Alan Ritchson’s New Action Thriller Quietly Beats His Other 2026 Movies On Rotten Tomatoes After A Blockbuster Year

Alan Ritchson has already enjoyed a packed 2026, but his latest action thriller has unexpectedly emerged as his best-reviewed movie of the year so far.

After returning for the fourth season of his hugely popular Prime Video series Reacher and appearing in three feature films, Ritchson has continued to establish himself as one of the industry’s most recognizable modern action leads.

His newest movie, Runner, pairs him with Owen Wilson for a frantic race against time involving an organ transplant, a dangerous cartel and a critically ill young girl.

Early reviews have now given the film a slight advantage over Ritchson’s other 2026 releases.

At the time of writing, Runner holds a 67% “Fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes from 18 critic reviews, narrowly beating both War Machine and Motor City.

Alan Ritchson And Owen Wilson Form An Unlikely Team

Distributed by Angel Studios, Runner places Ritchson in territory that should feel immediately familiar to fans of Reacher.

He plays a former soldier who becomes responsible for transporting an organ needed for a transplant.

His mission puts him alongside an unlikely partner played by Wilson, but what should already be an urgent delivery quickly becomes far more dangerous.

A deadly cartel is pursuing the package for its own purposes, forcing the pair into a series of violent confrontations while the clock continues to run down.

Every delay carries potentially devastating consequences because the organ is intended for a seriously ill young girl.

That combination gives Runner a simple but effective dramatic engine: survive the people chasing them while reaching the hospital before it is too late.

Early Reviews Praise The Pair’s Chemistry

The film runs for a brisk 90 minutes and appears to embrace the heightened nature of its premise rather than treating itself as an entirely serious thriller.

Much of the early critical response has highlighted the chemistry between Ritchson and Wilson, whose contrasting screen personalities provide both action and comedy.

Ritchson’s imposing physical presence and controlled delivery have become central to his appeal as an action star, particularly through his portrayal of Jack Reacher.

Wilson provides a very different energy, creating an unconventional pairing at the center of the film.

The result has drawn inevitable comparisons with Reacher.

One positive review from Punch Drunk Critics joked: “If you had told me that Runner was just an extended ‘Very Special Episode’ of Reacher, I might’ve believed you.”

The comparison is understandable.

A physically imposing former soldier, a dangerous mission and escalating confrontations place Ritchson firmly inside the kind of action territory audiences have come to associate with him.

Runner Is Currently His Highest-Rated Movie Of 2026

Perhaps the biggest surprise is how Runner compares with Ritchson’s other films from this year.

Its 67% Rotten Tomatoes score puts it narrowly ahead of two much more heavily discussed releases.

War Machine, Ritchson’s successful Netflix sci-fi action blockbuster, currently sits at 66%.

Meanwhile, Motor City has a 63% rating.

That film took a notably different approach to the revenge-thriller formula, featuring very little dialogue and relying heavily on action and a rock-and-roll soundtrack.

The margins between all three films are tiny:

Runner — 67%

War Machine — 66%

Motor City — 63%

Yet those few percentage points are currently enough to give Runner the distinction of being Ritchson’s highest-rated movie of 2026.

A Strong Year For Ritchson Beyond Reacher

The result adds another successful project to what has already been an exceptionally busy period for the actor.

Ritchson’s career has risen significantly through Reacher, which has allowed him to combine the physical qualities required of an action star with a deliberately restrained style of comedy and character work.

His 2026 movie slate has given him opportunities to apply that formula in different ways.

Motor City leaned into stripped-down revenge action.

War Machine brought him into large-scale science-fiction territory and became a major streaming success for Netflix.

Now Runner appears to be offering something closer to a buddy-action thriller, using Wilson’s comedic instincts as a counterweight to Ritchson’s more imposing screen persona.

That combination may be helping the latest film stand apart despite its familiar genre ingredients.

Its Rotten Tomatoes Lead Could Still Change

There is an important qualification to Runner‘s current position.

Its 67% score is based on only 18 critic reviews at the time of writing.

As additional reviews are published, the rating could rise or fall, meaning its lead over War Machine is far from secure.

A movement of only a couple of percentage points would be enough to change the ranking.

For now, however, the numbers give Ritchson’s latest film a narrow victory.

And after a year that has included a new season of Reacher, a successful Netflix blockbuster and multiple action projects, it is the relatively straightforward 90-minute thriller with Owen Wilson that has managed to edge ahead of them all.

With 67% on Rotten Tomatoes, Runner may only hold the lead by a single point over War Machine — but for the moment, it is officially Alan Ritchson’s best-reviewed movie of 2026.