By I thoroughly enjoyed both Jack Reacher movies for the 90s throwback action that they were. Low on budget, but not on determination, the movies cast Cruise in the arrogant superman he plays best and basically just let him kick butt the entire time. It was fun. I don’t know if I wanted more, but I wouldn’t’ have been upset by it.
However, according to the book series’ author, Lee Childs, the movies are done and Reacher is rebooting and going streaming. Talking to BBC One the author announced that he just signed a deal to bring his long-running character to the small screen via an unnamed streaming platform. He said says this was a choice he made, and it was partly because Tom Cruise just didn’t fit the role.
I really enjoyed working with Cruise. He’s a really, really nice guy. We had a lot of fun,” Child told the station. But ultimately the readers are right. The size of Reacher is really, really important and it’s a big component of who he is. 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. So what I’ve decided to do is – there won’t be any more movies with Tom Cruise. Instead we’re going to take it to Netflix or something like that. Long form streaming television, with a completely new actor. And I want all those readers who were upset about Tom Cruise to help me out – participate in choosing the right actor for the TV series. We’re rebooting and starting over and we’re going to try and find the perfect guy.
I don’t know what he’s talking about there. Cruise looked like a killer throughout both films so I think it might also be because the second film underperformed globally, and if you’re not making money with Tom Cruise in the global market then you aren’t going to be making money. The actor still has huge amounts of clout when it comes to box offices outside the U.S.
I think episodic streaming might be the best place for Reacher anyway. The character’s stories are often a bit slower burn, and in the age of superheroes they can feel awfully small compared to half the universe disappearing with a snap. This is still clearly early as Childs doesn’t even have a streaming partner yet, but with the success of Amazon’s Jack Ryan I think someone will snap it up to compete.
‘Too short’ Tom Cruise to be replaced for Jack Reacher reboot [BBC]
