tom cruise jack reacher 3

Will There Be a Jack Reacher 3 Release Date & Is It Coming Out?

By Abdul Azim Naushad

It has been over eight years since Tom Cruise ‘s second and last movie as Jack Reacher, Jack Reacher: Never Go Back hit theaters. Since then, fans of Cruise’s take on Lee Child’s iconic character have been wondering whether a Jack Reacher 3 with the actor will happen. In addition, they also want to know if Jack Reacher 3 has a release date and if it’s coming out .

Here’s all we know about the Jack Reacher 3 release date and whether or not it’s coming out.

Is there a Jack Reacher 3 release date?

There is no Jack Reacher 3 release date because it is unlikely to happen.

Tom Cruise is reportedly busy with a multitude of upcoming projects. These include Mission: Impossible 8, a movie set in outer space to be directed by his Edge of Tomorrow collaborator and director Doug Liman (via Variety ) and also Top Gun 3, which is in development.

Moreover, Cruise has also reportedly struck a new deal with Warner Bros . This would see him commit to multiple films like a potential Edge of Tomorrow sequel and various auteur-driven movies. As such, due to this possibly heavy future workload, Cruise may not have time to commit to a Jack Reacher sequel.

However, Christopher McQuarrie, writer and director of 2012’s Jack Reacher and producer of 2016’s Never Go Back, claimed that a third movie could happen during a 2020 interaction with Empire . Here he also expressed his hopes to take Cruise’s Jack Reacher to more R-rated territory and depict “the brutality” of Lee Child’s Jack Reacher books.

Moreover, Edward Zwick, who directed Never Go Back, expressed his interest in doing a third movie. In an interview with Variety , he claimed that if Cruise contacted him about doing one, he would “definitely pick up.”

Why Jack Reacher 3 might not be happening anytime soon

Jack Reacher 3 probably isn’t coming out. This is because as mentioned above, Cruise’s upcoming workload might not give him time to do a third Jack Reacher movie.

Moreover, Tom Cruise’s Jack Reacher: Never Go Back suffered a lower worldwide box-office gross of $162 million compared to the his first Jack Reacher movie, which reportedly grossed $218 million worldwide. As such, it is likely that a third movie is a low-priority or abandoned project for producers, who may not have plans to focus on making it anytime soon.

Abdul Naushad is a Contributing SEO Writer. He has previously written over a 100 articles for Sportskeeda. In his spare time, he likes to play video games, watch movies and aimlessly browse and watch different kinds of YouTube videos whether they be gaming reviews, movie explanations or even funny sketches and skits.

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Everything We Know About Jack Reacher 3

I have often wondered what adapting an action novel for the screen would be like, there being a markedly different approach to even the literary form and the screenplay written for adapting the matter to film. The answer is to be sought from the Jack Reacher s, Jack Ryans, James Bonds , and the Jason Bournes of the world, each of them having headed immensely popular franchises. For that matter, Cruise has given himself to the action genre unflinchingly like dye to the wool, what with him performing his own stunts at his age being an unprecedented feat of sorts. While he virtually owns the ‘ Mission Impossible ’ franchise in his role of MI6 secret agent Ethan Hunt, still going strong after its sixth instalment made all the right noises in the right places for the right reasons, another one of his action franchises has visibly struggled with taking off and finding a sort of unanimous acceptance among fans — Jack Reacher.

‘ Jack Reacher ’, the fictional brainchild of British author Lee Child and a bonafide badass, joining the long list of ex-marine vigilante arse kickers from the pens of a number of authors, has had two film adaptations to date, remarkably less than any one of the other action heroes mentioned above despite there being a wealth of literature devoted to him (23 books), both starring Tom Cruise in the titular role and serving as standalone stories dictating the character’s exploits following his origins.

The first one finds its allegiance in the 2005 Child novel ‘One Shot’ while the second’s in its title, ‘Never Go Back’. Both films had a decent worldwide gross but ended up under-performing in the home circuit, while struggling critically as well; and the internet would state that they weren’t adored by fans of Reacher or Cruise much either. In these circumstances, while a sequel would seem highly unlikely given the unfavourable reception, we decode all the news we have regarding what could come of the third film and whether it would be happening or not. Read on.

Is Jack Reacher 3 happening?

According to latest reports, Lee Child has signed a deal with the television divisions of both Paramount and Skydance, the distributors and producers of both of Cruise’s popular franchises ‘Jack Reacher’ and ‘ Mission Impossible ’, to produce a television series based on the character. While not much about it isn’t known either, it is pretty clear that the makers wish to take the ‘ Jack Ryan ’ route when none of their films worked either. The TV series starring John Krasinski ended up being a hit last year with both fans and critics, and it is not difficult to see why the makers too would tip in the favour of telling Reacher’s standalone stories as an anthology series or in an episodic nature. More so, the stability of Netflix and other streaming and television mediums have often proven antidotes to dwindling returns on the films, so this is not going to be a first.

