Dwayne Johnson has revealed that he was cast as Hobbs in Fast Five after he lost the role of Jack Reacher to Tom Cruise. Cruise would take on the role in both 2012's Jack Reacher and 2016's Jack Reacher: Never Go Back. Both films performed well at the worldwide box office, with the former pulling in $218 million and the latter taking in $162 million respectively.
Jack Reacher is based on a series of beloved novels from author Lee Child. The novels focus on an investigator named Jack Reacher who investigates suspicious activity and constantly gets himself into precarious situations in order to bring the truth to light. The first film was based on Child's Reacher novel, One Shot and was written and directed by Christopher McQuarrie, Cruise's frequent collaborator, while the sequel was based on the story Never Go Back. The second film was directed by Edward Zwick, who directed Cruise in The Last Samurai, and was written by Zwick, Richard Went and Marshall Herskovitz.
In a new Q&A on his Instagram page, Dwayne Johnson revealed that he was only cast in Fast Five after he lost out on the role of Jack Reacher to Tom Cruise. In response to a question regarding if there was a role he lost to another actor that he really wanted, Johnson states, "So, all of my roles, from the beginning of my career, I've been a lucky son of a bitch that they've been created and designed for me - except Jack Reacher." He goes on to say, "Now, this was ten years ago, and I was in a much different place, I recognize that. Tom was the biggest movie star in the world, and I was not." However, Johnson feels thankful he lost out on the role, saying, "Universe works in funny ways though, as when that door shut on me, another door opened with the opportunity to create a character from scratch that was of my DNA. The one and only bad ass, shit talkin’, gravity and reality defying, always winkin’ and having fun OUTLAW LAWMAN KNOWN AS LUKE HOBBS." His full response is below.
Though Johnson didn't get to take on the Reacher role, his addition as Hobbs in the Fast and Furious franchise helped jumpstart his career, breathing new life into the series and helping Fast Five coast along to the tune of $626 million worldwide. He would also star in the subsequent sequels which were even more financially successful; the last two films in the series both grossed over $1 billion worldwide. His character made such an impression that he was given his own spinoff film, Hobbs & Shaw, with franchise co-star Jason Statham. The spinoff also performed well, grossing an impressive $759 million worldwide, further showcasing Johnson's star power.
Despite both adaptations of Lee's novels being financially successful, a third film never came to pass. However, Jack Reacher is now moving to Amazon Prime, where he will have his own show. The series will have showrunner Nick Santora at the helm, who will also serve as the first season's head writer and executive producer. Author Lee Child will serve as an executive producer on the show as well and the first season will be based on Child's first Reacher novel, The Killing Floor. Though no lead actor has been announced for the role as of yet, Child will certainly have a say in who is chosen, especially since he thought Cruise was too old for the part.
The first Jack Reacher film was a pleasant surprise, a smart, well-written thriller anchored by an endlessly entertaining, offbeat performance from Cruise. Though he may not have been as physically accurate a choice for Lee's character as Johnson would have been, Cruise's interpretation was more faithful than fans gave it credit for. While it's fun to think about how Johnson would've fared in the role, he was much better suited for Hobbs - a character that helped reinvigorate the Fast and Furious franchise and spawn a highly successful career for the actor that has yielded terrific blockbuster entertainment. Regardless, it should be fascinating to see how the character fares in his own television show when Jack Reacher makes its debut on Amazon Prime.
Source: Dwayne Johnson