The Untold Truth Of Alan Ritchson
Alan Ritchson is best known for playing the roaming former U.S. Army military policeman Jack Reacher in the Amazon series "Reacher." Based on the books by British author Lee Child, the critically acclaimed show has thrust Ritchson into the spotlight, but the jacked actor has actually been around for a while now. After appearing as Gloss in "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" and as Agent Aimes in the "Fast & Furious" franchise, Ritchson gradually made a name for himself in Hollywood, though he has humble beginnings in the industry.
Ritchson's journey in the acting business began with a low-budget horror film and a guest role in the hit DC series "Smallville." In 2010, he joined up with former "Smallville" star Sam Jones III for the college football sitcom "Blue Mountain State," playing linebacker Kevin "Thad" Castle. It was canceled after three seasons, but Ritchson returned to the role in 2016 for the movie "The Rise of Thadland," which continued Thad's story. This pushed Ritchson into the feature film world, and he didn't look back.
If you've followed his career then you're likely already aware of his resume, but there's a lot that even big fans might not know about the man behind the new and improved Jack Reacher. This is the untold truth of Alan Ritchson.
Alan Ritchson has played multiple comic book superheroes
During his time on "Smallville," Alan Ritchson became the first actor to bring Aquaman to life in live-action. He debuted as Arthur "A.C." Curry opposite Tom Welling's Clark Kent in the Season 5 episode "Aqua" and reprised the role on three occasions, coming back for episodes in Season 6, Season 8, and Season 10. What "Smallville" fans may not realize is that Ritchson even voiced Aquaman in an uncredited cameo for the animated feature "Justice League: The New Frontier." But what other comic book characters has he portrayed?
In 2014, Ritchson played Raphael in the live-action "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" film, which turned out to be an awful experience. During an interview with Collider, he revealed that the hours were grueling and that producers refused to let him do any press, despite assurances that the role would help launch his film career. He was contractually obliged to return for a further two films, but when the 2016 sequel flopped, he was let off the hook.
A few years later, Ritchson was cast as Hank Hall (aka Hawk) in the DC series "Titans." He initially turned the role down because he'd already "done the DC thing," but DC's Geoff Johns convinced him to come aboard. "He pitched me [the character] and I was like, 'Okay. I'm in,'" Ritchson told ShowBizJunkies. Nowadays, Ritchson is gunning to play Batman, even admitting that the Dark Knight is "cooler" than Reacher. "Batman has got like a cave, and Reacher doesn't even have a house. He's got a toothbrush," the actor told Fortress of Solitude.
Alan Ritchson nearly starred in a Smallville spin-off
Alan Ritchson's debut on "Smallville" went down so well with viewers that producers immediately began thinking about a spin-off. Unfortunately, the project got put on the backburner when UPN and the WB merged to form the CW. The new bosses weren't keen on giving the still relatively unknown actor his own show, so Justin Hartley — who had made a name for himself on the NBC soap opera "Passions" — got the part instead. When Ritchson was asked if he was upset about being replaced in the pilot (which ultimately went nowhere), he said that the whole experience taught him a valuable lesson about Hollywood.
"People don't know what I went through with that," Ritchson told fellow "Smallville" star Michael Rosenbaum on the "Inside of You" podcast. "I learned the best lesson I could early on, to hold loosely to this stuff because nothing is guaranteed and nothing is owed to me, and if I hadn't learned that lesson early, I would've been an entitled a**hole." It all worked out in the end — when the proposed "Aquaman" show fell apart, Hartley was brought onto "Smallville" as Oliver Queen (aka the Green Arrow) and this opened the door for Ritchson to return as Aquaman. Hartley and Ritchson then appeared side by side in the Season 5 team-up episode "Justice," which is regularly ranked among the best "Smallville" episodes ever.
Alan Ritchson charmed Paula Abdul on American Idol
Alan Ritchson had a couple of different jobs before he made it as an actor. For a time he made a living as an underwear model and he also worked for the likes of Abercrombie & Fitch, appearing in their catalogs. Modeling was never his goal, but it helped pay the bills. "When I dropped out [of college], I was offered a modeling contract, and it was just an opportunity that I took," Ritchson told Da Man in 2013. "I pursued it for a few years and it ended up taking me to L.A., where I saw that these models were also doing other things: commercials or auditioning for TV." He decided to try and make it as an entertainment himself, and that's what led him to "American Idol."
Ritchson tried out for the show in its second season but was unsuccessful, with judges Randy Jackson and Simon Cowell voting "no." However, he auditioned again the following year and got a rare "yes" from all three judges. He made a particular impression on Paula Abdul, who was apparently instantly infatuated with the rising star. It didn't quite work out for the young would-be-singer, who failed to make it past the Hollywood round. Ritchson, who has since claimed that he was given a bad edit on the show, continued to sing at charity events and even on camera in shows like "Titans," reminding us that music (which is what he initially went to college for) is truly his first artistic love.