As for the plot, one cannot be too certain since while only two of the novels have yet been adapted for the screen, we still have 21 more to go. Expect an intermixing of sorts, since the novels are not a tall order to be adapted across an entire season, unlike ‘ Game of Thrones ’, say. The plot details cannot be told for certain as of now, since there is no official word on how the makers wish to take this and approach the television series, but the long and short of it is that a third film in the continued franchise won’t be happening after ‘ Never Go Back ’. This might mean bad news for fans of the franchise, but unfortunately so, that’s the way the cookie crumbles in Hollywood.

Tom Cruise’s Exit: Who can be the next Jack Reacher?

Yes, you read that right. With the news of no new films happening in the ‘Jack Reacher’ franchise, also comes the news that Tom Cruise won’t be reprising his role in any capacity. Instead, for television, the makers, including Lee Child, would be going the way of the novels and would be searching for an actor that would fit the physical description of him as laid out in the books. The principal cause of dissatisfaction here, as pointed out by some fans too, would be Tom Cruise’s height at 5 feet 7 inches, and his physicality. Reacher in the books is described as a formidable man, measuring up at 6 feet 5 inches, blonde and weighing in at 250 pounds.

According to Lee Childs, Reacher’s size and heftiness in the books was a metaphor for an “unstoppable force”, which Cruise portrayed “in his own way.” Furthermore, this is what he had to say about Cruise being dropped for the sequel and why it was important for them to get the casting right: “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. 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. We’re rebooting and starting over and we’re going to try and find the perfect guy.”

It is quite clear that while the makers hold a lot of respect for Cruise and what he did in the two films in which he portrayed the eponymous character, they will be moving on to a new actor, thus meaning Cruise’s retirement from the role. Reports state that Childs wants to involve a number of fans that were dissatisfied with Cruise’s casting to seek suggestions for the new casting to get the new actor, his looks and his physicality absolutely right.

Jack Reacher 3 Crew: Who can be behind it?

Since a third movie most definitely would not be happening, that question is out of the window. As for the rebooted TV series, nothing apart from the announcement that it would be happening is known, so we will have to wait a fair bit to know more about that. That too rules out the possibility of the return of either Christopher McQuarrie, who has now had a successful run with Cruise directing two films in the MI franchise, and Edward Zwick, the director of the two Jack Reacher films. The only confirmation on this as of now is that Lee Childs will be directly involved in the production process of the TV show, as opposed to only his partial involvement in the films, having signed a deal with Skydance TV and Paramount TV, and perhaps also serve in the capacity of a screenwriter or a story consultant. We will, as always, update this section as soon as we receive any news regarding the TV series, so be sure to check back.

Jack Reacher 3 Release Date: When can it premiere?

I just want to make sure that we are talking about the TV series here, because as I have established in the sections before this, a third ‘Jack Reacher’ film won’t be happening. The unfortunate thing is that the release date of the Jack Reacher TV series  isn’t currently known either, but we can safely assume that it would soon be on the writing boards, now that it has been announced with much fervour. From the looks of it, it would also seem that the project would head over to Netflix. Expect the pilot to air any time beyond early 2021, assuming enough time for casting, locations and the script to be finalised before it finally goes on board.

Read More: Upcoming Tom Cruise Movies

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'Reacher' season 3 release date speculation, cast, plot and more

'Reacher' is officially returning to Prime Video for another season

"Reacher" season 3 is officially bringing back Alan Ritchson's Jack Reacher to Prime Video .

Season 2 was a hit again for Amazon, so it was no surprise that the company was quick to greenlight more episodes. But it was a bit of a surprise that it renewed the show as quickly as it did, because "Reacher" was officially renewed for season 3 two weeks before season 2 dropped on Prime Video. It was a bet that paid off though, as fans and critics alike praised season 2 upon its release. 

It's also been reported that a "Reacher" spinoff is in the works at Amazon . That's right, not only are we getting season 3 very soon, but we're also getting a spinoff focused on Frances Neagley (Maria Sten). She's one of the most intriguing characters from both the books and the show.

So now that we know "Reacher" season 3 is confirmed and probably almost finished, here's everything you need to know, from release date speculation, cast, plot, and more.

'Reacher' season 3 release date speculation

"Reacher" season 3 doesn't have a release date yet. However, we can make an educated guess as to when to expect more episodes.

Season 1 was filmed between April 15 and July 30, 2021, and then debuted on Prime Video on February 4, 2022. That means filming took about three-and-a-half months and post-production was an additional six months. Given that production has already begun, October 2024 is the earliest we can expect "Reacher" season 3 to arrive on our TV screens.

However , I think that there is a chance that Prime Video will hold off until December 2024. That would have it on an annual schedule (season 2 released in December 2023), which networks and studios tend to like for their serialized TV shows. Given that the December release window worked for Prime Video in season 2, I expect Amazon to premiere season 3 in December 2024.

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Still, if this latest update from Jack Reacher himself is accurate, those estimates could be too conservative. In an interview on " The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ," Alan Ritchson, who plays the titular Reacher, says that filming is almost done for season 3 (h/t CBR) . Given that production has been ongoing for a mere three months at most , that's impressive if true.

