While Alan Ritchson continues to knock himself out with the Amazon series Reacher, template author Lee Child could soon be leaving his series of novels behind. What does that mean for the series?
On February 20, 2025, thriller fans can look forward to the return of the popular muscle hero. The action crime series Reacher is already entering its third season on Amazon Prime Video. But how long can the streaming hit continue at all? The series is based on a series of books by Lee Child, who wants to leave the template behind soon.
The template for the Amazon series Reacher is about to change
Lee Child (actually James Grant) already spoke about his Reacher retirement some time ago. Since 1997, the now 70-year-old writer has been writing the novels about the ex-military policeman Jack Reacher. In the fall of 2025, the 30th (!) volume of the series will be published, still bearing Lee Child’s name on the cover. However, that could soon change.
In 2019, The Hyenas was the last Reacher novel written by Lee Child alone. Since then, his brother Andrew Grant has co-written the latest books under the name Andrew Child. As reported by the BBC, the creator wants to transfer the series completely to his co-author in the future.
But even if the template should end at some point, fans of the Amazon adaptation don’t have to worry at all. There is still enough material for numerous further seasons. Currently, only 5 of 30 Reacher novels have been adapted:
- Volume 1: Misdemeanor – adapted with Reacher Season 1
- Volume 7: The Janus Man – adapted with Reacher Season 3
- Volume 9: Sniper – adapted with Jack Reacher (2012)
- Band 11: Trouble – adapted with Reacher Season 2
- Band 18: Die Gejagten – adapted with Jack Reacher: Kein weg zurück (2016)
If we exclude the four novels that tell Jack Reacher’s backstory before the very first volume and thus the first season of the Amazon series, there are still 21 unfilmed books – but also 21 more seasons with Alan Ritchson?
Reacher Season 4 and more: What’s next for the Amazon series?
Since Reacher continues to be a huge hit for Amazon Prime Video, Alan Ritchson’s lovable muscleberg could be with us for many more years. In October 2024, the streaming service already renewed its series phenomenon for a fourth season, which is expected to launch in 2026 – and that’s not all.
Amazon could create an entire series universe around the characters from Lee Child’s books in the future. The foundation for this has already been laid with the ordered Reacher spin-off series about fan favorite Frances Neagley (Maria Sten). In contrast to the main series, however, the offshoot is not based on any specific book.
Should the spin-off about Reacher’s ex-military colleague and private investigator Neagley also be successful, further offshoots could be created at Amazon. But one thing is already certain: Jack Reacher is not running out of steam anytime soon.
