‘Reacher’ star Alan Ritchson opens up about suicide attempt and being sexually assaulted

4 April, 2024

Note: This article contains references to suicide and sexual assault.

Reacher star Alan Ritchson has opened up about his suicide attempt and being a victim of sexual assault.

In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the actor spoke about his ongoing struggle with bipolar disorder and ADHD, as well as his traumatic journey to stardom.

Reflecting on his modelling days before he fully pursued a career in acting, Ritchson compared the profession to “legalised sex trafficking” before revealing that he was sexually assaulted during a photo shoot.

“Let’s be honest, it’s like legalised sex trafficking. The industry is not regulated, and it’s a widely known secret that if you’re hired on a job, you’re basically being passed off to a photographer to be trafficked,” he said. “The number of times and situations where I was put in horrific environments where sexual abuse was the goal and the paycheque that you were desperate for in order to survive was the carrot, I can’t count on two hands. It was quite often.”

The actor claimed that, after agreeing to a nude shoot tied to an offer for a “lucrative campaign,” he was sexually assaulted by a “very famous photographer.”

“I was sexually assaulted by this guy. I left and drove straight to the agency that I was at in L.A. I stormed in and said, ‘Fuck you for sending me there. You knew what was going to happen, and you did it anyway.’

“I told them to never call me again. I quit the industry and it was the last photo shoot I’ve ever had. Those pictures were never seen or published. That was it. I swore it off and, thank God, acting found me at the exact same time so I was able to make a switch to a new career, but it left some scars.”

Reacher season 2 — Alan Ritchson in ‘Reacher’ season two. CREDIT: Brooke Palmer/Prime Video

After leaving the modelling world behind, Ritchson went on to appear in a number of TV shows, including the Superman series Smallville, in which he starred as Aquaman in 2005 before Justin Hartley took over the role.

He also starred in the Spike TV sitcom Blue Mountain State, made brief appearances on several major series such as Black Mirror, New Girl, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and starred as Hank Hall/Hawk on Titans before landing his leading role on Reacher.

However, Ritchson’s departure from the modelling industry didn’t signal the end of his struggles. The actor told THR how the collapse of a business relationship “sparked an existential crisis” that eventually led to his suicide attempt in 2019.

“I hung myself. It all happened so fast, and I was dangling there,” the actor explained, adding that it was a vision of his sons – Calem (11) Edan (10) and Amory (8) in their mid-30s that saved him.

“They calmly asked me not to do it, and told me that they wanted me to be here, alive and part of their lives.” He added: I was diagnosed as bipolar [at the age of 36] right after.”

Alan Ritchson in ‘Reacher’. CREDIT: Keri Anderson/Amazon Studios

Ritchson went on to explain how the experience gave him a new perspective on life and made his reasons for living even clearer.

“I came out of that whole thing asking myself, ‘OK, if I am going to choose to be alive here — a decision we all make, some to a greater degree than others — what am I doing? Why am I here?’ What I kept falling back on was the meaning and purpose of life as someone who believes that there is a creator and we are created beings, our purpose in life is, without qualification, to make the world a better place and serve others. That is what life is all about.”

Back in January, Ritchson confirmed that Reacher season three would be based on Lee Child’s novel Persuader, the seventh book in the Jack Reacher franchise that was first published in 2003.

For help, advice or more information regarding sexual harassment, assault and rape in the UK, visit the Rape Crisis charity website. In the US, visit RAINN.