One Ryan to Rule Them All: Comparing the Actors Who've Played Tom Clancy's Iconic Character

Which actor gave the star-spangled James Bond his due?

Not Available Lead
Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

Not Available Lead

Ever since The Hunt for Red October hit bookstores in 1984, Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan character has been the preeminent American patriot of the written word. He has the meticulous intelligence of George Smiley and the action chops of James Bond, but he’s on the side of the red, white, and blue, which makes him a staple of coffee tables across Middle America. While most people in the 18-25 age bracket have never picked up one of Clancy’s books, chances are that you have seen at least one of the movies based on those titles.

From 1990-2002, four of Clancy’s Jack Ryan books were adapted for the big screen: Hunt for Red October (1990), Patriot Games (1992), Clear and Present Danger (1994), and The Sum of All Fears (2002). But like many action franchises, Hollywood had a hard time sticking to one dude. Alec Baldwin started it all in 1990; Harrison Ford and Ben Affleck later inherited the role.

Now the series is getting another reboot, and with a reboot comes another actor handling the Ryan mantle: Star Trek’s Chris Pine. In Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, Pine plays a rookie Ryan in the first movie in the series to not be based upon one of Clancy’s books. With so many different movies and actors playing Jack Ryan, it's time to find out who did it best. This is One Ryan to Rule Them All: Comparing the Actors Who've Played Tom Clancy's Iconic Character.

RELATED: The Most Anticipated Movies of 2014
RELATED: The Best Movies of 2013
RELATED: 100 Movies You Need to See Before You Die

Alec Baldwin

Not Available Interstitial

Harrison Ford

Not Available Interstitial

Ben Affleck

Not Available Interstitial

Chris Pine

Not Available Interstitial

Latest in Pop Culture