Alan Ritchson refutes claims that Reacher is “Dad TV”

Reacher Season 2 continued the journey of a nomad ex-military officer who has a penchant for justice and no problem pounding a few skulls – but leading actor Alan Ritchson refuses to call the series “Dad TV.”

The book character Jack Reacher was first introduced on the silver screen by Tom Cruise. Jack Reacher is described as a towering and muscular character who ventures across the United States since leaving the military. Along the way, he finds himself in a predicament involving his past or in dire situations that need his help.

Ritchson took on the infamous book character for Amazon Prime Video and was seen as the epitome of the written version. By all accounts, Reacher is a character that every dad likes and is secretly their alternate persona in their dreams. A tall, handsome, muscularly ripped man who can fight and has thrilling adventures while living on his own terms.

But by Ritchson’s standards Reacher is much more than “Dad TV” and is perfect for an even larger demographic.

Reacher is for every family member

Alan Ritchson disagrees with the claims that Reacher only appeals to dads and is marked as being “Dad TV” and refutes it by saying it’s appropriate for children and a huge hit among women.

In an interview with GQ, the actor was asked about the Reacher being tagged with the new phenomenon. “It’s so weird. I keep seeing that,” he said. He was asked his thoughts as Ritchson is a father to boys.

“It’s funny: I’ve shown my kids the show. I let them watch season one – but I wouldn’t let them see the naked guy hanging crucified on the wall [who had his bollocks chopped off and was forced to swallow them whole], but everything else was… Within context, it all made sense. They loved it, man. For me, it’s not ‘Dad TV’, it’s ‘family TV’,” he explained.

“I walk down the street and little ladies on their walkers are like [adopts the voice of a decrepit old woman] ‘Reacher… Reacher…’ It’s such a misnomer to me to qualify this as ‘Dad TV’. But I am a father and I, too, love the show. Maybe it does work.”

Whether Reacher is age-appropriate for children is up to the parents, but coming from the leading star himself its okay for all ages. A few broken noses and some needed villains getting a whooping isn’t too bad. For many, the term “dad” implies content that only one’s father would watch, not including dad jokes. Reacher certainly fits all the criteria as dads enjoy watching more action-packed series, but it doesn’t stop women from watching.

Alan Ritchson on why women truly love Jack Reacher

Hoping onto his claim that Reacher isn’t just for dads, Ritchson gives his two cents on why women also love the series, and it’s not what people would think. There’s no denying that both book and TV series character is tall, buff, chiseled, and ruggedly handsome. Who wouldn’t fall for him?

But Ritchson believes that the appeal of Jack Reacher to women is more than just a dream fantasy man they want to bed for themselves.

“It’s confounding. The readership of the books is an unexpected demographic: just as many women read these books as men. There was an interesting article about how people say ‘men want to be him and women want to sleep with him’, but there’s an independence and freedom to Reacher that women clearly want, too. We assume freedom is a male mentality, but a lot of women share the same desires. I guess part of the success is that there was wish fulfilment for a lot more people than first expected,” said the actor.

Reacher is a lone wolf nomad by nature. Based on his military upbringing and his career in the military, he’s had no real ties anywhere. He lives his life by where the day takes him. His most prized possession is his toothbrush, buys when necessary, carries no suitcase, and doesn’t worry about money. Reacher also makes it a point to not be tied to one person but is there to help his friends like in Season 2.

His inherent freedom is appealing to more than just men. Multiple fans will see his lifestyle as liberating, regardless of gender.