Netflix's Rebel Ridge: A Missed Opportunity For A Jack Re...

A Year Later, Netflix Is Leaving Money On The Table With No Sequels To Its Acclaimed Jack Reacher-Style Thriller

Aaron Pierre as Terry Richmond with his hands up in Rebel Ridge

By Padraig Cotter Published 3 minutes ago Padraig is a Senior Features Writer and has been part of Screen Rant since 2017. Padraig is a writer, editor and retired Game of Thrones extra who has been writing about movies and TV online for over a decade. He has also written for The Irish Times, Den Of Geek, Little White Lies and many more. It's pronounced Paw-rick, BTW. Sign in to your ScreenRant account Summary Generate a summary of this story follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap

A year after Rebel Ridge was a critical and streaming hit, Netflix should be pursuing a sequel to its Jack Reacher-style thriller. It's kind of shocking that it took over 20 years to turn author Lee Child's Jack Reacher books into a TV series, but for fans of the character, it was obviously worth the wait.

The Alan Ritchson-fronted series has been a major streaming hit for Prime, and has led to other streamers seeking their own Reacher-type franchise. Prime also has The Terminal List saga, while Netflix's The Night Agent has clear Reacher parallels. In 2024, Netflix also dropped the long-delayed Rebel Ridge.

This Jeremy Saulnier-directed thriller saw a former soldier named Terry Richmond (Aaron Pierre) come up against a corrupt police force in a small town. The movie was a taut, slow-burn thriller with bursts of exciting action, and the film went on to receive critical acclaim (it sits at 95% on Rotten Tomatoes) and was viewed over 31 million times.

Despite Being A Hit, There Are No Plans For Rebel Ridge 2

Aaron Pierre as Richmond holding a gun in Rebel Ridge.

The movie's success speaks to its positive word of mouth, as the movie was added to Netflix in September 2024 with little in the way of buzz or marketing. Its sheer quality led to its surprise success, with Rebel Ridge's ending leaving the door open somewhat for a sequel.

While Richmond may have emerged vicious by the time the credits roll, there's nothing to say a sequel couldn't have placed him in the middle of a new mess. Despite its undeniable success, there appear to be no plans for a potential Rebel Ridge 2.

Pierre was instantly snapped up to front HBO's Lanterns series as John Stewart, while Saulnier's next project is the horror thriller October. In truth, it's not like Rebel Ridge's finale laid the groundwork for a follow-up. The story ends with all the plot threads wrapped up, and Terry's quest for justice is complete.

However, it's a surprise, given the movie's popularity, that there haven't been conversations about doing more. Perhaps Saulnier himself felt there was no more story to be told and desired to move on, or Netflix didn't see any sequel potential. After all, it's an R-rated, mid-budget thriller and not a wannable franchise launcher like the glossy Red Notice.

Rebel Ridge Suffered A Tough Production

Aaron Pierre smiles at Don Johnson's evil sheriff in Rebel Ridge.

There's also the distinct possibility that Rebel Ridge's messy journey left people scared of tempting fate. The project was originally announced in 2019, with John Boyega (Pacific Rim Uprising) signing on to play Richmond. From there, it would take five years for the thriller to actually arrive.

The first hurdle it faced was that its planned shooting date in 2020 was canceled due to COVID, which delayed it for a full year. When the crew finally reunited in 2021, things appeared to be progressing smoothly. However, after a month of filming, Boyega exited the Netflix original, with "family reasons" being cited as the cause.

Rumors later suggested Boyega abruptly left the production due to disputes over the script and other issues. It should be underlined that Boyega's representatives strongly denied this, though it was also clear that the star wouldn't be rejoining Rebel Ridge. With production having been canceled twice, Saulnier found himself looking for a new lead.

In the meantime, other actors like James Badge Dale (The Empty Man) dropped out of the project. Thankfully, Saulnier's search soon led him to Pierre, who was arguably much better suited for the role. Production resumed, and it must have been a relief to all who were involved that Rebel Ridge was so warmly greeted when it crossed the finishing line.

Rebel Ridge Could Become A Jack Reacher-Style Franchise For Netflix

Aaron Pierre fires a grenade launcher in Rebel Ridge.

Which, again, is another reason Rebel Ridge 2 feels so obvious. A follow-up could place Richmond in another small town or big city where his unique brand of justice must be meted out. The sequel could also put Terry's "no killing" rule to the test by encountering an especially nasty group of villains.

Richmond's refusal to take a life sets him apart from about 98% of other action heroes, including Jack Reacher. It gave Rebel Ridge's action setpieces a unique energy and tension too, as audiences pondered how he'd take down a heavily armed group of cops without actually killing anyone.

Aaron Pierre will appear in the upcoming Star Wars: Starfighter, set for release in 2027.

A sequel could dig into Richmond's past and explore where his anti-killing stance comes from. Richmond is such a compelling character that he could easily front another movie or two, but the desire to make one ultimately has to come from Netflix and Saulnier.

However, in addition to October, the director also has a new Netflix series called Trigger Point on the horizon. This looks like a hot project at the streamer and will likely take the bulk of Saulnier's focus for the foreseeable future. Meanwhile, the odds of a Rebel Ridge 2 fade further into the background.

That would be a real shame, since it's a character Pierre is perfect for, and love for the original should at least guarantee a sequel would perform well. Time will tell if a Rebel Ridge follow-up will happen, but it really feels like Netflix is letting a full-on action franchise aimed at adults pass it by.

Source: Rotten Tomatoes

Movies
Rebel Ridge

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