Reacher Creator Almost Killed Off Alan Ritchson’s Hero the Moment He Planned to Settle Down
Fans of Alan Ritchson’s Reacher on Prime Video may be stunned to learn the character’s original fate—creator Lee Child once planned for Jack Reacher to die alone in a filthy motel.
If you love watching Alan Ritchson stomp through bad guys on Prime Video, you can thank Lee Child. And also maybe be a little relieved. Because the Jack Reacher creator once planned to kill his own hero in the bleakest way possible... then changed his mind.
The ending Lee Child almost wrote
In a recent chat with Collider, Child said he had a hard-out mapped for Reacher years ago. The last scene? Not a sunset. Not a porch swing. He pictured Reacher in some low-rent motel bathroom, bleeding out after taking a bullet for someone else.
"The final scene was going to be Reacher bleeding to death on a filthy motel bathroom floor."
He even had a title in mind: something along the lines of 'Die Lonely'. It fits the character — a drifter whose day job is violence — but Child ultimately decided that actually killing Reacher would feel needlessly cruel to readers.
Why he almost pulled the plug, and why he didn’t
The first Reacher book, 'Killing Floor', landed in 1997. By 2019, Child had cranked out twenty of them and felt the tank running low. He’d promised himself that if he ever sensed he was running out, he’d stop. For a minute, he considered a different, quieter goodbye: Reacher solves the case, heads toward the bus station like always… then wonders if it’s time to rent a house and get a dog. Not a literal death, but a metaphorical one. Curtain down without the corpse.
Passing the baton to Andrew Child
Instead of ending it, Child made a bigger move. After 'Blue Moon', he handed creative control to his younger brother, Andrew Child, rather than keep the franchise going just to juice numbers — especially when fans clearly weren’t ready to let Reacher go. He’s called that handoff the biggest decision he’s ever made, but also the right one. The now multi-billion-dollar franchise is Andrew’s to steer, and his recent book 'In Too Deep' — released earlier this year — puts Reacher into a more modern groove without losing the punch.
Meanwhile on Prime Video: where the show is headed
Amazon’s 'Reacher' has been a breakout hit since season 1, and season 3 kept the momentum: Reacher kills Quinn, rescues hostages, and blows up a weapons deal — very normal day for this guy. Season 4 is officially a go and, per Collider, is expected to arrive in 2026. The plan right now is to adapt 'Gone Tomorrow' (book 13). Alan Ritchson returns, with Willa Fitzgerald, Serinda Swan, and others having tagged in across seasons.
- Show: Reacher
- Showrunner: Nick Santora
- Seasons so far: 3
- Network: Amazon Prime Video
- IMDb rating: 8/10
- Rotten Tomatoes score: 8/10
Bottom line: we almost lost Jack Reacher on a disgusting motel floor. Instead, he got a soft handoff on the page and a second life on TV. Probably the better timeline. 'Reacher' is streaming now on Amazon Prime Video.