- Alan Ritchson said he almost played Thor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
- He said the “Reacher” star lost out to Chris Hemsworth because he didn’t take acting seriously.
- Ritchson said he would have gotten the role if he looked like the Asgardian god.
Reacher star Alan Ritchson said he almost played Thor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but lost out to Chris Hemsworth because he didn’t take acting seriously.
In 2022, Ritchson made his debut as Jack Reacher in the Amazon series based on the popular novel Reacher by author Lee Child. The actor has previously appeared on shows such as Smallville, Blue Mountain State, and Titans, but his role as a former military investigator propelled his fame to new heights.
But if Ritchson had taken his audition for Marvel’s Thor more seriously, he might have found fame sooner.
In Men’s Health’s March-April cover story, Ritchson recalled his involvement with the MCU in 2011’s Thor. He said he thought he would get the role simply because of his resemblance to the Asgardian god.
“I didn’t take it seriously,” Ritchson said. “I thought, ‘If I looked like that guy, I’d be cast in that role, and no one would care about acting.'”
As fans already know, the role went to Hemsworth, who went on to wield the hero’s iconic hammer in four separate “Thor” movies and four “Avengers” movies.
Ritchson said Marvel’s casting team told his agent that he had a chance to play the role, but that he lacked the “skills” to pull it off.
Over the next decade, Ritchson took acting classes and appeared in films such as The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, New Girl, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
But it wasn’t until Reacher arrived on Amazon in 2022 that Ritchson’s career really started to take off. He said in 2022 that he “got about 50 offers the weekend after ‘Reacher’ Season 1 started,” adding, “I thought my life had changed.”
The first season impressed viewers and critics alike, earning a score of 92% on Rotten Tomatoes, with many praising the actors’ performances.
He also told Men’s Health that he refuses to use a stunt coordinator for action scenes. “I was like, ‘I’m doing a stunt.’ It was a manic act.”
Ritchson reprized the role in Season 2 of Reacher, which exceeded expectations and received a 98% rating on review sites.
So it’s no surprise that Reacher Season 3 is already in production. And it will probably be a long time before we see this unstoppable one-man girlfriend army back on our screens.