Another recent update (as of April 23) proves that filming is still underway, with photos from @neilmorton on Twitter (X) revealing that Alan Ritchson was filming a few scenes in Millbrook, Ontario. The images themselves don't reveal much about the story but they do suggest that "Reacher" season 3 is still in production, so we might have to wait longer for a confirmed release date. 

Alan Ritchson filming in Millbrook, Ontario 🇨🇦 today for “Reacher” scenes. pic.twitter.com/9Hn7qLbDno April 23, 2024

UPDATE (July 2): It seems as though "Reacher" season 3 has finished filming, as Ritchson recently posted on Instagram about his preparation for an upcoming role in "Motor City". In the post, he states: "How do you completely transform when you only have a few days to transition from Reacher to your next role in period action piece extraordinaire, #MotorCity? You bring out the big guns." This could be a big hint that "Reacher" season 3 has finally wrapped up, with Ritchson moving onto his next project. 

UPDATE (July 29): TVLine has teased a potential release date for "Reacher" season 3, although this hasn't been confirmed. The report states: "Prime Video has yet to announce a date, but at the moment I am hearing early 2025.” Again, Prime Video hasn't offered official confirmation on this, so it's possible we'll still get season 3 in late 2024. 

UPDATE (August 19): As announced by Variety on August 13, Paramount has decided to shut down its television studio, Paramount Television Studios (PTVS). This is due to a larger corporate restructuring effort. Fans have been left wondering what this means for "Reacher" season 3, but don't worry, because any upcoming and ongoing shows will fall under the CBS Studios umbrella. It's possible that season 3 will be slightly delayed, and if not, future seasons most likely will be during the company's restructuring. 

A post shared by Alan Ritchson (@alanritchson) A photo posted by on

'Reacher' season 3 cast

Currently, four cast members have been officially confirmed for season 3. Ritchson will, of course, return as the titular Jack Reacher. He'll once again be joined by Maria Sten as Frances Neagley, one of Reacher's former military comrades. This makes sense considering she's reportedly getting her own spinoff, according to Variety , meaning she needs to be present in the current timeline. 

But aside from those two, don't expect familiar faces. Season 2 didn't carry over many cast members from season 1 — in fact, it only carried over Ritchson and Sten, aside from a guest appearance by Malcolm Goodwin as Margrave PD Police Captain Oscar Finlay. 

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter , showrunner Nick Santora says to expect the same for season 3. "The DNA of Reacher is that he moves about on his own and teams up with good people when there’s bad lurking about, and then he says goodbye to those people and goes on his way." 

We do know two of the new faces joining the show for season 3. Anthony Michael Hall will play Zachary Beck, who runs a rug import business and could shape up to be the major antagonist this season. Sonya Cassidy is also confirmed to appear as tough but witty DEA agent Susan Duffy, who will presumably team up with Reacher at some point in the season.

Since that announcement, Amazon has also announced four other new cast members. Brian Tee will play Quinn, a possible antagonist alongside Hall's Beck. Speaking of Beck, Johnny Berchtold will play his son Richard. Meanwhile, Roberto Montesinos and Daniel David Stewart will play DEA agents Guillermo Villanueva and Steven Elliot, who will be working alongside Duffy and Reacher.

On May 22 it was announced that Olivier Ritchters has taken the role of Paulie, a bodybuilder who is even bigger than Reacher. Paul "Paulie" Masserella is the bodyguard of Zachary Beck, and he's incredibly tough to win against in a fight. This means Reacher has some serious competition in season 3. 

Olivier Ritchters has been cast as Paulie in ‘REACHER’ Season 3Described as a character that is much taller & bigger than Jack Reacher, outweighing him by 200 pounds.(Source: https://t.co/E8zGdvnxi9) pic.twitter.com/LuLSWkp2YM May 22, 2024

As new casting announcements are made, we'll update this section accordingly. Here is the current cast for "Reacher" season 3:

• Alan Richtson as Jack Reacher , a former U.S. Army Military Police Major who drifts across the U.S. fighting bad guys.
• Maria Sten as Frances Neagley , a corporate security professional who served with Reacher in the Army.
• Anthony Michael Hall as Zachary Beck , a widower single father who is suspected of using his rug import company as a cover for illicit activities.
• Sonya Cassidy as Susan Duffy , a tough Boston DEA agent with a sharp sense of humor.
• Brian Tee as Quinn, a former Lt. Colonel whom Reacher investigated ten years ago when he sold military secrets to hostile nations.
• Johnny Berchtold as Richard Beck, the college-aged son of Zachary Beck who is mutilated from a traumatic kidnapping five years ago.
• Roberto Montesinos as Guillermo Villanueva, a DEA agent on the verge of retirement who is also a mentor and father figure for Agent Duffy.
• Daniel David Stewart as Steven Elliot , a rookie DEA agent who’s still learning the job.
• Olivier Ritchters as Paulie , a bodybuilder and one of the bodyguards of Zachary Beck.

