The Hunt for Red October

In 1984, Tom Clancy published his first novel The Hunt for Red October, which garnered attention from military officials for its technical accuracy. Despite the book’s success, Hollywood struggled to adapt it. Producer Mace Neufeld optioned the rights but faced resistance from studios who considered the story too complicated. It wasn’t until 1990, after six years of development, that the film finally made it to theaters. Join us – Pete Wright and Andy Nelson – as we kick off the Jack Ryan series with a conversation about The Hunt for Red October.

 

The film introduces us to Alec Baldwin as Jack Ryan, a CIA analyst who finds himself thrust into an intricate game of cat and mouse when he discovers that Soviet submarine commander Marko Ramius (Sean Connery) might be attempting to defect. We explore how Baldwin embodies the reluctant hero aspect of Ryan’s character more effectively than subsequent actors in the role. The film’s deliberate—Hold on there! This is currently only available for members. It’ll be available to everyone else soon, but why not become a member so you can listen to it now? We’d love it if you became a member to support our show, but you’d love it because of everything you get. We have monthly member bonus episodes that only members can access. You also get access to members-only Discord channels, and early ad-free releases for every episode. Plus, you get to vote on the movies we discuss in our members only episodes! What can we say? It pays to be a member. Learn more about supporting The Next Reel film podcast through your own membership — visit TruStory FM.