Chris Pine Says ‘Jack Ryan’ Isn’t Getting a Sequel

‘Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit,’ the latest (but by no means the first) attempt to reboot Tom Clancy’s long-running spy series, opened in theaters last January to mediocre reviews and box office. According to Box Office Mojo, it is the 44th-highest-grossing movie of 2014, right behind ‘Planes: Fire & Rescue.’ Yes, in a race between the latest version of a classic espionage franchise and the sequel to the spinoff of ‘Cars’ (that stars the voice of Dane Cook), the sequel to the spinoff of ‘Cars’ (that stars the voice of Dane Cook) won.

This, in technical movie-industry jargon, is a total freaking disaster. And certainly not the way you want to jumpstart a moribund franchise. As a matter of fact, ‘Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit’ may have put the final nail in its handsome, secretive hero’s coffin, at least for a while. That’s according to star of ‘Shadow Recruit’ (and most recent Jack Ryan) Chris Pine, who told Moviefone in a new interview that he is very skeptical that he’ll ever get to put on Jack Ryan’s signature, uh, well actually Jack Ryan does not have a signature article of clothing—like, say, a really fetching silk ascot. But if he did, Chris Pine would not be wearing it again:

I don’t think it made enough money for that to happen. That’s one of my deep regrets, that we didn’t totally get that right. It’s a great franchise and if it’s not me then I hope it gets a fifth life at this point. It’s just great. I love the spy genre. I hope it’s done again and with a great story.

As much as I enjoy the Chris Pine experience in ‘Star Trek’ (and even in cruddy sequels like ‘Horrible Bosses 2’), this is probably for the best. If I had to use my official and professional powers of critical analysis to explain why ‘Shadow Recruit’ flopped I would do so thusly: It stunk. The plot stunk, the action stunk, a lot of the casting stunk, the reboot element stunk, the ending stunk; even the unnecessary, incomprehensible subtitle stunk. (“Honey, look! This movie is about a shadow recruit! We have to go see it!”) It flat-out stunk.

Given the cyclical (and cynical) nature of Hollywood, we probably haven’t seen the last of Jack Ryan—in ten years someone will try to reboot him again with 2024’s hot young action stud as ‘Jack Ryan: Clandestine Acquisition’—but it’s not like anyone was clamoring for more of this Jack Ryan (except maybe Chris Pine). Let the guy have a long and restful vacation. The fetching silk ascot has left the building.