Reacher Star Alan Ritchson Starred In A 2018 Zombie Movie That Flew Under Everyone's Radar

Alan Ritchson is known for playing the unstoppable action hero Jack Reacher, but his pre-"Reacher" filmography is well worth diving into, as it includes multiple overlooked gems. The 2018 horror comedy "Office Uprising" is one example. While the film isn't exactly an underseen masterpiece, it is worth a look for Ritchson fans as it showcases a side of the actor that we don't often get to see.

When you take a closer look at his career, Ritchson is remarkably prolific. Now that he's been catapulted to a new level of fame with his Prime Video series, we can surely expect to see him branching out into more areas, making his directorial debut, writing his own projects, and starring in more varied roles. Except, he's already done all of that. In fact, he did it all before "Reacher" debuted and started breaking Prime Video records.

Prior to "Reacher," Ritchson was the secret lead of a blockbuster fantasy movie. He also appeared in an overlooked MMA film called "Above the Shadows" and even made several appearances on "American Idol." What's more, Ritchson made his directorial debut in 2021 with "Dark Web: Cicada 3301," all of which is to say that his pre-"Reacher" canon is rich and varied. If none of that piques your interest, how about an overlooked zombie comedy that saw the actor at peak intensity?

Despite almost ruining his Jack Reacher audition, Alan Ritchson has come to perfectly embody the itinerant hero from the pages of Lee Child's popular book series. As the hulking former military policeman, he is a stoic, laconic bruiser who prefers to speak with his fists and never stays in one place for longer than he needs to. In "Office Uprising," Ritchson played the exact opposite as a corporate drone who imbibes an energy drink that turns him into a raging zombie.

If you're wondering why you've never heard of "Office Uprising," it's probably because the movie was released on something called Sony Crackle. That platform was renamed Crackle shortly after the film debuted, and it was shuttered altogether after its owner, Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, went bankrupt. So, yeah, not exactly the most prestigious platform on which to make your debut. That said, "Office Uprising" perhaps deserved a more high-profile release. At least Ritchson deserved a more prominent platform on which to showcase his ability to play crazy a little too convincingly.

"Office Uprising" is directed by Lin Oeding, a martial artist and stunt performer turned filmmaker who previously directed Jason Momoa in the 2018 action thriller "Braven." That action B-movie was a heck of a lot of fun, and "Office Uprising" is no different. Though it's a zombie movie, it's as funny as it is horrifying. The film follows Brenton Thwaites' office worker Desmond Brimble as he discovers an energy drink that's turning his colleagues at a corporate office into violent zombies. Ritchson, who starred alongside Thwaites in "Titans," plays Bob, the head of the advertising department, who downs a can of the contaminated drink and becomes part of the murderous hordes.

Alongside Brenton Thwaites and Alan Ritchson, "Office Uprising" also features Zachary Levi as Desmond Brimble's boss, Adam Nusbaum; Jane Levy — who played one of the best "Evil Dead" franchise characters — as his colleague and crush, Samantha; and Karan Soni as his friend, Mourad Haryana. Desmond, Samantha, and Haryana are the only ones with a chance of making it out alive as their colleagues turn into rabid zombies and their office block descends into violence and chaos. But first, they need to find out what the heck is in the drink that caused all this trouble to begin.

Ritchson is great in his role as the tweaked-out head of a corporate department. The acting in this film isn't always great, but it's interesting to see the less-than-impressive performances alongside Ritchson's, which is about as committed as they come. At one point, a stand-off between Ritchson and Levi leads to a full-on freak-out from the former, who's a little too good in that moment and absolutely nothing like his taciturn "Reacher" counterpart.

"Office Uprising" doesn't have a critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, but the "Popcornmeter" sits at a healthy 82%. Meanwhile, the Letterboxd crowd seems to like the film well enough, with users describing it as "fun" and "clever," though many admit to simply wanting to watch Brandon Thwaites for 88 minutes. If you're a Ritchson fan, the film is definitely fun. Otherwise, it's not exactly one of the greatest zombie movies ever made, but it's an interesting one nonetheless. You can find the film on several rental platforms, including Apple TV and Fandango.