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Lee Child says Jack Reacher is heading to TV with a taller star than Tom Cruise

Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher (Credit: Paramount)
Tom Cruise as Jack Reacher (Credit: Paramount)

Lee Child, the British writer behind the Jack Reacher novels, has said that he’s planning to reboot the series by taking it to streaming TV.

Tom Cruise has played the former military policeman-turned-crime-fighting drifter in two movies, 2012’s Jack Reacher, and then again in 2016’s Jack Reacher: Never Go Back.

But both movies came in for criticism for casting Cruise in the role.

In the books, Child’s hero is notably something of an intimidating colossus of a man, standing at six-feet five-inches, and weighing in at 250 pounds.

Cruise, by comparison, is five-feet seven inches tall.

Speaking to BBC Radio Manchester, Child said: “I really enjoyed working with Cruise. He’s a really, really nice guy. We had a lot of fun.

“But ultimately the readers are right. The size of Reacher is really, really important and it’s a big component of who he is.

Lee Child (Credit: Rex Features)
Lee Child (Credit: Rex Features)

“The idea is that when Reacher walks into a room, you’re all a little nervous just for that first minute. And Cruise, for all his talent, didn’t have that physicality.

“So what I’ve decided to do is – there won’t be any more movies with Tom Cruise. Instead we’re going to take it to Netflix or something like that. Long form streaming television, with a completely new actor.

“And I want all those readers who were upset about Tom Cruise to help me out – participate in choosing the right actor for the TV series. We’re rebooting and starting over and we’re going to try and find the perfect guy.”

It could be for the best all round.

The movies, directed by Mission: Impossible’s Christopher McQuarrie and Edward Zwick, both failed to set the box office alight.

Arriving to mixed reviews, the first earned £170 million, while the second made just £126 million worldwide.

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