How to watch 'Reacher' seasons 1-2

Viewers around the world can watch "Reacher" seasons 1-2 on Prime Video . All 16 episodes (eight per season) are currently available to watch on the popular streaming service .

'Reacher' season 3 plot

Alan Ritchson already announced that season 3 will be based on "Persuader," the seventh book in Lee Child's "Reacher" series. I won't go into spoilers here, but if you want to know absolutely nothing about the next season of "Reacher," turn around now.

Okay, so there are just two things you need to know about "Persuader" and how it will tie into season 3. First, is the synopsis of the plot, which according to The Hollywood Reporter's interview with Santora, is: "Reacher will go undercover to rescue an informant held by a haunting foe from his past."

The second thing is that while Sten is returning as Neagley for a third season, Neagley doesn't actually appear in the source material. So that makes her character a bit of a wild card for season 3 because the showrunners will need to go off-book.

Here is a synopsis of the book for more insight: "Ten years ago, a key investigation went sour and someone got away with murder. Now a chance encounter brings it all back. Now Reacher sees his one last shot. Some would call it vengeance. Some would call it redemption. Reacher would call it ... justice."

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Malcolm McMillan is a senior writer for Tom's Guide, covering all the latest in streaming TV shows and movies. That means news, analysis, recommendations, reviews and more for just about anything you can watch, including sports! If it can be seen on a screen, he can write about it. Previously, Malcolm had been a staff writer for Tom's Guide for over a year, with a focus on artificial intelligence (AI), A/V tech and VR headsets.

Before writing for Tom's Guide, Malcolm worked as a fantasy football analyst writing for several sites and also had a brief stint working for Microsoft selling laptops, Xbox products and even the ill-fated Windows phone. He is passionate about video games and sports, though both cause him to yell at the TV frequently. He proudly sports many tattoos, including an Arsenal tattoo, in honor of the team that causes him to yell at the TV the most.

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• Big Willie! Oh goodie.. More scenes where Reacher and team forgo all reason, as well as being immune to bullets, fights, explosions, any blunt force, law enforcement, financial concerns, consequences, and probably gravity. Here's an idea... Have a plot and make the characters, you know, subject to the laws of nature. "OK, team, I know where the 75 bad guys are and they have every weapon ever made, but I'll go in alone and punch them all in the face while they miss with every shot. I'll be right back and make some snarky tough sounding comment." Ugh... Reply
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Jack Reacher 3 Would Have Been A Very Different Film

In 2012, Tom Cruise's first Jack Reacher film earned $218 million at the worldwide box office , and seemed poised to launch the actor's next successful franchise. But after a disappointing 2016 follow-up Jack Reacher: Never Go Back , the film series stalled. However, had it moved forward, Jack Reacher 3 would have been a totally different film compared to its predecessors, and one that would have been more faithful to Lee Child's successful book series, on which the films are based.

So far, Child has written 25 books (including prequels and spinoffs) involving the ex-Army investigator Jack Reacher , who never seems to fail at finding a twisted conspiracy to unravel. In the books, the hulking 6' 5” and 250 lb. action hero is just as quick to use his fists as he is to use his mind to solve a problem, which often leads to some decidedly R-rated reading material.

But when it came time to adapt the books for the big screen, Hollywood opted for a toned down, PG-13 version of the character, which is something director Christopher McQuarrie had hoped to rectify in a third Jack Reacher film before it became clear that one would never come to fruition.

During a July 2020 interview with Empire , McQuarrie revealed that he and Cruise had hoped the third film in the franchise could transition into darker territory. "Tom and I were talking about, had the series continued, to take Reacher to a place where, in the post- Deadpool , post- Joker world, Reacher could have been an R-rated movie and an R-rated franchise and really fed into the brutality of those books. We were fully ready to lean into that."

Author Lee Child is reportedly the reason why Jack Reacher 3 never happened

Despite McQuarrie and Cruise's big plans to adhere more closely to the books in a third film, Child opted to take his character's live-action future in a different direction — one that would include an actor who more accurately matched the physical description of Reacher. In a wide-ranging November 2019 interview with The Sunday Times , Child opened up about why it was time for Cruise to hang up Reacher's boots and let someone else have a go at playing the famed ex-military man.

The author revealed that he had a clause in his contract which would allow him to end the film franchise after just two movies, and he told The Sunday Times that he opted to exercise it after the release of Jack Reacher: Never Go Back . "Cruise was reluctant. He had his own investment in it, he was gonna argue against it," he said. "It sounds extremely patronizing but I think it's good for him. He's too old for this stuff. He's 57, he needs to move on, transition to being a character actor. He could get another 20 years out of it. He has the talent. He's a terrific guy, very considerate, good fun."

In addition to his age, Cruise is also small in stature. The now 58-year-old is just 5' 7” tall, which is a far cry from the larger than life figure Reacher strikes in the books. Still, Cruise is a hands on action movie star who does his own stunts and is heavily involved on the creative side of his films, so what he lacked in size, he surely made up for in passion where the Jack Reacher franchise is concerned.

