Alan Ritchson’s ‘Reacher’ Replacement Movie Is Still Dominating Prime Video’s Streaming Charts

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Reacher fans may still be hungry for Season 4, but Alan Ritchson isn’t exactly gone. In fact, he’s still dominating Prime Video under a different guise. The action star’s new action comedy Playdate continues to sit at #1 on the streamer, holding its spot weeks after debuting, and it’s clear that audiences still can’t get enough of the world’s nicest elephantine muscle man.

For an actor whose breakout role involved stoicism combined with beating the crap out of bad guys with fists the size of Thanksgiving turkeys, Ritchson stepping into a different lane seemed like a gamble. But audiences have spoken: They’ll watch him in anything that involves danger, intensity, or someone making a very bad decision with the delight of a deranged llama bulldozing its way through a playground.

The film begins innocently enough. Noted comedy veteran Kevin James plays Brian, a recently unemployed accountant and current stay-at-home dad, who arranges a “playdate” with another dad — Jeff, played by Ritchson — and their sons. On the surface, it’s supposed to be a normal afternoon: a bit of small talk, parenting, maybe toss a football around, but Jeff isn’t just any stay-at-home dad. Almost immediately, the meetup spirals into chaos. Mercenaries show up, and suddenly, Brian, Jeff, and the kids find themselves on the run, fighting for survival instead of sipping seltzer at the playground. What Brian expected to be a quiet, awkward afternoon with another dad turns into a life-or-death escape.

Is ‘Playdate’ Worth Seeing?

Collider’s Shawn Van Horn reviewed the movie for the site, but it’s fair to say he wasn’t overly wowed by what he saw. Van Horn felt that Ritchson was “the only reason” to check out the movie, and hailed his ability to bounce around like an excited puppy with no brains whatsoever. However, that was the only positive, with Van Horn opining that it “is a rushed and lazy action comedy that goes through the motions, speeding through a half-formed plot with little attention to character building outside a few dropped-in scenes”.

Shawn concluded:

“Watching Ritchson in Playdate can’t help but make you think of John Cena, another musclebound action star who can play the goofy guy with ease. Cena had better watch out, because Alan Ritchson is impressive at comedy and could be coming after the WWE star’s roles. Playdate is a nonthreatening, forgettable movie. You won’t remember it next week, and it doesn’t want you to because it’s just more disposable content. But you won’t forget Alan Ritchson. If he can make crap entertaining, imagine him in a comedic role with a much better script.”

Playdate is streaming now on Prime Video.