John Krasinski is officially back in Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan: Ghost War, which sees him reprise his role as the titular FBI operative. Back with Krasinski in this 2026 movie schedule entry are a few franchise veterans, including Michael Kelly and Wendell Pierce. Of course, there’s a great level of physicality to the work the actors do within this beloved franchise, so they have to stay in tip-top shape. Krasinski and Kelly recently spoke to CinemaBlend about their training regimens, and I was surprised by the fitness methods they named.
Some may imagine that Krasinski’s training for the explosive Ghost War (and the four-season TV show that preceded it) solely involved weights. However, that’s not exactly the case. I recently spoke with both Krasinski and Kelly while they were promoting their film and asked about specific techniques they’d picked up in order to stay in shape. Krasinski didn’t hold back in saying that pilates was the key and, while that may seem unexpected on the surface, it actually makes sense:
I mean, full disclosure Pilates. I mean, I knew that this was going to be a lot more action that we had done before. And I've almost always done all my stunts for better or for worse and, this time, I honestly — the thing that always hurts me the most is running, because going from a standstill to a sprint is very, very difficult if you don't know what you're doing. So stretching was, weirdly, the big headline for me on this.
While I’ve long known that it’s important for an action star to remain nimble, I didn’t think much about whether any of them might utilize pilates to such a great extent. However, it does make sense and, considering Krasinski’s work throughout the franchise, it’s hard to argue with the results. Krasinski’s point about going from a standstill to a sprint also makes me appreciate Tom Cruise’s iconic running scenes more. As for Michael Kelly (who reprises his role as Mike November in Ghost War), he had this to say about his preparation:
[I had a] slight hammy, pulled a hammy, doing my dead sprint. Like [John] said, you go from that standstill. And, you know, my wife's personal trainer, yoga instructor…. I learned my base from her that I can take with me on the road when I go do these things. So I'm constantly, you know, I'm a little older now and constantly working to try and keep myself at least preventative, you know, to not get her doing this shit.
Of course, the notion of any of the stars getting hurt is definitely not far-fetched, especially considering the scope of Ghost War, which is helmed by veteran franchise director Andrew Bernstein. In it, Jack reunites with Mike and Jim Greer (Pierce) to take down a rogue former operative (Max Beesly) looking to revive a dangerous task force. During our conversation, Krasinski spoke a bit about how the movie in comparison to the TV show:
The fun part about the movie action-wise was we really got a chance to push this. I think the key to the movie versus the show is now that you fell in love with these characters from the show, you're able to put them in a more compressed situation and put them through more harrowing situations, whether that be interpersonal relationships and animosity or harrowing situations in in the physical world, too, with car chases and shootouts outside of St. Paul's, but I think it's all because these characters you care about that these action set pieces work, and so I was thrilled to get to do it, and I was thrilled to get to see [Michael], do more action, and I was trying to get him hurt, and it didn't work.
John Krasinski’s last comment speaks to the light-hearted camaraderie and vibe that’s been established on the Jack Ryan sets. In all seriousness, though, I’m glad that neither Krasinski nor Michael Kelly apparently sustained serious injuries during principal photography. Whatever lies ahead for the franchise, here’s hoping they and their co-stars continue to stay healthy (especially if Krasinski wants to make that Without Remorse crossover happen).
Check out Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan: Ghost War when it becomes streamable on May 20. If you haven’t already, grab a Prime Video subscription so you’ll be able to check it out.
