Chris Pine follows in the footsteps of Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford and Ben Affleck as the titular agent in Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit. Taking on iconic roles isn’t foreign to Pine, who continued his journey as Captain James Tiberius Kirk in last year’s Star Trek Into Darkness.
With this latest installment, Mr. Ryan is getting his feet wet in the CIA, as he gets entangled in a battle of wills against a vengeful Russian terrorist (Kenneth Branagh, who also directs). Kevin Costner, who was initially offered the role of Ryan for The Hunt for Red October, plays Ryan’s mentor and father figure, and their subtle chemistry is one of the feature’s main strengths.
Although the picture ends with an epic action moment, the most viscerally engaging sequence occurs during a hotel room showdown between Pine and co-star Nonso Anozie (from TV’s Dracula). “I like the fact that Jack, as much as he had training in the Marines, isn’t a trained killing professional,” says Pine. “It was kind of a MacGyver moment of trying to figure out how to defeat the large bad guy when you’re not quite as big or you’re not quite as ferocious.”
Click on the Soundcloud audio below to hear Chris Pine talk about doing the hand to hand combat sequence with Anozie. He also talks about riding a motorcycle sans a helmet in New York during another stunt sequences in the film.
Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit opens nationwide January 17.