Amazon Prime Video’s “Reacher” is taking the streaming world by storm, having already been renewed for a second season. So of course CinemaBlend’s Managing Editor Sean O’Connell had to gather the stars of the hit show, including Alan Ritchson, Malcolm Goodwin, Willa Fitzgerald, and the “Jack Reacher” author himself, Lee Child, to discuss all things “Reacher” … including a few of their favorite spoilers.
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00:00 - Alan, my God, you guys did it.
00:02 You did it, I can't believe it.
00:03 - Oh wow, thank you.
00:04 Thank you, nice to talk to you.
00:05 - I'm curious if there was an audition process
00:07 or if the team just looked at you and said,
00:09 yep, there he is.
00:09 (laughing)
00:10 - I wish, I wish you were a part of the process.
00:12 That would have made it a lot easier.
00:14 - Jack Reacher, a deceased retired army.
00:17 - Bronze star, silver star, and a purple heart.
00:21 - My God, name is a guy like that doing a Margrave.
00:24 - You're gonna kill a whole lot of people, aren't you?
00:26 - Already started.
00:27 (upbeat music)
00:30 - Yeah, no, it was an arduous one and for good reason.
00:32 I mean, this is, the scope is not lost on me
00:35 for what this is.
00:36 I mean, this franchise has crossed
00:39 virtually all international borders.
00:42 Hundreds of millions of books.
00:44 This is huge and anybody would be happy
00:48 and lucky to play Reacher, you know?
00:51 So yeah, it was a very competitive process
00:54 and I'm eternally grateful that I ended up with the part.
00:57 - My approach to that was I really thought about
00:59 what do I need?
01:00 You know, what do we need out of this actor?
01:02 And it all boiled down essentially
01:05 to the first two seconds of the screen test.
01:08 I needed a guy who would step on the screen,
01:12 not do anything, not say anything,
01:15 but somehow be Jack Reacher.
01:17 And that's what you need.
01:18 You need to look at this guy
01:20 and you need to think instinctively in that first blink.
01:23 You need to think, if I'm a good guy,
01:26 he's gonna be my friend.
01:28 If I'm a bad guy, he's gonna be my worst nightmare.
01:31 And the point is, it's not me that decides,
01:33 it's him that decides.
01:34 And that had to be done in a look and a mood
01:38 and a stance instantaneously in that first couple of seconds.
01:43 So that's what happened.
01:45 He stepped on the screen and I knew, that's the guy.
01:49 - What if I'm thinking I'm sitting across from a man
01:51 who doesn't mind killing and who has the knowledge
01:53 and training to murder someone and cover it up?
01:57 You'd be right, but not this murder.
02:00 - Alan, there's an aspect of Reacher
02:02 that is hard to translate to the screen,
02:04 which is how do you make him sound
02:06 like the smartest person in the room,
02:08 but not so arrogant that the audience kind of turns on him?
02:12 It works on the page and you do it really well on the show.
02:15 - Oh, thank you.
02:16 Yeah, well, I think there's an element of fun
02:19 that Reacher has living life.
02:22 I mean, he's not somebody who's threatened by anybody else.
02:27 He's confident and self-assured.
02:29 And most times he fairly is the smartest guy in the room.
02:33 And I think that can make it kind of fun
02:37 to let people think whatever they want.
02:39 Most people think that they are the smartest person
02:42 in the room or they have something on you
02:44 or they've got you beat.
02:45 And when you know that's not the case,
02:47 it makes kind of a fun cat and mouse game.
02:49 So I think finding that balance was where I tried to keep it.
02:52 - How difficult is it for you to establish chemistry
02:55 when your scene partner is by design a brick wall
02:58 or a blank slate like Reacher is?
03:00 - You know, the chemistry kind of happened immediately.
03:04 It happened right away.
03:04 It happened in rehearsals.
03:06 Alan and I, they had brought us all in to do a rehearsal
03:12 and about maybe about three to four weeks out
03:15 before shooting.
03:16 And we have the scripts in front of us and he starts,
03:21 he just pushes the script array, starts to read,
03:23 doesn't need the script.
03:24 And so I pushed my script away.
03:26 I didn't need the script either.
03:27 And so we just both decided without talking
03:30 to get off book that much time ahead
03:35 and started riffing in the rehearsals
03:38 and that energy translated instantly on set.
03:41 So it was fun.
03:42 I mean, he's just an available actor
03:45 and wants to, you know, he brings his A game
03:49 and we just felt like we wanted to meet him there.
03:51 And so it was fun.
03:53 It was great.
03:54 It was an honor.
03:55 It was a pleasure.
03:56 It was awesome.
03:57 - When that person is Alan, it's very easy.
