NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 19: Alan Ritchson attends the Lionsgate’s “Ordinary Angels” New York … More
Reacher star Alan Ritchson impressed Billy Joel so much with a cover of a classic song of his from The Stranger album that the Piano Man shared it on social media.
Ritchson, of course, shot to superstardom with the release of Prime Video’s Reacher Season 1 in 2022. Reacher Season 2 debuted in 2023 and the third season of the series wrapped up in March.
While Ritchson has made dozens of small screen appearances since 2006 — he played Arthur Curry/Aquaman in a recurring role in Smallville and starred in the lead role in the comedy series Blue Mountain State — his TV career is also rooted in music with an appearance on American Idol Season 3 in 2004.
While strolling into the room to sing before judges Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul, Ritchson swooned Abdul with an a capella verse from Stevie Wonder’s legendary hit You Are the Sunshine of My Life. Ritchson made it to American Idol’s Hollywood round before being voted off of the singing competition.
Ritchson recently showed off his singing skills in a video that partially shows his cover of Joel’s 1977 hit ballad “Just the Way You Are,” which is from the Rock and Roll Half of Famer’s landmark The Stranger album.
In turn, Joel posted the video on his Instagram page on Friday. Accompanying the post featuring Ritchson’s soulful interpretation of the song, Joel writes, “Bringing it into the weekend! Reacher star Alan Ritchson is singing all the right notes.”
While some commentators on the post knew of Ritchson’s American Idol appearance, others were completely taken aback by the screen star’s singing skills. It’s unclear who is playing guitar in the video or it’s a karaoke track. Ritchson, however, showed off his guitar-playing skills while on American Idol.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – DECEMBER 19: Billy Joel performs at Madison Square Garden on December 19, 2023 … More
What’s Next For Alan Ritchson And Billy Joel?
Even before the success of Reacher Season 3, Alan Ritchson was already signed to return to Season 4 of the series, which was renewed in October of 2024.
Ritchson may possibly reprise his role of Jack Reacher earlier than that, though, via Maria Sten’s Reacher spinoff series Neagley, which is based on her Reacher character Frances Neagley.
In a Zoom conversation with Ritchson and Sten before the premiere of Reacher Season 3, both actors seemed to like the idea of Ritchson making a guest appearence in Neagley.
“That would make sense, but we cannot confirm that it would make sense. It just makes sense in a world of hypotheticals,” Ritchson said, playfully, while Sten added, “Yes, we can neither confirm or deny such rumors.”
Ritchson then added, “Like if he popped in for a couple of episodes. But it could happen,” before Sten said, “It could happen. But who knows?”
One certainty, though, is that Ritchson will star in the upcoming sci-fi action thriller War Machine, which Netflix acquired from Lionsgate, according to Deadline. In addition, he’ll be starring in Amazon MGM Studios upcoming Santa Claus-themed movie The Man with the Bag opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger and Awkwafina.
Billy Joel, meanwhile, is set for a small screen appearance in the two-part Max documentary, Billy Joel: And So It Goes. Max announced the documentary in March and noted it will be released sometime in 2025.
The official summary for the documentary is “an expansive portrait of the life and music of Billy Joel, exploring the love, loss, and personal struggles that fuel his songwriting.
“With unprecedented access to never-before-seen performances, home movies, and personal photographs, along with extensive, in-depth one-on-one interviews, the documentary intimately explores the life and work of Joel, whose music has endured across generations.”
A release date for Alan Ritchson’s Reacher Season 4 has not yet been announced.
