Once Alan Ritchson had been cast, Amazon and Skydance, the studios responsible for “Reacher,” decided on a goal weight for their on-screen version of the character. That weight was a non-negotiable 235 pounds — pretty much slap bang in the middle of that 220-250 pound weight scale.
Speaking to the Rich Eisen Show, Ritchson revealed that he wasn’t allowed to show up to set weighing any less than this 235-pound target. The actor said:
“I was 205 when I got cast […] I needed to put on 30 pounds for the roll, I needed to be at least 235, that was like my mandate from the studio, ‘you cannot show up to set without being 235.'”
Ritchson was no stranger to physical training. He’d been a professional model before venturing into acting, and not only played superhero Hank Hall/Hawk in the MAX (then known as HBO Max) series “Titans,” but one of his first big roles was that of Arthur Curry/Aquaman on “Smallville.” In other words, Ritchson was used to staying in shape. But in order to hit Amazon’s required weight for “Reacher,” the actor pushed himself beyond anything he’d done before. He continued:
“I had eight months to do it, I built a gym in my house, and I worked my ass off. You cannot believe how hard I worked, every day, like my life depended on it. Hour, two hours a day, so in that amount of time I could put the muscle on. And I did it without any help — no steroids, no testosterone, nothing good for you, just hard work. So I got through but it also killed me. I had to get shoulder surgery after the season and it was rough.”