Forgotten 95% RT Netflix Action Thriller Shows Reacher How It’s Done

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While Prime Video’s Reacher does a great job of giving fans what they want from the Lee Child books and stories, it could still improve by taking inspiration from a fantastic, but often missed, action thriller on Netflix.

Even though Prime Video’s Reacher is critically acclaimed with a 96% score on Rotten Tomatoes after three seasons, the show has faced some challenges. While it’s still a valuable asset for the streaming service, recent seasons haven’t quite lived up to the success of its first season. Season 4 has a lot of promise, but it remains to be seen if it will deliver.

While Prime Video currently offers a stronger selection of shows and movies dads will love, Netflix has a fantastic action thriller that surpasses even Reacher in one key area.

Netflix’s Rebel Ridge Masters The Art Of Building Tension

The show Reacher immediately throws viewers into intense action, quickly demonstrating just how powerful and capable the main character is through scenes of prison fights and clashes with dangerous opponents. Netflix’s Rebel Ridge, directed by Jeremy Saulnier, starts off with a similar approach to storytelling.

The story centers around a secretive former soldier who arrives in a quiet, unfamiliar town and quickly becomes caught up in a local mystery.

Rather than starting with immediate action, the novel Rebel Ridge carefully builds suspense. The main character is suggested to be incredibly skilled, like Jack Reacher, thanks to his Marine Corps Martial Arts Program (MCMAP) training. But, unlike Reacher, he doesn’t immediately resort to violence when faced with wrongdoing.

Terry Richmond understands his choices could lead to trouble, and he’s counting on the legal system to help him navigate the situation.

The protagonist of Rebel Ridge only turns to drastic actions when all other options have failed. Importantly, the film doesn’t celebrate violence even when he uses his skills. His fighting is precise and comes from training, not anger, which makes the final showdown with the police especially powerful.

Although the action in Reacher is exciting, the show could be even better if it focused more on building suspense through psychological tension. Giving Alan Ritchson’s character more emotional vulnerability and relatable challenges would make him even more compelling to watch.

Reacher Season 4 Could Be More Like Rebel Ridge

I’m really excited for season 4 of Reacher – they’re adapting Lee Child’s Gone Tomorrow, which is a fantastic choice! The book kicks off with this incredibly tense scene on a train where Reacher basically has to figure out if a fellow passenger is planning something terrible. It’s brilliant how Child writes it, showing all the little details Reacher notices and how he mentally pieces everything together. It’s a masterclass in building suspense, just watching him run through his checklist of observations to get to the truth.

Compared to other books in the Jack Reacher series, Gone Tomorrow balances thoughtful, puzzle-like scenes with plenty of exciting action.

The latest season of Prime Video’s Reacher, based on Lee Child’s Gone Tomorrow, appears to be moving closer in style to his novel Rebel Ridge.

Rebel Ridge Deserves Franchise Treatment Like Reacher

Given the parallels between Reacher and Rebel Ridge, it’s easy to imagine this movie becoming a series. A sequel could follow Terry Richmond – much like Reacher – as he arrives in a different town and uncovers another plot, using his skills to calm tense situations and, if needed, take out dangerous individuals.

Despite its potential for a continuing series, Netflix hasn’t approved a sequel to Rebel Ridge yet. While it’s uncertain if Rebel Ridge 2 will ever be made, the fourth season of Reacher could serve as a similar story if it closely follows the plot of Lee Child’s novel, Gone Tomorrow.

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2026-02-21 07:38