WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
  • “Runner” dropped from more than 2,500 theaters to 340 after three weeks and ranked 24th in weekend ticket sales.
  • The film earned $17.7 million against a reported budget between $35 million and $45 million despite receiving a 90% audience rating.
  • Ritchson’s “Motor City” earned just over $3 million on a $30 million budget.
  • Collider reported continued success for Ritchson through “War Machine” and renewed fifth and sixth seasons of “Reacher.”

Alan Ritchson, the “Jack Reacher” star who has repeatedly attacked President Donald Trump, has suffered his second theatrical flop in a row.

His latest action film, “Runner,” is heading to streaming after a brief and bruising run in cinemas, as reported by The Gateway Pundit.

The Angel Studios-distributed movie, which also stars Owen Wilson, opened in more than 2,500 theaters on Sept. 11.

Three weeks later, that total had collapsed to 340 theaters, with the film ranking 24th in ticket sales last weekend, according to Box Office Mojo.

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Those grim ticket numbers arrived despite a far warmer reaction from viewers who actually saw the movie. Audiences gave “Runner” a 90% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but that enthusiasm did not translate into enough sales to rescue its theatrical performance.

The film has collected $17.7 million against a reported budget ranging from $35 million to $45 million. Its move to streaming now follows a rapid disappearance from thousands of theaters across the country.

“Runner” is not Ritchson’s only recent disappointment at the ticket counter. The gangster movie “Motor City,” which featured Ritchson in the lead role, earned just over $3 million in sales despite carrying a $30 million budget, according to Collider.

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The pair of theatrical failures comes after months of headlines surrounding Ritchson’s profanity filled criticism of Trump. In July, the actor suggested that the president was implicated in the Epstein files and blasted the fact that Trump holds presidential power.

Trump “has the keys to the nuclear codes …. Like, dude, what? Go to jail,” Ritchson said. The actor returned to the subject during another podcast appearance that same month, unleashing an even more furious assessment.

“I’m just supposed to let go of my resentment that this [expletive] guy is just raping the world that he lives in for whatever gain he personally can have? And I’m supposed to let that go,” Ritchson said.

He also aimed his criticism at developments involving the White House. “Look at the politics we deal with right now,” Ritchson said, before declaring, “The White House is in ruins,” while mentioning the UFC fight cage on the South Lawn and the ongoing ballroom construction.

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“And no consequences. It wasn’t done legally. There’s no plan in place. Now you’re asking for money. It’s like, what are we doing?” he added.

The ballroom plans, however, received approval from both the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts and the 12-member National Capital Planning Commission.

The U.S. Supreme Court also ruled in August that construction could continue after finding that the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which sued Trump in an effort to stop the project, lacked standing.

Ritchson acknowledged during Fan Expo Canada in Toronto last month that studios have contacted him about his political commentary. He said he receives many calls asking him not to discuss politics and to simply “shut up.”

“Sony told me not to. And I’m not going to say anything, not today,” Ritchson said. Even during that appearance, however, he still worked in a mention of Epstein.

While his recent theatrical projects have stumbled badly, Collider reported that Ritchson has found success elsewhere this year.

“He began the year with the sci-fi action film ‘War Machine,’ which remains the most-watched Netflix original of 2026,” the outlet said.

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His television series has also continued moving forward.

“Meanwhile, ‘Reacher’ has been renewed for fifth and sixth seasons following a record-breaking Season 4 run, which resulted in more than 1 billion weekly minutes watched, according to Nielsen.”

Both “Motor City” and “Runner” can still bring in additional revenue through video on demand sales.

Whether those later earnings will be enough to make either film profitable remains uncertain, leaving Ritchson with two punishing theatrical results despite his streaming and television successes.

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