With the success of original series Jack Ryan and Reacher (also about a literary hero named Jack), Amazon Prime Video might have found its target audience. In the spirit of those rugged, macho, action-friendly series, we've got The Terminal List - an upcoming television adaptation of Jack Carr's 2018 novel starring Chris Pratt as a former Navy SEAL out for vengeance after a deadly ambush. Here's what we know (so far) about this thrilling show.
The Terminal List Premieres On Amazon Prime July 2022
Cameras began officially rolling on The Terminal List in March of 2021 after first going into development almost a year earlier, according to The Hollywood Reporter, before it was even acquired for distribution by Amazon Prime. In February, Deadline reported that the platform had announced the series would debut on Friday, July 1, 2022 - just in time for people who prefer to get their entertainment from home to stream during the most “explosive” weekend of the summer.
The Terminal List Stars Chris Pratt, Marking His Return To TV
Though he found his first brushes of A-list stardom when he played Peter "Star-Lord" Quill in Guardians of the Galaxy, Chris Pratt made a name for himself as part of NBC’s Parks and Recreation cast as the affable (and dim-witted) Andy Dwyer. Even before then, though, the actor was seen as Bright Abbott in The WB's Everwood and had a recurring role in Fox's The OC. Suffice to say, while big blockbusters like Jurassic World and The LEGO Movie elevated his star status, he built his career on TV. Now, Pratt will return to the tube as the lead and as executive producer of Amazon Prime's The Terminal List.
Particularly with the massive success of The Tomorrow War in 2021, it's clear that Amazon is eager to stay in the Chris Pratt business from this point forward. This show seems like a good way to keep the star on their payroll and potentially create another Jack Ryan-esque hit for their service. We'll have to wait to see how the new series fares.
It’s Based On The Novel Of The Same Name By Jack Carr
Published in 2018, Jack Carr's debut novel, The Terminal List, became an instant hit, earning early praise and quick readership. A fast-paced, high-octane page-turner filled with pulse-pounding thrills and any number of kills, it's easy to see why Hollywood wanted to translate the story from the page to the screen. That's what we'll get with Amazon Prime's TV adaptation — with Carr attached as an executive producer along with Chris Pratt, developer David DiGillo, and Antoine Fuqua.
Especially with Jack Carr's involvement in this upcoming series, we should expect the streaming show to follow the book's action-heavy narrative. Or, at the very least, The Terminal List will have his creative input, even if the story veers in a different direction.
The Terminal List Follows A Navy SEAL Seeking Truth About His Platoon’s Ambush
The story of The Terminal List follows James Reece (Chris Pratt), whose entire platoon of Navy SEALs is ambushed during a covert mission. When he returns home to his family, he begins to suffer from flashbacks that conflict with the events that transpired, causing him to question if he is truly to blame for this terrible tragedy.
When new evidence comes to light, James discovers a trail of dark secrets about the forces working around him. In the process, the soldier endangers himself, and the lives of those he loves, as he attempts to figure out what exactly went down on that ill-fated day. The more information he finds, the more James' allegiances are put into question.
The Star-Studded Terminal List Cast Also Includes Taylor Kitsch, Riley Keough, And More
In addition to Chris Pratt leading the proceedings, Amazon Prime's The Terminal List cast is packed with plenty of other big names. The series also stars Taylor Kitsch as SEAL-turned-CIA agent (and Reece’s best friend) Ben Edwards, Hustlers cast member Constance Wu as war correspondent Katie Buranek, and Big Love star Jeanne Tripplehorn as Secretary of Defense Lorreain Hartley.
Riley Keough plays James Reece’s wife, Lauren, Arlo Mertz (who played a child star resembling Shirley Temple in Netflix’s Mank) stars as his daughter, Lucy, Catherine Dyer plays his mother-in-law, Rachel Campbell, and Pratt’s real-life brother-in-law, Patrick Schwarzenegger also appears as one of Reece’s younger team members, Donny Mitchell. The Suicide Squad’s Jai Courtney plays an antagonistic recurring role named Steve Horn. Also rounding out the ensemble in recurring roles are LaMonica Garrett, Alexis Louder, Tom Amandes (according to Deadline), JD Pardo as an FBI Task Force leader, and Christina Vidal Mitchell as a U.S. Marshall.
Some Cast Members And Writers Are Veterans Or Have Veterans In Their Families
Also included on the Terminal List cast are Jared Shaw and Remi Adeleke. Not only are they portraying Navy SEALs, the actors have also served as Navy SEALs in real life.
In fact, The Terminal List has gone even further in terms of paying tribute, reverence, and gratitude to honoring troops and combat veterans by employing half of the show's writing staff with veterans or family members of veterans. As Variety reported, “Per Amazon, the series values the life experiences and perspectives that the stories of U.S. military veterans bring,” which begins with the writing staff.
The Magnificent Seven’s Antoine Fuqua Directed The Terminal List Pilot
Following the critical and commercial triumph of his third film, 2001's Training Day, director Antoine Fuqua has crafted a brisk career, especially in recent years. He later went on to helm Tears of the Sun, Shooter, Brooklyn's Finest, Olympus Has Fallen, both The Equalizer movies, Southpaw, and The Magnificent Seven, which also starred Chris Pratt. Earlier in 2021, Fuqua called the shots on Paramount+'s Infinite and also releasedNetflix's The Guilty that year. Fuqua has also directed the first episode of The Terminal List, which reunited him with Pratt.
This Show Is Gonna Get Bloody
There's also something else you should know about this show: it's gonna get bloody. At least, that's the tease we got in a tweet from Jack Carr's Twitter account, where he provided some behind-the-scenes photos from the set of The Terminal List, including one particularly nasty shot (no pun intended) involving what we can only assume was a violent affair, based on the bullet holes and the blood splatter. As the author writes, things will get "primal, dark, gritty, visceral, and violent." So, if you're queasy, you better take notice. It's called The Terminal List, after all.
Check out Jack Carr's aforementioned tweet below:
Above all, the most exciting and refreshing thing about The Terminal List is the chance to see Chris Pratt taking on something that is not an alien, or a dinosaur, or a LEGO figurine. Tune into this new chapter in the action star’s legacy when it premieres on Amazon Prime at the beginning of July.
