It’s difficult to imagine anybody other thanAlan Ritchsonin the role of Jack Reacher, but, not too long ago, the character was played in two theatrical movies by none other thanTom Cruise. Reacher creatorLee Childwasn’t exactly a fan of Cruise’s casting as the famously towering character, and the series fizzled out after just two installments. The second movie,Jack Reacher: Never Go Back, grossed just around $160 million at the worldwide box office, against a budget reported to be as high as $96 million. The movie has beenovertaken twice by Cruise’s latest release,Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning.
Although it cost over four times as much asNever Go Back—The Final Reckoninghasa reported budget of $400 million— the movie has grossed over $350 million worldwide in less than two weeks of release. It has also out-grossed Cruise’s firstJack Reachermovie, which made over $215 million globally. Notably, the first Reacher movie marked Cruise’s first time working withChristopher McQuarrieat the helm. They’d worked together before, but with McQuarrie serving as a writer. He’d go on to direct Cruise in four Mission: Impossible movies, includingThe Final Reckoning.
Never Go Back, on the other hand, was directed byEdward Zwick, who’d previously worked with Cruise onThe Last Samurai. Released in 2016,Never Go Backopened to mediocre reviews; it holds a “rotten” 37% critics' score onRotten Tomatoes, and a 42% audience score. Itgrossed under $60 million domestically; this was the time when a string of Cruise’s films underperformed in stateside theaters. The list also includesOblivion,Knight & Day,American Made, andEdge of Tomorrow. Cruise made up for the entire decade with the $700 million-plus-grossingTop Gun: Maverickin 2022.
‘The Final Reckoning’ Opened to Mostly Positive Reviews
The Final Reckoning, on the other hand, is nearing the $150 million milestone domestically. The movie needs to gross around $800 million worldwide in order to break even, considering its mammoth production costs. It wasmarketed as the last installment of the franchise, although nobody has officially confirmed this.The Final Reckoningopened to mostly positive reviews, and currently holds a “certified fresh” 80% critics' score onRotten Tomatoes, in addition to an 89% audience score on the aggregator website. Also featuringHayley Atwell,Ving Rhames,Simon Peggand others, the movie is playing in theaters. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning
