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Joe Manganiello believes Tom Cruise may have played a role in his failure to land the lead role in Amazon's Reacher, after his team speculated that the Hollywood star could have intervened because of his alleged past romance with Sofía Vergara.
Joe makes the claim in his memoir, Bloodlines, released October 13, recounting how he appeared to be a strong contender for the role of Jack Reacher before it ultimately went to Alan Ritchson.
Manganiello wrote that he met Don Granger, an executive at Skydance Media, in January 2020 to discuss the character and criticism surrounding Cruise's casting in the earlier film adaptations. Reacher is described in Lee Child's books as a towering 6-foot-5 figure, while Cruise is approximately 5-foot-7.
According to Manganiello, Granger praised his suitability for the character, telling him, "You are the closest thing to Jack Reacher that I've ever met in my entire life." He added, "You look like Reacher is described in the books," and commended his "effortless intelligence."
Manganiello also claimed that showrunner Nick Santora was impressed enough to begin developing the season with him in mind. Skydance owner David Ellison and author Child were reportedly pleased with his performance.
However, the actor said the situation changed when his casting was presented to then-Amazon Studios head Jen Salke. According to his account, Salke felt excluded from the decision-making process and believed she was being pushed toward a choice made largely by male producers.
After Manganiello lost the role, his team considered whether Cruise had intervened. Cruise had played Reacher in the 2012 film Jack Reacher and its 2016 sequel, but he is not listed among the television series' producers.
"Maybe Tom Cruise, who was listed as executive producer because he had starred in the previous film adaptations, could have come over the top," Manganiello wrote, "and vetoed my being cast."
He suggested the decision might have been connected to Vergara, his then-wife, who was reportedly romantically linked to Cruise in 2005.
"She said she had broken up with him years before after refusing to take the E-Meter test at the L. Ron Hubbard Celebrity Centre for Scientology," Manganiello wrote, explaining why he thought Cruise might have wanted to avoid a lasting association with him.
However, Manganiello acknowledged that the theory was unconfirmed, writing, "It was all just speculation." He also said, "No one would tell me what the hell happened."
Neither Cruise nor Vergara has publicly confirmed the reported romance.
