Reacher Meets Jason Bourne & Batman In Upcoming Adaptation Of Bestselling Spy Thriller

An upcoming adaptation of a bestselling book series is reportedly in the works, and it is hard not to notice how its main character is a combination of Reacher, Bourne, and Batman. Since the TV adaptation in question is still in its early stages of development, it is hard to tell whether it will be as compelling and successful as the Reacher, Bourne, and Batman on-screen franchise.

However, its clear similarities with all three make it incredibly exciting. The upcoming show, based on Gregg Hurwitz’s Orphan X books, was first announced in 2018. Before that, Warner Bros acquired the rights to the books with Bradley Cooper set to produce and potentially star in a movie based on them. After the movie never saw the light of day and the rights eventually expired, a TV adaptation became a possibility.

Brad Weston’s production company, Makeready, partnered with action director Justin Lin and his banner, Perfect Storm Entertainment, to develop Orphan X as a serialized TV drama. The original author, Gregg Hurwitz, was also reportedly set to co-write the show, with each season adapting one book from the original book series.

Although there has been some silence surrounding the project in recent years, the original book series has still been going strong. Hurwitz has been consistently adding new books to the original series, paving the way for the TV adaptation to eventually move the cogwheels of its production.

The books’ main character, Evan Smoak, remains strictly on the page for now. However, considering the wide success of crime thriller franchises, like Jack Ryan, Cross, Bosch, and Reacher, on the small screen, the Orphan X adaptation will likely happen. Speaking of Reacher, Orphan X‘s Evan Smoak comes off as the perfect cross between Jack Reacher, Jason Bourne, and Bruce Wayne. This makes the upcoming Orphan X series even more intriguing.

Orphan X’s Main Character Is A Combination Of Reacher, Bourne, & Batman

Like Jason Bourne, Orphan X‘s main character is a near-invincible assassin who was trained by the government itself. He was taken at a young age and completely scrubbed of his identity by a black-ops government program called the Orphans Program. Similar to Bourne, he has been trained to the point where mapping out escapes and weaponizing even the most harmless objects are muscle memory to him.

Just like Jack Reacher, Evan Smoak eventually breaks free from his ties with the government and adopts his own moral code. He functions more as a mysterious vigilante who helps those in need instead of blindly following contracts. Similar to Alan Ritchson’s Jack Reacher, he shows little mercy towards wrongdoers and puts his tactical mind and physical abilities to completely end all threats for good.

Unlike Reacher, though, Evan Smoak is not a self-proclaimed hobo who keeps moving from one town to another. Instead, he is filthy rich and also has a luxury penthouse in Los Angeles. Just like Batman, he lives a double life and even everything from sophisticated technology to an array of specialized weapons to overpower his enemies.

Considering all the intriguing similarities Evan Smoak shares with Reacher, Bourne, and Batman, it is hard not to anticipate Orphan X‘s upcoming adaptation. Hopefully, it will not meet the same fate as the planned movie and eventually materialize into a TV franchise with multiple seasons.

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  Reacher
  

  

  8/10

  Release Date

  February 3, 2022
  

  Network

  Prime Video

  
  

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  Movie(s)

  The Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremacy, The Bourne Ultimatum, The Bourne Legacy, Jason Bourne

  TV Show(s)

  Treadstone

  First Film

  The Bourne Identity

  Genres

  Action, Thriller, Drama

  Cast

  Matt Damon, Jeremy Renner, Franka Potente, Julia Stiles, Brian Cox, Gabriel Mann, Chris Cooper, Clive Owen, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Rachel Weisz, Joan Allen, Tommy Lee Jones, Alicia Vikander, Jeremy Irvine

  Character(s)

  Jason Bourne, Aaron Cross, Marie Helena Kreutz, Nicky Parsons, Ward Abbott, Danny Zorn, Alexander Conklin, The Professor, Nykwanna Wombosi, Dr. Marta Shearing, Pamela Landy, CIA Director Robert Dewey, Heather Lee, John Randolph

  The Bourne Franchise is an action-thriller series conceived by Robert Ludlum in the novel series. Film adaptations began with The Bourne Identity in 2002, with Matt Damon as Jason Bourne, a man who, after regaining his memories, learns that he was a top CIA assassin, with his former employer trying to kill him to tie up loose ends. 

  
  

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  Created by

  Bob Kane, Bill Finger

  First Film

  Batman

  Latest Film

  The Batman

  Upcoming Films

  The Batman Part II

  First TV Show

  Batman (1966)

  Latest TV Show

  Batman: The Brave and the Bold