04:00 I think that even from our chemistry test,
04:05 which was over Zoom, so not ideal circumstances
04:10 to really have chemistry with anyone,
04:12 we kind of managed to find chemistry there.
04:15 And I think it was a really kind of good sign
04:19 that we weren't gonna have a hard time.
04:20 And once we actually got to meet each other
04:22 and work together on set,
04:24 I mean, he's a very easy person to get along with.
04:26 He's incredibly positive as a human being.
04:29 And we also just really enjoyed kind of like
04:33 shooting the shit and like having fun together.
04:35 And I think that all of that translated really beautifully
04:40 into like our onscreen chemistry as Roscoe and Reacher
04:43 because we already had a foundation there
04:45 of liking each other.
04:48 And I think also the characters of Roscoe and Reacher
04:53 are written really well as these kind of almost foils
04:56 who are both kind of hard-headed in the same way.
05:01 And that gives, you know, he may be a brick wall,
05:04 but Roscoe also has an opinion
05:06 that she's really gonna stick to.
05:08 And so, you know, when you're throwing a ball
05:10 against a brick wall, it still comes back.
05:13 - It's crazy.
05:15 - You know, like it was a really fun dynamic
05:19 to play with actually.
05:20 - I lack the ability to tolerate horse shit.
05:25 - I would love for you to keep going on that
05:26 because I want everybody to know,
05:28 and I wanna know how important it is to you
05:29 that Roscoe was not this sidekick character
05:32 or worse, a damsel in distress.
05:34 And I attribute a lot of that to Lee Childs' writing
05:36 and characterization,
05:37 but how important was that to you when you took her on?
05:39 - Yeah, I mean, I think that she would be offended
05:41 to even hear those words.
05:44 Yeah, no, I mean, I, from the first read
05:49 of the pilot script, it was really clear to me
05:51 that Roscoe was a spitfire.
05:55 She had an opinion.
05:56 She was very self-assured,
05:58 and she didn't need anything from anyone else.
06:00 And that's a really exciting character to get to play.
06:04 And I think that had she been written any other way,
06:08 I probably wouldn't have been as interested in playing her.
06:12 And so it was just, it was very lucky for me
06:15 that she was written that way.
06:18 And, you know, reading her scenes on the page,
06:23 I just wanted to say them out loud.
06:25 And I think that that's always kind of a good indication
06:28 that you're playing in a zone that you want to be.
06:32 - I don't need you looking out for me.
06:32 I'm a fucking cop.
06:33 That's a girl who needs your protection.
06:35 - Clearly.
06:36 - Well, what are some other aspects of Finley though
06:37 that are kind of like rooted in Lee Childs'
06:41 really colorful characterization
06:43 that you enjoyed sort of exploring from episode to episode?
06:46 - Yeah, it was really just his backstory.
06:50 His backstory kind of informs who he is
06:52 and why he is the way he is.
06:55 And, you know, while there could have been temptations
06:58 to kind of drift away from that
07:00 because kind of getting caught up in a scene or a moment,
07:04 those are Finley's roots,
07:06 and never forgetting that.
07:08 It's a little different in the series,
07:11 slightly different than what's in the book,
07:14 but I think the fans would,
07:15 fans of the book would appreciate that slight shift
07:19 of his backstory.
07:21 - Is that why you left Boston?
07:22 - You try living in a city where every place you look
07:26 is a memory of the love of your life.
07:30 - So what's it like seeing "Margrave"
07:31 come to life on screen?
07:34 - It was amazing, you know,
07:36 and that is one of the biggest contrasts
07:38 between being a writer and making TV,
07:40 because of course I sit there at a table
07:42 and I just say, "There's this town," you know?
07:45 And they had to build it.
07:46 They built the whole place,
07:48 and an immense, immense undertaking.
07:51 You know, literally they built the town.
07:53 And so that was both a great set, obviously,
07:58 but also a massive commitment,
08:00 a statement of intent that I found incredibly reassuring.
08:05 You know, they were really gonna do this,
08:07 and they were gonna do it right.
08:09 - You okay, Richard?
08:11 - Just thinking maybe my brother told me
08:15 about "Blind Blake" for a reason.
08:17 Thinking I'm supposed to do something about it.
08:20 - Like what?
08:22 - I guess I'll find everybody responsible
08:26 and kill every last one of them.
08:29 (upbeat music)
08:35 - To that end, do you have a favorite line of dialogue
08:38 or even a scene, a conversation scene
08:40 that you really relished when you saw it on the page?
08:42 You're like, "I can't wait to play that."
08:44 - Yes, there was a scene with Malcolm Goodwin,
08:51 who plays Oscar Finlay,
08:54 and it was so brilliantly put together.
08:59 It just exceeded all my expectations.
09:02 And I just still remember enjoying being in that scene
09:06 with him and watching his work.
