Why Tom Cruise Was Cast As Jack Reacher (Despite His Size)

 The casting of Tom Cruise in 2012's Jack Reacher was controversial as barely resembled the book character; here's why this choice was made.

Here's why Tom Cruise was cast as Jack Reacher in the 2012 movie, despite bearing little physical resemblance to the character from the books. The first Jack Reacher novel from author Lee Childs was published in 1997, with The Killing Floor kicking off a series that is still running. The books follow former military policeman Reacher, a hulking nomad who wanders America and helps right wrongs.

The Jack Reacher books kind of read like Murder, She Wrote if the show was fronted by Dolph Lundgren instead of Angela Lansbury. Reacher is a mix of both brains and brawn and isn't afraid to wield either. The popularity of the novels made it inevitable a movie or TV show would adapt the character someday, but Jack Reacher is described as 6-feet-5-inches and weighing over 250 pounds. That made the casting pool somewhat narrow.While Dwayne Johnson went after the role for 2012's Jack Reacher - based on the novel One Shot - he was rejected as his movie stardom was in a different place at the time. Tom Cruise might be one of the biggest stars on the planet, but both his height (5-feet-7) and his not exactly muscular physique left many fans of the series perplexed. The Tom Cruise Reacher casting announcement was met with some outright hostility online, and continued to be a source of mild controversy during the release of the movie and its 2016 sequel Jack Reacher: Never Go Back. However, Cruise's casting was the result of a very long process.