Alan Ritchson Almost Ruined His Reacher Audition With One Mistake
Three seasons in, Alan Ritchson appears in control as a wandering do-gooder "Reacher" to the point that even author Lee Child has admitted to leaving him alone with the character. However, his first encounter with "Reacher" did need some reviewing. Appearing on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon," the hero of Prime Video's hit show, which follows his one-man army confronting bad guys, revealed that the tension during his first audition was so high that the casting directors could hear it through the audio.
The pressure was on to get the part with other actors already promised the role before Ritchson tried out. Despite using top-level equipment for a video call audition, Ritchson hit a snag when producer Don Granger provided feedback about some feedback.
"He goes, 'Yeah, um, that was a little distracting. Did you guys hear, it sounded like drums or something?' And Nick Santora, the showrunner was like, 'Yeah, it almost sounded like a heartbeat to me. It was all I could hear. Like, we need to do it again." It was at that moment that Ritchson realized the issue. "They go, 'are you wearing a microphone?' I was that nervous my heart was pounding so hard that it distracted the entire screen test."
Thankfully, with some quick adjustments and a little mic yanking, Ritchson managed to go another round and secure the role. Now it's a part no Jack Reacher fan can imagine anyone else having, and it's particularly fitting for Ritchson, who had the hero gig down before he even got the part.
Ritchson was a hero before he even became Reacher
Even though audio issues almost put him at risk of missing out on Reacher, Alan Ritchson felt part of the character before he even nabbed the role. "He and I have a lot of similarities," Ritchson explained. "Reacher eats a lot, but I also love justice," the actor confessed, which is even more fitting given his keen enthusiasm for the role of Batman. "I'm not going to wait for the clumsy, fickle justice system to take care of things for us. I'll do it myself."
It was here that Ritchson reminisced with Fallon about a date with his wife in Old Montreal. The Reacher-to-be witnessed a thief stealing from a car and decided to pursue the assailant, much to his wife's dismay. From there, a foot chase ensued, and even after narrowing the gap and the criminal giving up the goods, Ritchson was in full Reacher mode and didn't give up.
"So he just starts running, and I'm side by side with him now because I'm pretty fast. He was fast, but I was faster," Ritchson admitted. "I gently take him like a shot put, like a discus and I twirl him right into the building and he just slides down like a cartoon character." It turned out that, according to the French police, "this guy was like the most prolific car burglar in Old Montreal, and we finally got him." All in a day's work for Reacher.