An R-rated Jack Reacher is still happening, just not on the big screen

While the Jack Reacher movies appear to be over for now, the character is getting a small screen reboot courtesy of Amazon Studios. The streamer has ordered a new series based on the books, which is set to begin filming in Toronto in April 2021, according to BlogTO . Unlike the films, the show will star an actor who matches up with Child's descriptions in the books perfectly: The 6' 4” Titans star Alan Ritchson .

At this stage, not much is known about the Amazon series, aside from the fact that it has Child's stamp of approval. When the news of the series was first announced in January 2020, the author issued a statement, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter , that read, "It's been great so far, but really, the fun starts here. By now I know these guys, and Reacher is in the perfect hands, believe me."

Season 1 of Jack Reacher is set to focus on the first book in the long-running series, The Killing Floor . In the book, Reacher visits a small town in Georgia to investigate a cold case, but he quickly ends up being arrested himself. It's a dark introduction to the character's world that's full of action sequences that are sure to finally give readers the R-rated Reacher action they crave — just minus Cruise and director McQuarrie.

Reacher Season 3 Release, Cast & Everything We Know

As Reacher Season 2 approaches the end of its run on Amazon Prime Video , the cast and crew are already preparing for the upcoming release of Season 3.

With only one episode remaining in Reacher Season 2 , the series remains one of the most popular in the streaming world, sitting at a stellar 94% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes over its first two seasons.

Featuring Fast X star Alan Ritchson as Major Jack Reacher, the show brings author Lee Child's Jack Reacher books to life and follows two big-screen Jack Reacher movies from Tom Cruise before Ritchson took over the role in 2022.

[ Reacher Star Reacts to His Heartbreaking On-Screen Death In Season 2 ] 

When Is Reacher Season 3 Releasing?

Reacher is officially confirmed to return to Amazon Prime Video for Season 3.

Before Season 2 debuted on December 15 , series star Alan Ritchson appeared in a video on Prime Video's panel at Brazil's CCXP convention announcing that he'd started filming for Season 3, which came alongside an extended look at Season 2.

That video went public on December 2, and on December 6, Ritchson took to Instagram to share an image of himself covering up his tattoos in preparation for shooting the new season of Reacher .

When CinemaBlend asked which Jack Reacher book Season 3 will bring to life, Ritchson could only say that it was one of his "favorite books" from the series and that it would "make people very happy" when it's revealed:

"Have we announced it yet? The Season 3 book? How much you got? I wish I could! It’s one of my favorite books. This is, like, on every top 10 list. This is gonna make people very happy, this book."

When looking at the shooting schedule for the show, Season 1 was filmed from April 2021 until July 2021 before the full season dropped on Amazon Prime Video on February 4, 2022.

This translates to about three and a half months of filming and close to 10 months between the start of shooting and the show's release.

Production for Season 2 then ran from Fall 2022 until late February 2023 before the series returned on December 15, 2023, giving the series over a year of work between the start of shooting and release.

Star Maria Sten indicated in December that the series' return was delayed due to the actors' and writers' strikes that dominated headlines in Summer 2023.

Speaking with Retro Cool Nerd in an interview from December 2023, Ritchson indicated that "quite a bit" of Season 3 was already shot while teasing that "the best season" of the show yet was on the way:

"People are saying this is gonna be the best season we’ve had yet, and we’ve shot quite a bit, so that’s promising."

Ritchson then posted a picture on his Instagram account on January 15 teasing some of the work being done on Season 3, showing a picture of himself covered in mud along with the following caption

"Welp… we’re back. Season 3 of 'Reacher'… crustier than ever."

Taking the aforementioned timeframe into account, filming for Season 3 should likely finish sometime in either February or March. Assuming there are no unforeseen delays, the new season could potentially hit Amazon Prime Video in late 2024.

[ Serinda Swan Admits She Has a Girl-Crush on 1 Reacher Season 2 Co-Star ]  

Who's Cast In Reacher Season 3?

The first two seasons of Reacher only had two cast members appear in both full sets of episodes, those being Alan Ritchson's Jack Reacher and Maria Sten's Frances Neagley.

The only exception to that was Malcolm Goodwin's Oscar Finlay, who made a surprise appearance in Season 2, Episode 4, although he's only been mentioned in passing since then in later episodes.

Thus far, Ritchson is the only actor officially confirmed to reprise his role in Reacher Season 3, sharing multiple pictures and videos from the Season 3 set as he continues leading the way in this series.

While Sten may be back as Neagley after starring in half of Season 1's eight episodes and all of Season 2, no reports have indicated her casting in Season 3 yet.

Outside of them, the show's cast for Season 3 will all depend on which Lee Child book the next eight episodes will adapt, as Reacher is known for never staying in one place for a long time in the books and the show.

What Will Happen in Reacher Season 3?

At this point, there is no way to accurately predict what will happen in Reacher Season 3 due to how extensive the show's source material from Lee Child is.

First coming to bookshelves in 1997, Child's Jack Reacher series now consists of an incredible 28 books, the latest one (titled The Secret ) becoming available for purchase in October 2023. The author also has a new book in the works titled In Too Deep , although the 29th entry won't be ready for release until October 2024.

