iRankMovies
The Substitute

The Substitute (1996)

The most dangerous thing about school used to be the students.

Release:1996
Runtime:1h 54m
Country:United States
Director:Robert Mandel
Language:English

Genre

ActionCrimeDrama
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Keywords

MercenaryGangDrug
iRank53

The Substitute rating: IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic

IMDb6.1/10· 18K votes
Rotten Tomatoes42%
Metacritic41%
TMDb6.947/10· 565 votes

With 42% on Rotten Tomatoes, backed by 6.1/10 on IMDb and 41/100 on Metacritic, critical reception of this film has been modest.

About The Substitute

When an inner-city Miami schoolteacher gets her knee broken after standing up to the school's gang leader, her mercenary combat specialist boyfriend goes undercover as a substitute teacher to take down the punk. Soon he discovers a conspiracy of criminals at work, and must reassemble his team from his last jungle raid to stop them.

Cast of The Substitute

  • Tom Berenger

    Tom Berenger

    as Jonathan Shale

  • Raymond Cruz

    Raymond Cruz

    as Joey Six

  • Marc Anthony

    Marc Anthony

    as Juan Lacas

  • William Forsythe

    William Forsythe

    as Hollan

  • Luis Guzmán

    Luis Guzmán

    as Rem

  • Diane Venora

    Diane Venora

    as Jane Hetzko

  • Ernie Hudson

    Ernie Hudson

    as Claude Rolle

  • Richard Brooks

    Richard Brooks

    as Wellman

  • Glenn Plummer

    Glenn Plummer

    as Darrell Sherman

  • Cliff DeYoung

    Cliff DeYoung

    as Matt Wolfson

  • Peggy Pope

    Peggy Pope

    as Hannah Dillon

  • W

    Willis Sparks

    as John Janus

The Substitute facts

Box office
$14.8M
Collection
The Substitute Collection

Ranked by the iRankMovies editorial teamUpdated August 2026MethodologyData sources

Audience opinions

What the audience liked

  • •Mercenary action-thriller delivers solid entertainment with gritty tone
  • •Urban setting and crime elements provide authentic genre atmosphere
  • •Action choreography maintains professional craftsmanship throughout

What the audience disliked

  • •Plot mechanics feel generic within overused action-thriller formula
  • •Character arcs lack depth beyond standard mercenary archetype
Saga: The Substitute Collection

Trailer

Where to watch The Substitute(US)

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Availability may change. Data by JustWatch.

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