Fan casting is fun. For instance, who do you think would make a good Solid Snake in a Metal Gear Solid live-action film?
Well, if you ask Reacher's Alan Ritchson, his answer might be: Reacher's Alan Ritchson. The extra-large action star sure seems to think he'd be a good fit for the role, as he posted an image on Instagram (AI generated, I'm assuming) of a poster from his new Netflix movie, War Machine—but with Ritchson looking for all the world like Solid Snake.
"The Dream," are the words Ritchson used to accompany the image, so I'm guessing he'd be up for the role of Snake in a live-action Metal Gear Solid movie. "La Li Lu Le Lo," he added, a reference to The Patriots, the secret organization controlling the US in Metal Gear lore—indicating Ritchson might be more than just a casual fan of the games. He might be a full-on, die-hard Kojima nerd.
That's cool. It's kinda fun when a celebrity turns out to be a fan of games, like Henry Cavill's nerdy Warhammer obsession or Elijah Wood's affinity for chill puzzlers on Steam Deck.
Unfortunately for Ritchson, he may have missed the boat to Mother Base. We've been waiting for a movie adaptation of Metal Gear Solid for a while now—like, 20 years—since Kojima announced the film way, way back in 2006. All sorts of names have been floated for the role of Snake in the past couple decades, from Viggo Mortensen to Hugh Jackman to Christian Bale. Nothing really stuck, but in 2020, Oscar Isaac was finally announced as the film's Solid Snake.
Of course, that was six dang years ago and as far as anyone knows, production on the film hasn't actually started and it's still in the scripting phase—which could mean that even if the movie does get made, there's no guarantee Isaac will still play the role.
As for Ritchson—I don't think he's right for the role. When I think of Snake, I think of stealth, and when I think of stealth, I don't think of a guy who is eight feet tall with shoulders as broad as a Humvee. Is he really gonna crawl through ductwork? Do they even make ducts that big? How can he sneak up behind someone without calling attention to himself because he's blotting out the sun? And there is simply not a cardboard box large enough for Ritchson to crouch beneath. His role as Snake might have to remain just a dream.