The Reacher series initially took an unsurprising route with Season 1 being based on Child's first Jack Reacher book, Killing Floor , as Ritchson's hero was introduced almost identically on screen to the way he was on the page.

Season 2 then jumped forward in Child's series by embracing the story told in his 11th book (released in 2007) titled Bad Luck and Trouble , leaving the door wide open for where Season 3 could go.

Although both Season 1 and Season 2 were adopted fairly faithfully from their source material, with Season 2 jumping ahead by 10 books, any of Child's other 26 Reacher books are on the table for the Season 3 plot. The only one that could be considered off the table is the aforementioned The Secret , which presumably won't hit shelves until long after Season 3 finishes filming.

Reacher Season 2 will conclude with Episode 8's debut on Amazon Prime Video on Thursday, January 18 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.

LATEST NEWS

'Reacher': release date, cast, plot, trailer, first looks, and everything you need to now about the Jack Reacher spin-off

Amazon's 'Reacher' is a new action-packed adaptation on Prime Video featuring Lee Child's famous hero.

Jack Reacher fans have an all-action thriller series featuring their favorite hero to get their teeth into. Move over Tom Cruise though, as Reacher on Amazon Prime Video will star Titans ’ Alan Ritchson as the towering, roaming veteran military police investigator in a thrilling new action-packed mystery crime series based on the novels by Lee Child . 

Like the famous movies starring Tom Cruise, 2012’s  Jack Reacher  and 2016’s  Jack Reacher: Never Go Back , the eight-part series is packed with bare-knuckle fight scenes, clever stunts, gun battles, and a hint of romance, and has author Lee Child on board as executive producer.

So here’s everything we know so far about the Jack Reacher spin-off coming to Amazon Prime Video, including its first-look pictures and trailer…

'Reacher' release date

All eight episodes of Reacher will be released worldwide Friday, Feb. 4 2022 on Amazon Prime Video. 

It's one of a string of exciting things coming to Amazon Prime, including Amazon's Lords of the Rings TV series .

Is there a 'Reacher' trailer?

Yes, there's a great trailer for Reacher released by Amazon Prime Video. It shows Ritchson’s Reacher arriving in fictional town of Margrave, where he piques the interest of the local authorities, who are disturbed by the seven deaths that coincide with his arrival. It shows some thrilling fist fights, an obligatory topless shot, plus a scene of him popping off a beer bottle with just his muscles, and also hints at some romance for the character. Take a look at all the action right here with the trailer below plus a further clip (with a lot of fighting)...

'Reacher' plot

Reacher is based on Lee Child’s first Jack Reacher novel, Killing Floor , and follows the police investigator fresh out of the military, as he turns up in the small town of Margrave, Georgia, to find a community dealing with its first murder in 20 years. The cops immediately arrest Reacher and eyewitnesses claim to place Reacher at the scene of the crime. But while he works to prove his innocence, a deep-seated conspiracy begins to emerge.

"Within minutes of him arriving, he's arrested for murder," says Alan Ritchson, 39. "He basically has to solve the case to prove his innocence, and along the way he starts to uncover this sinister plot, and realises it’s close to home!’

'Reacher' cast — Alan Ritchson on playing Jack Reacher

Alan Ritchson is best known for playing Hank Hall (aka Hawk) in DC’s Titans and Aquaman in Smallville . And at six foot three inches tall, he’s much closer to the imposing six foot five character in Lee Child’s novels compared to Cruise, who’s five foot seven.

Reacher star Alan Ritchson told Whattowatch.com : "He is a retired military police officer who is huge, violent, highly intelligent, and an incredible detective. Now that he’s out of the military, he sort of wanders the country, and trouble seems to find him. He’s that knight in shining armour who cleans up the streets for us. He is the drifter who comes into town, and who doesn’t rely on the law because he is the law."

Alan says he found Reacher’s combination of brains and brawn, together with his tendency not to say much, fascinating to play. "You expect somebody who looks like that to be a bit of a brute. But Reacher’s so sharp that he's one step ahead of everybody. He's a man of few words, and he allows people to believe what they want to believe about him. So he’s a mental gymnast, but the size of an ox!"

'Reacher' cast — who else is starring

The Reacher cast also includes  What We Do in the Shadows ’ Harvey Guillén and  iZombie ’s Malcolm Goodwin, while  The Goldfinch ’s Willa Fitzgerald as cop Roscoe Conklin and Bruce McGill ( My Cousin Vinny ) plays Mayor Teale. 

You'll also see Jack Reacher as a child, so there must be flashback scenes somewhere along the line in the drama. Young Reacher is played by Maxwell Jenkins, who famously plays Will Robinson in Lost In Space on Netflix.

Fans of British soaps should look out for Matthew Marsden, who was Chris Collins in Coronation Street . He plays Stan Reacher in this drama.