09:08 - It didn't involve 38 special, did it?
09:10 - There's a very good chance.
09:13 There's a very good chance.
09:14 (laughing)
09:15 - No, you're a blues guy, Richard, but come on.
09:17 You gotta feel this.
09:19 - Wow.
09:22 - Apparently I'm the only person who didn't know that song.
09:27 I didn't know the song,
09:30 but I learned it, obviously.
09:31 I was like, "Let me just learn it."
09:34 But yeah, that was Nick.
09:35 That was Nick Santoro all the way.
09:38 I think I heard it on Guitar Hero or something like that,
09:41 but it was, but yeah, I'm a fan now.
09:44 Let's say it that way.
09:45 I'll put it that way.
09:45 I'm a fan now.
09:47 - It's one of my most favorite interactions
09:48 of when he's like, "You have to groove to this."
09:50 And Richard's just like, "No."
09:51 - No, no, no.
09:52 Finlay's music taste, I know.
09:56 - Do you have a favorite line of dialogue that Finlay had?
10:00 Something that when you read it,
10:02 you just knew you were gonna relish your delivery of it.
10:04 - You know what?
10:05 It was the "Carry On My Wayward Son."
10:07 That scene, when he's looking for a CD
10:13 and he thinks this is the best song ever.
10:16 - What are you doing?
10:18 - I just say, "My guys don't get that, do they?"
10:22 Can rock out.
10:23 - His musical tastes are really--
10:28 - His musical taste, I like that.
10:31 I thought that was funny.
10:32 There was a lot of, yeah, we broke quite a few times in that.
10:37 Yeah, it was probably that.
10:40 I think a lot of the things, you know,
10:42 obviously there's so many comebacks to "Reacher,"
10:46 but some of the music stuff,
10:48 anything dealing with Finlay's love for classic rock
10:52 and "Reacher's" just looking at this guy like,
10:53 "How do you like Kansas?
10:55 "How does this fit?"
10:58 But somehow it does.
11:00 Somehow it works.
11:01 And "Reacher" kind of, you know,
11:03 jabbing at him about that up close.
11:06 - Oh man.
11:08 I mean, there's so many great one-liners
11:10 and I just wish I could remember more of them.
11:13 I mean, even in that first scene with "Reacher"
11:18 in the jail cell, which I honestly should be able
11:22 to remember word for word right now
11:23 because I've done it so many times,
11:26 but obviously as you're asking me this,
11:28 I'm not gonna be able to just like whip out a line.
11:30 But I mean, there are so many just like
11:32 quippy back and forth.
11:34 - Assumed you liked it black.
11:35 - How'd you figure?
11:37 - Seemed like a no-nonsense guy.
11:39 Pretty much a nonsense.
11:40 - And yet I think one of my favorite scenes
11:42 between you two is the Patsy Cline dancing song
11:44 in the shit-kicker bar. - Yeah, I know.
11:46 Isn't that a good, I mean, it's not a twist off.
11:49 Oh, that's a great one-liner.
11:51 You know when Alan opens the beer thing in his arm?
11:55 - Oh yeah, yeah. - So he brought that in.
11:56 He was like, "I wanna open it in my arm."
11:58 And I was like, "You're insane."
11:59 He also fully cut the inside of his arm
12:02 by the end of that day of shooting.
12:04 And I was like, "Well, if you're gonna do that,
12:05 "then you know what I'm gonna do?
12:06 "I'm gonna smack it off on the edge of the table."
12:09 'Cause it wasn't written like that.
12:10 I basically pitched it to Nick
12:13 and he was like, "That's great, do it."
12:14 And so then it just became like this kind of like
12:17 machismo off between Roscoe and Reacher.
12:21 And it was a really fun scene to shoot.
12:23 And it was a great sort of like flirtatious preamble
12:27 with like out wanting to flirt with each other
12:30 for like the Patsy Cline stuff, which is so pretty.
12:35 - Anytime I've tried to open a bottle that way on a table,
12:38 it's just exploded all over me, so.
12:40 - They were pre-opened.
12:41 (laughing)
12:43 - Ah, the magic of Hollywood.
12:45 - They don't let you do that in real life on set.
12:48 They're too worried they're gonna have to take you
12:49 to the emergency room.
12:50 (laughing)
12:52 They're like, "We can't be sending someone
12:54 "to the emergency room with glass cuts."
12:56 - Sorry, ceramic.
12:59 - So I'm not ashamed to say that I've read all the books
13:04 and they've changed the way that I assess situations.
13:07 - Oh yeah.
13:08 - I look into rooms and I read people differently
13:10 and I look for exits.
13:12 I mean, since being in his skin,
13:14 has it changed the way that you sort of
13:15 approach your day to day?
