01 The mismatched duo takes on South African diplomats smuggling drugs under cover of immunity.
23 Best Buddy Cop Movies of All Time
By Vlad Zakh · July 21, 2026
The buddy cop movie runs on one simple formula, pair two mismatched partners and let the friction do the work, and the best entries here have kept finding new ways to make that friction land for almost fifty years.
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02 A suicidal, reckless cop is partnered with a methodical family man right before Christmas.
03 A big-city supercop transferred to a sleepy village discovers it hides a very dark secret.
04 A Black homicide detective reluctantly assists a hostile Southern police force with a murder case.
05 A private eye and an enforcer stumble onto a conspiracy while investigating a missing girl.
06 One of the most atmospheric detective films ever made, still unnerving.
07 A rookie cop's first day with a corrupt narcotics detective spirals into a single, brutal test of loyalty.
08 A wisecracking Detroit cop investigates a friend's murder deep in Beverly Hills territory.
09 The same duo goes undercover at college, repeating the exact formula that worked the first time.
10 Two bumbling cops go undercover as high schoolers to bust a drug ring.
11 Two mismatched detectives investigate a drug operation while constantly undermining each other.
12 Two deskbound detectives get their shot at real fieldwork when the department's top cops are sidelined.
13 A Soviet detective and a Chicago cop reluctantly team up to catch a drug dealer on the loose in America.
14 Two rival cops are framed together and have to team up to clear their names.
15 An undercover cop is reluctantly paired with a German shepherd for a drug-bust operation.
16 A meticulous detective is partnered with the messy, destructive dog who witnessed his only murder case.
17 A cop reluctantly teams up with a fast-talking convict to track down two cop killers.
18 Two mismatched Miami detectives race to recover stolen drugs before internal affairs catches on.
19 A Hong Kong detective and an LAPD motormouth are forced to team up on a kidnapping case.
20 The aging duo faces a vengeful cartel assassin from their own shared past.
21 Two Miami narcotics detectives' ecstasy-trafficking case spirals into an over-the-top international chase.
22 A disgraced former cop and an ex-security guard team up to bust a smuggling ring.
23 A detective's search for his stolen rare baseball card drags his motormouth partner along for the ride.
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