A brief guide to the previous Jack Reacher films

Lee Child has written 26 Jack Reacher books and two have been adapted for the big screen, both starring Tom Cruise as the ex army investigator turned drifter. The 2012 movie Jack Reacher saw Reacher help solve the case of five people shot dead in a seemingly random attack and also starred Rosamund Pike as the sniper’s defence attorney. Meanwhile, 2016 follow-up Jack Reacher: Never Go Back followed Reacher as he went on the run with an Army major who had been framed for espionage, as the two revealed a dark conspiracy.

All about Jack Reacher novelist Lee Child

The hugely popular Jack Reacher novels read like a love letter to America, packed as they are with diners and motels that their protagonist visits as he drifts from one small town to another across the US, righting wrongs along the way. However, their creator, Lee Child , was born in Coventry, schooled in Birmingham, studied law in Sheffield and worked in television production in Manchester. It was only after the publication of his first novel Killing Floor , on which the new series Reacher is based, that Lee Child – born James Grant – emigrated to the US.

"America is an exciting place to live and an ideal setting for my series of thrillers," says the 67-year-old. "My stories have been set all over the US – from Montana to Mississippi."

Despite the success of the books, Lee Child announced in 2020 that he would be letting his brother, Andrew Grant , take over authorship of the Reacher series. 

"Andrew really is me 15 years ago, still full of energy, still full of ideas," says Lee, who has already co-written three Reacher books with his sibling."And so I think this is the perfect solution."

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I'm a huge fan of television so I really have found the perfect job, as I've been writing about TV shows, films and interviewing major television, film and sports stars for over 25 years. I'm currently TV Content Director on What's On TV, TV Times, TV and Satellite Week magazines plus Whattowatch.com. I previously worked on Woman and Woman's Own in the 1990s. Outside of work I swim every morning, support Charlton Athletic football club and get nostalgic about TV shows Cagney & Lacey, I Claudius, Dallas and Tenko. I'm totally on top of everything good coming up too.

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Everything We Know About Reacher Season 3

The Prime Video show is a major streaming hit.

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REACHER IS THE Prime Video show everyone is talking about. If you're in the mood for a new show to binge, it's the perfect mix of detective mystery combined with action and thriller. Based on the famed Lee Child novels, there are enough books centered on the character to keep audiences entertained for years. So far, the show has only had 2 seasons, but with only 16 episodes total to watch, it's no wonder fans are interested to know what's in the future for Jack Reacher.

For anyone just learning about the character, Jack Reacher is a former major in the U.S. Army's military police and a nomad, traveling the country solving any mysteries he comes across. It's a far cry from some of the more hardboiled detective mysteries people may be used to, where the protagonist is more brooding and sulky. Jack Reacher, on the other hand, is more like a valiant hero, seeking ways to help people wherever he ends up, and usually finding it. Season 1 of Reacher adapts the first book in Child's series, Killing Floor . Season 2, in turn, took its story from the pages of Bad Luck and Trouble , one one of the more popular books in the series, but eleventh in publication order.

Part of the fun in waiting for Season 3 is speculating what the next book to be adapted could be. Considering the books are mostly standalone, there's no telling what could be next.

Here's everything we know about Reacher Season 3.

When is Reacher Season 3 set to premiere?

The second season ends on January 19. Season 3 has been announced, and from Alan Ritchson's Instagram, it looks like production is already underway. That said, the show may not return until late 2024 at the earliest.

If that wait sounds like too much to bear, you could also check out the two Tom Cruise-starring Jack Reacher movies (not connected to the Prime Video series, but a different adaptation of the same character), which came out in 2012 and 2016 .

What will Reacher Season 3 be about?

Since each Reacher season is likely planned to be an adaptation of one of the books, there's no telling which could be adapted. There are currently 28 novels about the character, so there are a lot of standalone stories Prime Video could choose from.

On January 24th, Prime Video announced the third season of Reacher will be based on Persuader, the 7th book in the Jack Reacher series.

The book follows Reacher as he works unofficially for the Drug Enforcement Administration to take down Zachary Beck, a suspected drug smuggler, and to also retrieve an undercover DEA agent.

Reacher has his own personal agenda though, as he's also trying to locate and take down a former Military Intelligence agent who killed one of his colleagues.

Who will star in Reacher Season 3?

Alan Ritchson, who plays Jack Reacher, will of course return. Maria Sten, who plays Frances Neagley, could return. The character worked with Reacher during his career in the military could also come back. Most of the other cast, however, make single season appearances, so there's only really one person we can know for sure is coming back: Reacher.

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Tom Cruise And Christopher McQuarrie Had A Plan For Jack Reacher 3 And It Sounds Great

Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie have had a fruitful relationship over the past several years, with the pair churning out several successful installments in the Mission: Impossible franchise. And of course, the two are currently working away on two more installments . However, some may forget that they also worked together on 2012’s Jack Reacher , which didn’t quite connect with audiences in the way that their other franchise has. Even though the original film and the 2016 sequel didn’t perform that well, the two did still have ideas for a third movie.

