Reacher, the Amazon Prime Video action hit, recently returned to streaming with a white-knuckle third season that continues the hero's journey based on Lee Child's book series. Season 3 is still ongoing with only a few episodes left, and so far, the show keeps hitting it out of the park with non-stop thrills and one of the best leading characters on modern television. Jack Reacher is very well-written, but it would not be the same without the contribution of actor Alan Ritchson, who seems tailor-made for the gig. But as it turns out, Ritchson wasn't always attached to the project. Someone else was supposed to play Reacher.
Ritchson, who's also known for his roles in shows like Smallville and Titans and movies like The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, was in the web series "Autocomplete Interview" for WIRED where he answered a few questions fans asked about him. In the series, celebrities answer the internet's most-searched questions about them, and when it was Ritchson's turn to answer why he was cast in the show, he said the following while looking dumbfounded:
"Like millions of people are searching that question? Like, 'Who the F is this guy, Reacher? He sucks?' I asked myself the same question and so did the studio, because they went back multiple times like, 'I'm not sure this is the right guy. We want somebody bigger and stronger and faster.'
But yeah, I don't know. I ask myself the same thing. It wasn't an easy get... It was an eight-month audition process. You think I felt wanted at the end of an eight-month process? And then I found out after the fact, they promised the job to another dude. And I just happened to be crushing the auditions, and they were like, 'I guess we have to strongly consider this guy who was just supposed to be someone we threw in the mix.' And I ended up winning the role. So I too ask myself the same question. Thanks for that."
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Although Ritchson doesn't mention who was offered the job before him, there were several other names in the roster of auditionees including Teddy Sears, Brandon Routh and Brian Van Holt. The character was previously played by Tom Cruise in the big-screen adaptations of Lee Child's books, Jack Reacher and Jack Reacher: Never Go Back.
The Future of the 'Reacher' Series
So far, all the seasons of Reacher have become megahits for Amazon Prime Video. The very talented vigilante has turned into an icon of the action genre with only three seasons of one of the best TV productions you can find today on streaming. They have all earned critical acclaim, with Season 1 getting a 92% score on Rotten Tomatoes and Seasons 2 and 3 getting 98% and 97%, respectively. This means Reacher is far from over.
Naturally, Amazon MGM Studios will push for more. The action hit created by Nick Santora has been renewed for a fourth season, and the series will get its own spin-off titled Neagley. Neagley is based on the character Frances Neagley, as played by Maria Sten in the show. She's the investigator who usually joins Reacher to solve some of the mysteries in the series. The spin-off is also produced by Santora, and it's currently in production.
Source: WIRED
Your Rating close 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Rate Now 0/10 Reacher TV-MA Crime Drama Action Thriller 10/10 Release Date February 3, 2022 Network Prime Video Showrunner Nick Santora Directors Omar Madha, Carol Banker, Julian Holmes, Lin Oeding, M.J. Bassett, Norberto Barba, Stephen Surjik, Thomas Vincent Writers Cait Duffy Cast See All Alan Ritchson Jack Reacher Maria Sten Frances Neagley
Franchise(s) Jack Reacher Creator(s) Nick Santora Powered by Expand Collapse