13:17 - Yeah, I definitely find myself sitting with my back
13:19 against a wall in the corner a lot more often.
13:22 People think I'm antisocial now.
13:24 Yeah, no, it is fun.
13:26 It's funny, Don Granger, who's been a part of this
13:28 for a long time, said the same thing.
13:30 He's like, "I get so wrapped up in these books.
13:32 "I find myself in restaurants eyeing people
13:34 "and trying to remember all the things that I'm seeing."
13:36 And it's hard not to, you know, it rubs off on you.
13:39 You know, you become a bit of a detective in your own life.
13:41 And I, you know, I find myself doing the same thing.
13:45 - I also find myself seeking out diners
13:48 whenever I'm traveling.
13:48 - Oh yeah, yeah.
13:50 A lot of pancakes and scrambled eggs on my plate.
13:52 - Lee Child writes a great diner scene.
13:55 - He does, he does.
13:56 - I, yeah, I love that diner, yeah.
13:58 And if you, as a little insider thing,
14:02 if you watch in the final episode,
14:04 there's a particular customer in that diner
14:07 that you might recognize.
14:09 - We were in a set that was perfect
14:10 for this interaction to happen.
14:13 And I remember asking Don Granger,
14:15 who's been a partner with Lee for many years
14:18 on this franchise,
14:20 if I thought that Lee would be up for it,
14:24 you know, that I wanted him to be in the scene.
14:27 And he goes, "Yeah, sure, let me go ask him."
14:29 And so he goes, "Oh, he loved the idea.
14:31 "He's gonna do it."
14:31 And I was like, "No way, my hero,
14:33 "my hero is gonna be in the scene with me.
14:35 "He wants to do this."
14:36 And our paths do cross.
14:38 - Oh, excuse me.
14:39 Sorry.
14:41 - What is a life hack that you now own
14:44 because you've worked on Reacher?
14:45 'Cause mine involves toothpicks and a hotel door.
14:48 - Oh my God.
14:50 Can we talk about that?
14:51 We talked about that so much.
14:53 We were like, "How on earth would this work?"
14:55 And basically what was eventually explained to us
14:58 is that it just slows them down, like a half a second.
15:02 Like it's just to give Reacher enough time
15:04 to react that extra half a second.
15:07 'Cause we were like, "This wouldn't work."
15:10 So if you're trying to lock a door,
15:12 don't lock it with toothpicks.
15:13 It's not gonna work.
15:14 - Even when he moved the bed, he's like,
15:16 "I'll sleep with your head where it's expected to be."
15:19 - I know, I know.
15:20 Don't put your head where you should be sleeping.
15:21 I mean, walk into my bedroom.
15:23 My bed's all over the place.
15:25 Just kidding.
15:26 - My life hack is,
15:27 I learned how to fight with elbows
15:30 and the back of my head.
15:31 So if I ever need to punch somebody
15:34 with the back of my head, I actually know how to do that.
15:36 And that's a very dangerous move.
15:39 So no, I think,
15:42 I've been a fighter for a long time
15:44 and I've put it to use in a lot of different shows
15:48 and films, but this was a whole different style of fighting
15:51 and having that in the toolkits of fun.
15:55 - Yeah, mine's involves,
15:59 if you can't use the front door,
16:01 there's another way to make an exit.
16:03 - That's a really...
16:04 (laughing)
16:06 - If you can't use a window,
16:09 you can't use the door,
16:11 what do you do?
16:12 (laughing)
16:13 Reach in those.
16:14 - Ever seen a Kool-Aid commercial?
16:15 - Oh, you gotta be kidding me.
16:17 - I hope they do make a move, especially this one.
16:20 (gun firing)
16:21 - I'll get you out of here on this last one.
16:23 If you were able to pick a book for season two,
16:25 do you have one in mind?
16:26 - I should be so lucky to have a say in that,
16:29 but I would wanna go to "Die Trying."
16:32 I mean, I would just keep going in order.
16:33 As I read, I read them all sequentially.
16:36 And although they bounce back and forth in time,
16:40 as far as the story is concerned,
16:43 each book got better than the last,
16:44 but I just, I loved "Die Trying,"
16:46 and I'd love to see that one made someday.
16:49 - Well, you know, I'm not superstitious
16:51 about the next season or anything like that,
16:54 but what I've learned in showbiz all my life,
16:56 it is not my decision, it's not Amazon's decision,
16:59 it is nobody's decision except the viewer.
17:02 And yeah, if the viewer wants more, they'll get more.
17:05 And yeah, I would say there's 25 more books,
17:08 so let's do 25 more seasons until I'm a very old man.
17:13 - So be smart, don't break the law,
17:15 and promise me you won't end up in another holding cell.
17:18 - No.
17:19 (upbeat music)
17:21 [BLANK_AUDIO]