Christopher McQuarrie recently revealed that he and Tom Cruise discussed potential ideas for a third film in Cruise’s Jack Reacher franchise and were hoping to take the character into a darker, R-rated direction:

Tom and I were talking about, had the series continued, to take Reacher to a place where, in the post-Deadpool, post-Joker world, Reacher could have been an R-rated movie and an R-rated franchise and really fed into the brutality of those books. We were fully ready to lean into that.

This would’ve been a complete departure from what was seen from the first two installments of the Jack Reacher franchise, and it honestly would have been an interesting change of pace. Although fans may be disappointed that they won’t get to see this kind of take on Reacher, McQuarrie also confirmed to Empire Magazine that he and Cruise are cooking up a very “un-Cruise” character that’s even darker than their idea for Jack Reacher 3 :

Also: It’s a very un-Tom character, and we have plans for an even more un-Tom character that we’ve been talking about, which I’m hopeful about in the future. […] The franchise has moved on, and we haven’t. So we’ve now got stuff in the hopper. The [Jack Reacher] stuff we’re talking about now is tinker toys [compared to it], I’m actually very, very excited.

The idea of a darker Jack Reacher starring Tom Cruise is definitely interesting, but hearing that he and Christopher McQuarrie are developing a darker character is even more intriguing. While Tom Cruise has more than proven to be a versatile actor, a number of the characters he plays , especially in action films, tend to have similar qualities. Most are edgy but well-meaning heroes looking to fight for the greater good.

With this, it would be great to see Tom Cruise sink his teeth into a more sinister role, especially in an action-heavy film. And under the direction of Christopher McQuarrie, it could really be something special.

Christopher McQuarrie didn’t give too many specifics when discussing this “un-Tom” character, but let’s hope that the project comes shortly after he and Cruise complete their work on those Mission: Impossible sequels.

Mission: Impossible 7 , Cruise and McQuarrie’s next cinematic venture, is set to hit theaters on November 19, 2021.

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Erik Swann is a Senior Content Producer at CinemaBlend. He began working with the publication in 2020 when he was hired as Weekend Editor. Today, he continues to write, edit and handle social media responsibilities over the weekend. On weekdays, he also writes TV and movie-related news and helps out with editing and social media as needed. He graduated from the University of Maryland, where he received a degree in Broadcast Journalism. After shifting into multi-platform journalism, he started working as a freelance writer and editor before joining CB. Covers superheroes, sci-fi, comedy, and almost anything else in film and TV. He eats more pizza than the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

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If Reacher season 3 happens, it has a unique chance to revisit the Tom Cruise controversy and see if his casting really was a mistake. Jack Reacher is the creation of British author Lee Child, with the hulking loner wandering across America and righting wrongs wherever he finds them. The Reacher books are unique for being mystery thrillers that feel like the hero of an '80s action movie has wandered into them. Two actors have played the role to date: Tom Cruise in a Jack Reacher movie duology , while Alan Ritchson took over for season 1 of Amazon's TV series.

The show adapted the first Reacher book Killing Floor and was greeted with great reviews and ratings. Season 2 was quickly announced, which will tackle the 1th novel Bad Luck And Trouble . Considering there are over 25 books, the series could conceivably run for a long time, but it has the unique chance to revisit the controversy that greeted the first film. Cruise's Jack Reacher adapted Child's One Shot , but the fact the star didn't resemble the 6 foot 5, muscle-bound giant of the books spoiled the experience for some fans. Reacher season 3 could re-adapt One Shot , to see how Ritchson's interpretation compares to Cruise's.

Related: Every Lee Child Cameo In The Jack Reacher Adaptations (Movies & TV)

Despite The Controversy, Cruise Was Great In Jack Reacher

One of the barriers to a movie happening at all was finding an actor with the physique of Reacher from the books. While the likes of Dwayne Johnson tested for Jack Reacher , it was decided to ditch the physical aspect and focus on casting a name actor who could portray the single-minded determination and intelligence of the character. In that goal, Cruise was a great choice, managing to make Reacher likeable despite his more intense, alienating traits.

Given his background, Cruise also pulled off the various fight scenes with aplomb, though even Child has since agreed that Reacher's size was part of his appeal. Seeing Cruise's Reacher threatening a group of thugs that he would easily dismantle them just lacked the appropriate menace. If Ritchson was playing that same scene, the mood would be totally different. Of course, Reacher is unlikely to tackle One Shot exactly because it would pull up comparisons between Cruise and Ritchson versions. It might also be seen as being needlessly petty, and imply that One Shot was being remade with the RIGHT Reacher. Cruise's Reacher casting might still be controversial , but he still turned in great work.

The Success Of Jack Reacher Allowed The Show To Happen

It's also worth noting that the success of the Jack Reacher films helped expand the character's fanbase. The books might have been bestsellers already, but having two successful films fronted by a major star only helped their visibility. The movies proved there was a big audience for the property too, and part of the excitement for Amazon's show was seeing how a new actor would perform as the former military policeman. Reacher season 3 re-adapting One Shot would be an intriguing concept - but viewers shouldn't expect it anytime soon.

Next: Reacher's TV Show Can Have The Perfect Tom Cruise Cameo (Just Not Yet)

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