Alan Ritchson’s R-Rated ‘Reacher’ Replacement Officially Takes Over in Just 2 Months

Alan Ritchson isn’t exactly struggling for things to do at the moment. It seems like any chance he has to take a new action thriller to get us off our seats, he does so. Between another season of Reacher, the upcoming Neagley spin-off, and the long-awaited release of Motor City, the actor’s calendar is getting more bloated than Augustus Gloop in Wonka’s factory, and we’re thrilled with that, but before all of that fully kicks into gear, Ritchson is taking on a very different kind of mission — and it’s just two months away.

In Runner, Ritchson plays a former soldier who gets pulled into a dangerous job involving the critical delivery of medical items, with the delivery quickly turning into a high-speed, high-stakes, very violent pursuit through the city. There are guns, car chases, explosions, and bloodshed which is ironic given what he’s transporting. By the end of the movie, someone else could probably use an organ transplant or two. The film is directed by Scott Waugh, who previously helmed Need for Speed and Expend4bles. The official synopsis reads:

“A former soldier is thrown into a brutal race against time when a critical medical delivery makes him the target of a ruthless cartel. With betrayal closing in from every side, he must survive the chase and deliver his cargo before an innocent child runs out of time.”

The movie will be released by Angel Studios, with Waugh adding: “Partnering with Angel is a game-changer, because Runner is the kind of theatrical film audiences have been waiting for – big action, real heart, and a story that brings light into this world. When everything’s on the line to save a life, real men don’t run from the fire; they drive straight into it.”



















































Collider Exclusive · Sci-Fi Survival Quiz
Which Sci-Fi World Would You Survive?
The Matrix · Mad Max · Blade Runner · Dune · Star Wars

Five universes. Five completely different ways the future went wrong — or sideways, or up in flames. Only one of them is the world your instincts were built for. Eight questions will figure out which dystopia, galaxy, or desert wasteland you’d actually make it out of alive.

💊The Matrix

🔥Mad Max

🌧️Blade Runner

🏜️Dune

🚀Star Wars

01

You sense something is deeply wrong with the world around you. What do you do?
The first instinct is often the truest one.





02

In a world of scarcity, what resource do you guard most fiercely?
What we protect reveals what we believe survival actually requires.





03

What kind of threat keeps you up at night?
Fear is useful data — if you’re honest about what you’re actually afraid of.





04

How do you deal with authority you don’t trust?
Every dystopia has a power structure. Your approach to it determines everything.





05

Which environment could you actually endure long-term?
Survival isn’t just tactical — it’s physical, psychological, and very much about where you are.





06

Who do you want in your corner when things fall apart?
The company you keep is the clearest signal of who you actually are.





07

Where do you draw the line — if you draw one at all?
Every survivor eventually faces a moment that tests what they’re actually made of.





08

What would actually make survival worth it?
Staying alive is one thing. Having a reason to is another.





Your Fate Has Been Calculated
You’d Survive In…

Your answers point to the world your instincts were built for. This is the universe your temperament, your survival instincts, and your particular brand of stubbornness were made for.


The Resistance, Zion

The Matrix

You took the red pill a long time ago — probably before anyone offered it to you. You’re a systems thinker who can’t help but notice the seams in things.

  • You’re drawn to understanding how the system works before figuring out how to break it.
  • You’d find the Resistance, or it would find you — your instinct for spotting constructed realities is the machines’ worst nightmare.
  • You function best when you have access to information and the freedom to act on it.
  • The Matrix built an airtight prison. You’d be the one probing the walls for the door.


The Wasteland

Mad Max

The wasteland doesn’t reward the clever or the well-connected — it rewards those who are hard to kill and harder to break. That’s you.

  • You don’t need comfort, community, or a cause larger than the next horizon.
  • You need a vehicle, a clear threat, and enough fuel to outrun it — and you’re good at all three.
  • You are unsentimental enough to survive that world, and decent enough — just barely — to be something more than another raider.
  • In the wasteland, that distinction is everything.


Los Angeles, 2049

Blade Runner

You’d survive here because you know how to exist in moral grey areas without losing yourself completely.

  • You read people accurately, keep your circle small, and ask the questions others prefer not to answer.
  • In a city where humanity is a legal designation rather than a feeling, you hold onto something that keeps you functional.
  • You’re not a hero. But you’re not lost, either.
  • In Blade Runner’s world, that distinction is everything.


Arrakis

Dune

Arrakis is the most hostile environment in the known universe — and you are precisely the kind of person it rewards.

  • Patience, discipline, and political awareness are your core strengths — and on Arrakis, they’re survival tools.
  • You understand that the long game matters more than any single victory.
  • Others come to Dune and are consumed by it. You’d learn its logic and earn its respect.
  • In time, you wouldn’t just survive Arrakis — you’d begin to reshape it.


A Galaxy Far, Far Away

Star Wars

The galaxy far, far away is vast, loud, and in a constant state of violent political upheaval — and you wouldn’t have it any other way.

  • You find meaning in being part of something larger than yourself — a cause, a crew, a rebellion.
  • You’d gravitate toward the Rebellion, or the fringes, or whatever pocket of the galaxy still believes the Empire’s grip can be broken.
  • You fight — not because you have to, but because standing aside isn’t something you’re capable of.
  • In Star Wars, that willingness is what makes all the difference.

Who Else Stars in ‘Runner’?

Owen Wilson (Loki) plays the courier connected to the delivery, and Wilson is bringing his usual hangdog humor to the film so it’ll have a slightly more buddy-thriller feel than a straight-faced action slog. Alongside them, the film stars Rodrigo Santoro, Leila George, Kate Box, Peta Sergeant, Geraldine Hakewill, Cecilia Toussaint, and Scarlett Crabtree.

The pairing is probably the most exciting thing for us, because Ritchson’s work with Kevin James in Playdate was terrific, and he has a serious funny bone too, despite being increasingly associated with physically imposing, dead-serious action roles thanks to Reacher. Ritchson will next be seen in this month’s Motor City, while this holiday season he’s teaming up with Arnold Schwarzenegger for The Man With The Bag. Ritchson also returns as Jack Reacher in Reacher on August 12, before reprising the role for spin-off Neagley on September 16. Like we said, busy boy.

Runner hits theatres on September 11, 2026.


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Release Date

September 11, 2026

Runtime

97 minutes


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