Alan Ritchson almost did not get the role of Jack Reacher despite looking the part. The producers at Amazon were initially not convinced he could deliver the job so they turned him down. But, it seems the role was truly meant for the Smallville star.
Tom Cruise played the part in 2012’s Jack Reacher and 2016’s Jack Reacher: Never Go Back. When the studio developed the television series, the Top Gun actor was nowhere to be found. Apparently, he was too small for the role. They wanted to find an actor that would fit Jack Reacher’s book description.
Amazon Originally Rejected Alan Ritchson For Reacher
In his interview with Collider, actor Alan Ritchson shared how he was initially passed over for the role of Jack Reacher. At the time he auditioned, he was not yet the size of the character. He stated:
“It’s funny, I actually didn’t get the role at first. I’m not exactly six foot five, and I’m not exactly 250, and I had heard that they were being very specific with their physical demands. After working with Tom Cruise and a lot of fans being upset that he didn’t really have the physicality, as great as he was in the role, they really wanted to get that right.”
Ritchson almost gave up after he was rejected because he knew they were looking for some actor with a really massive physique, something like The Rock. The actor admitted:
“I was like, ‘Well, they wanna read me, but I know they’re gonna find someone like Dwayne Johnson, who’s a huge dude.’ I auditioned for the part, and it was good. It was just that my take on it was a little different than what they had in mind at the time.”
Working out five days a week over eight months gained Ritchson 30 pounds. When he eventually snagged the role, he was almost close to the exact description of Jack Reacher. The actor revealed there were some changes in the casting process, and that’s how fortune favored him. He further added:
“There was a shake-up with who was casting, so they started again from scratch, and I’d already been passed on, as had everybody who did an audition. But when they came back around, they picked a few tapes that they’d seen already, and I was one of them, so they wanted me to come back and try again, and it worked out.”
The success of the show can be attributed to its faithfulness to the source material, especially having a book-accurate main character.
Alan Ritchson Says Jack Reacher Is The Best Role He Has Ever Played
Alan Ritchson said in the same interview with Collider that he eventually got to love his character. Learning its background by reading the material helped him fully embody the role. He shared:
“The closer I got to that, the more familiar I became with the Reacher stuff. I’ve really fallen in love. I’ve read the books now, and Reacher has some big shoes to fill, metaphorically speaking. I’m just so thrilled to be a part of it. It’s my favorite character that I’ve played yet.”
Despite his star factor, Ritchson still could not believe he won over several actors who contended for the coveted role. He credited his team for getting him the job:
“I’ve been in the business for a long time, but you just don’t know everybody. There’s a level of educating people as to who you are and convincing people that you’re the guy. It was a lot of work, and my team did a really great job. My manager had a huge hand in that.”
Season 2 of Reacher will premiere on Prime Video this December 15, 2023.
