Alan Ritchson is following a Hollywood move that Arnold Schwarzenegger perfected, and it’s a smart career decision.
For his latest project, Ritchson will team up with Schwarzenegger in The Man with the Bag, a new action comedy that recently released its teaser trailer. When an elf (Awkwafina) steals his magical red bag, Santa (Schwarzenegger) recruits a criminal (Ritchson) off the naughty list to help him save Christmas. The holiday movie heads to Prime Video on December 2, 2026.
Currently, Ritchson is one of Hollywood’s biggest action stars. However, Ritchson clearly wants to expand his reach with an action comedy that appeals to a different audience. As fate would have it, Ritchson is taking a page from Schwarzenegger’s playbook, which transformed the Terminator actor into a true movie star.
Alan Ritchson is following in Arnold Schwarzenegger’s footsteps by expanding into comedy
In the 1980s, Schwarzenegger rose to the top of the action world on the back of hits like The Terminator, Commando, and Predator. Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone dominated the genre for a decade. However, Schwarzenegger branched off from strictly action movies and did something that Stallone couldn’t ever do: become a comedy star.
Schwarzenegger’s action films always featured witty one-liners, but it wasn’t until Twins and Red Heat (both released in 1988) that he showed his true comedic chops alongside Danny DeVito and Jim Belushi, respectively. Twins was a smash hit in particular, grossing $216 million on an $18 million budget. It changed Schwarzenegger’s career, as studios could now trust him to headline action comedies and buddy cop movies.
After Twins, Schwarzenegger starred in a run of successful comedies, including Kindergarten Cop, Last Action Hero, True Lies, Junior, and Jingle All the Way. Schwarzenegger’s expansion into comedy opened more doors for him as a movie star, enabling him to build a diverse filmography.
Unlike Schwarzenegger, Ritchson has proved he can be a comedic star with Blue Mountain State. However, that was a television role on a show that ended 15 years ago. Ritchson is at a different place in his career.
At 43, Ritchson is one of Hollywood’s leading action stars. Reacher is a global sensation for Prime Video, as Season 4 recently entered the top five for most-viewed seasons in the streamer’s history. Speaking of views, Ritchson’s sci-fi action movie on Netflix, War Machine, was the streamer’s most-watched original movie for the first half of 2026.
Ritchson has action on his resume. Now, he wants to add more comedy, especially as he tries to become more of a movie star. The Man with the Bag has all the makings of a streaming hit: popular stars and a holiday premise. Plus, it’s on Prime Video, the same streamer as Reacher.
If this movie succeeds, it opens up a world of possibilities for Ritchson, who clearly wants to take on more action comedies and buddy comedies as he gets older. Plus, Ritchson got a front-row seat to witness Schwarzenegger’s charm and persona. Perhaps The Man with the Bag will be Ritchson’s version of Twins.
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