Alan Ritchson was the character model for Beowulf
In 2007, Robert Zemeckis released his CGI spectacular "Beowulf," a Nail Gaiman-penned adaptation of the original epic poem starring Ray Winstone in the titular role. Well, sort of. As it turns out, Zemeckis used Alan Ritchson as the character model for Beowulf, though he decided against using the actor's face or voice. "What you were looking at on the screen, that was me. I didn't get to do the voice, though," Ritchson told Media Mikes in 2010. He added that he was "fresh into L.A." at the time, and, while he would have jumped at the opportunity to voice the character, he didn't have any complaints. "You have someone like Ray Winstone to come in and voice it, which is great."
The film received mixed reviews from critics and viewers. Some found the animation spellbinding, while other saw it as an unwelcome distraction. "The film strives for mythological depth and epic breadth, but it's hard to get below the flat, shallow gloss over every surface," the AV Club said in its review. One of the major problems the film faced is that Ray Winstone looks nothing like the guy he's voicing, and everyone knows that. It's something Ritchson addressed during his Media Mikes interview, saying, "The main difficulty for them is that he was the only actor voicing the part who didn't look anything like their character."
Alan Ritchson and his wife are high school sweethearts
Alan Ritchson and his wife Catherine have been married for nearly two decades, which is impressive by Hollywood standards. The pair met back when they were in high school, the actor revealed during an appearance on Today. "Can we keep this between us? It was in ballet," the "Reacher" star said. Catherine, who goes by "Cat," would bring her future husband cookies, which he admitted made him fall in love very quickly. They got married in 2006, not long after Ritchson dove into the acting business via "Smallville." "Despite the precarious highs and the suffocating lows, [we're] still holding hands," Ritchson said in an Instagram post marking their 15th wedding anniversary in 2021.
In addition to a long-lasting love for one another, Cat is her husband's biggest fan. She often appears with him at premieres and events, and she even makes Ritchson-related memes that she posts on her Instagram. "To say 'I'm so proud of him' won't ever grasp it," she said while promoting her husband's latest (and biggest) project "Reacher," also via Instagram. "I hope you love this series as much as Alan loved making it. Because my goodness did he put his all into making it." The Ritchson family is bigger than just the two of them, though — they have three sons together.
Alan Ritchson's Christian faith is a major part of his life
Alan Ritchson is a Christian and the actor openly displays his faith, both in interviews and on social media. "I pray all the time that God interfere with my life in a way that aligns the path that I walk with his will," he said in a response to a viral video calling out Christians for believing that God answers their prayers. The actor has also voiced his support for Christian films, which he views as a good way of introducing people to Jesus. "I want to be a part of stories like that," he said (via Christian Headlines). "If that's where the pulpit is for people who wouldn't normally step foot in a church, then that's still a great way to have that conversation."
In 2022, Ritchson launched a YouTube channel called InstaChurch, hoping to reach those who might not be comfortable in a formal church setting. On his channel, Ritchson relates Bible passages to the events going on in his everyday life and aims to get to the deeper root of larger societal and personal issues. In January 2024, he posted a video response to people who have been telling him that he shouldn't be playing a violent character like Jack Reacher because he's a Christian. "It's funny to me how a lot of people criticize me — supposed Christians especially — for playing Reacher, as if the only TV that should exist is seeing people silently folding their hands in the pew of a church," he said. "I mean, what kind of stories are we supposed to tell?"
The Ritchson family lives on the road
Growing up, Alan Ritchson lived all over the United States. He was born in Grand Forks, North Dakota, but the family didn't stay there long. After living in Illinois for a spell, they eventually settled in Niceville, Florida, which is located on the panhandle. Speaking to Netscape Celebrity, he revealed that his father — who was a U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sergeant at the time, hence all the moving around — actually gave him a say in the matter when it came to moving. "Early on, we were at an Air Force Base near Champagne, Illinois," he said. "Then we had the choice of moving to California or Florida. We had a family meeting about it, and my parents said, 'Would you rather go out where there are earthquakes and the desert, or Niceville?'"
Of course, he would eventually end up in California for the sake of his acting career. However, Ritchson still lives a somewhat nomadic lifestyle, as he revealed via The Wall Street Journal in December 2023. "Today, my wife, Cat, and I live with our three boys on the road," Ritchson said. "Being away from my family for long stretches on location was hard on them and me. So Cat and I recently sold our Florida house and we now live in Airbnbs and hotels while I'm on set. Cat home-schools the boys, who are 11, 9 and 7." Just like Jack Reacher, Ritchson has opted to be something of a drifter. However, unlike Reacher, he's not a lone wolf — he has his loving family to return to at the end of the working day.
