It is inevitable to receive a lot of comments comparing Alan Ritchson to original Jack Reacher star Tom Cruise after the latter immortalized the character in the pop culture scene. While Cruise certainly nailed his portrayal, fans felt there was something amiss with his casting.
With the newly rebooted Reacher franchise, Ritchson finally steps in as Jack Reacher, with all his towering might and stature, and it seems that he is certainly the most suitable actor for that role.
Alan Ritchson Is Okay Being Compared To Tom Cruise
In an interview with Jonatan Blomberg, Reacher star Alan Ritchson responded to the reports of fans comparing his work as Reacher to that of Tom Cruise. For the new actor, he looks at them in a positive light rather than mere criticism. He also noted that Cruise’s stint as Jack Reacher made the franchise popular, so it is already one burden off Ritchson’s back.
“Being compared to the most legendary actor of all time? The last film star? I would never tire of being compared to somebody of his stature. Look, he did his thing. He brought a lot of eyes to this project that wouldn’t be here otherwise. There’s some great IP. The books are great, a lot of people have read them and enjoy the show because of them. But I think a lot of people enjoy the show because he made them aware of it.”
There’s definitely an obvious difference between Ritchson’s and Cruise’s renditions of Jack Reacher. Evidently, the former’s physicality mirrors the character’s description in the books, which is a very crucial aspect, especially for author Lee Child. He once told BBC Radio:
“The idea is that when Reacher walks into a room, you’re all a little nervous just for that first minute. And Cruise, for all his talent, didn’t have that physicality. I really enjoyed working with Cruise. He’s a really, really nice guy. We had a lot of fun. But ultimately the readers are right. The size of Reacher is really, really important, and it’s a big component of who he is.”
This was when Child and his team decided to move forward with a live-action series rather than a movie with Cruise. He also noted that long-form streaming television would be a much more suitable platform to tell Jack Reacher’s story.
Alan Ritchson On The Difficulty Of Playing Jack Reacher
Apart from the pressure of living up to fans’ expectations, Alan Ritchson shared the challenges he faced when he was tapped to play the lead role. Hiring an actor who is not as popular as Tom Cruise would have been difficult for the team, and Ritchson admitted Amazon took a huge risk. He told the Associated Press:
“The fact that the guy they got to play Reacher was not really a household name, a little less recognizable, it was a little harder to get people to talk to us. I think Amazon took a risk. But then when people watched the season, and the numbers came in, it started to get treated differently.”
He was very grateful for the influence that Cruise had on the franchise. As he mentioned earlier in another interview, it was the Mission: Impossible actor who brought the spotlight on Jack Reacher. All Ritchson had to do was to continue the legacy of the character.
