guild Awards for his performance. The movie was also no slouch at the box office, making $49 million worldwide against a $15 million budget.

Mackie is now most well-known for starring as Sam Wilson, formerly Falcon and now Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. His first movie as the latter, Captain America: Brave New World, is currently in theaters and has made just over $340 million at the box office thus far. Shortly before the film debuted, Mackie addressed how long his tenure as the star-spangled Avenger would last.

The 46-year-old actor highlighted the physical part of being a superhero, noting he had ten more years to play the character. "The ten years start on (February) 14th," Mackie declared. "That's it. After the 14th, I got a ten-year run. I'm not trying to be a 60-year-old Captain America. That'll hurt."

Considered one of the most influential movies of the 2000s, Anthony Mackie and Jeremy Renner's The Hurt Locker is currently streaming on Paramount+.

Source: Paramount+