Before Reacher turned Alan Ritchson into a global action star, the actor spent nearly two decades building a résumé full of memorable, if not always headline-making, roles. From his breakout as the first live-action Aquaman in Smallville to his cult-favorite turn as the unhinged football captain Thad Castle in Blue Mountain State, Ritchson has always had a knack for commanding the screen. But his most powerful performance—the one that truly hinted at the star he'd become—came in a gritty superhero series on HBO Max: Titans.
In Titans, Ritchson played Hank Hall, better known as Hawk, one half of the vigilante duo Hawk and Dove. The series, which ran for four seasons starting in 2018, was a mature, high-budget reimagining of the Teen Titans franchise. It followed a found family of young heroes—including Dick Grayson (Brenton Thwaites), Rachel Roth (Teagan Croft), Kory Anders (Anna Diop), and Gar Logan (Ryan Potter)—as they battled personal demons and supernatural threats. But at its heart, the show was about the human cost of heroism, and no character embodied that more than Hank.
Why Hank Hall Was Ritchson's Defining Role
Ritchson's imposing physique and natural charisma made him a perfect fit for superhero roles, but Titans gave him something more: a chance to show vulnerability. Hank is introduced as a hotheaded, drug-addicted brute with a chip on his shoulder, especially toward Dick Grayson. But as the series unfolds, we learn that his abrasive exterior masks a harrowing past. A flashback-heavy episode in Season 1 reveals that Hank was a star football player who endured sexual abuse from his coach to protect his younger half-brother, Don. Later, after their mother died of cancer, he played through multiple concussions out of a desperate need to not let his team down. These traumas, compounded by the accidental death of his brother and his partner Dawn's mother, fuel his addiction and rage.
What makes Ritchson's performance so remarkable is how he balances Hank's physicality with raw emotional pain. In one scene, he breaks down in a church, confessing his guilt and grief—a moment that feels miles away from the stoic, one-man army he plays in Reacher. It's a testament to his range that he can make a character as flawed as Hank deeply sympathetic. As Ritchson's heartfelt drama Ordinary Angels also showed, he excels at roles that require both strength and sensitivity.
How 'Titans' Set the Stage for Reacher
It's no coincidence that Ritchson's casting as Jack Reacher came shortly after Titans ended. The series proved he could carry a complex, emotionally layered action role—something that had eluded him earlier in his career. He was deemed too inexperienced for an Aquaman spin-off, turned down for Thor because producers felt he lacked "the craft," and was told he was too old for Finnick Odair in The Hunger Games. But Titans gave him the platform to showcase the depth that Reacher would later capitalize on.
For fans of the DC universe, Titans remains a must-watch—not just for its chaotic, lore-packed plot, but for the human moments that grounded it. And at the center of that emotional core was Alan Ritchson, delivering the best performance of his career. If you haven't seen it, now's the time to catch up on HBO Max.