Playing Jack Reacher takes a toll on Alan Ritchson's body
Bulking up to play the titular character in "Reacher" nearly destroyed Alan Ritchson's body, the actor has revealed. While he has previously admitted that working out for a role can be a full-time job, for Ritchson, it became more intense than even that. "I went from 205lb to 235lb in eight months," the actor told GQ in January 2024. "But I didn't take steroids, I didn't take testosterone." Ritchson went on to reveal that he all but wrecked his body while trying to maintain the physique of Jack Reacher. After finishing the first season, he needed surgery because he "couldn't breathe well." After a blood panel, it was discovered that he had basically no testosterone left in his system due to overtraining.
"My doctor was like, 'You need to be on testosterone,'" he explained. "[Testosterone therapy] was a real gift because now I'm able to easily maintain that size." For Season 2, the workouts weren't nearly as intense (each lasting only 30 minutes a day), and the extra testosterone helped him get through without breaking anything in the process. "For me, it's a long game," Ritchson told Men's Health. "I want to do 'Reacher' for 15 years... I don't want to have to have surgery after every season, and testosterone helps. I'm a big advocate of it, especially for people in their forties or above."
Alan Ritchson has been open about having bipolar disorder
Mental health issues can become big roadblocks when it comes to living a fulfilling life, and celebrities certainly aren't immune to them. Alan Ritchson has opened up about his own struggles with mental health, particularly being diagnosed with bipolar disorder. "Nobody ever tells you that when you get to the top, there's nothing there," the actor said on the "Inside of You" podcast. After an existential crisis brought on by the discovery that capitalistic success doesn't bring happiness, Ritchson hit rock bottom. He immediately contacted a therapist to talk about his mental and emotional state, and he was told that he was bipolar. Ritchson initially fought the diagnosis, not wanting to be put into "a box," as he put it.
Eventually, the actor came around and realized that he didn't have to handle what he was going through alone. "You need help from a team of people, you need medication," Ritchson noted on a later episode of "Inside of You," adding, "It's really hard for people, and it's really hard for my family." Ritchson went on to say that he "would give anything to not be bipolar" because of how difficult it is to live with, but he tries to look on the bright side. "It's also the fuel to what I do in my craft," he explained. "I can tap into such wide ranging emotions so deeply and so authentically so fast, it's what makes things like 'Reacher' so interesting to watch. It's a blessing and a massive f***ing curse."
Alan Ritchson co-wrote and directed his own movie
In addition to being an actor, model, and musician, Alan Ritchson is also a writer and producer. He served in both of those capacities on the "Blue Mountain State" spin-off film "The Rise of Thadland" in 2016, and he did so again for the 2021 action-comedy "Dark Web: Cicada 3301," based on the internet phenomenon of the same name. This time around, Ritchson went one step further and also directed the movie. It follows a hacker (Jack Kesy) who is co-opted into Cicada's dark and deadly game while also dealing with members of the National Security Agency, including Ritchson's own Agent Carver.
The film reunited Ritchson with "Titans" co-star Conor Leslie, but that alone wasn't enough to pique the interest of viewers. "Dark Web: Cicada 3301" got lukewarm write-ups from the critics who actually saw it — there's not even enough reviews to generate a Rotten Tomatoes score — and poor audience ratings. Josh Bell of Crooked Marquee noted that "Ritchson awkwardly mixes in lots of questionable vulgar humor with his thriller storyline." In any case, the lackluster response hasn't stopped Ritchson from working on his next directorial project, a horror film titled "Bad Seeds of Loving Spring." Ritchson is set to star, and hopefully in a role more interesting than the goofy NSA agent he played in his last picture.
Alan Ritchson is a huge Jack Reacher fan
It's always better for a major motion picture or television series when those involved genuinely like the source material. Thankfully for fans of the Lee Child series of novels upon which it's based, "Reacher" star Alan Ritchson is all-in. "I'm a fan," the star admitted to Empire in 2022. "I've kind of clung to every word [Child has] written, and even I feel like the myth of who Reacher is has grown so large that there really is no human alive that can fill those shoes." With Child approving of Amazon's take on the character, Ritchson has been free to dive even deeper into the world of Jack Reacher and play with what makes the source material so great.
Though Ritchson has admitted that he hadn't read the Jack Reacher books prior to working on the show, he's been sure to catch up since landing the part. "I'm glad I did, because I had a whole different understanding of who this guy was and why this is such an international hit," Ritchson said, revealing that he devoured every single installment (there were 24 books at the time and more have been released since) before the first day of shooting. "By the time we were filming, I was such a huge fan. I was so in love with Reacher. I just was like, I have to get this right." Like every other fan, Ritchson has his own opinions on which Jack Reacher novels the show should adapt next.