Netflix cornered the market on addictive TV series for years, but Prime Video subscribers now know to not sleep on Amazon’s commitment to streaming crowd pleasers. From The Boys series to the cross-quadrant Reacher, the service’s abundance of appealing series is growing pleasurably ridiculous. Heck, the latter selection has even reignited interest in the not-as-well-received movies, but will that be the case with the new Cross series?
Aldis Hodge will star as the titular detective of James Patterson novels after multiple cinematic efforts starring Morgan Freeman and Tyler Perry. Let’s discuss why this show might be the next great-detective bingewatch.
Plot
Thus far, Amazon hasn’t revealed whether the show will make Alex Cross genuinely sexy (as opposed to Patterson’s sex-prose), so that Aldis Hodge might pull an Alan Ritchson by talking about naked-scene workouts, but TV’s Alex Cross will not be a slouch in the physique department, as an interrogation scene in a trailer reveals. Yes, that’s a superficial way to begin this discussion, although it’s fair to assume that Alex Cross’ guns will be the subject of online discussion. Amazon is so confident in the leading man’s magnetic ways, in fact, that this series has already been renewed for a second season.
Substance is also of the utmost importance, of course. Jack Reacher’s (unexplainable and rather silly) powers of deduction will be surpassed by James Patterson’s Alex Cross — who becomes laser-focused when he’s on a case — a brilliant and heralded forensic psychologist and detective who is “uniquely capable of digging into the psyches of killers and their victims, in order to identify—and ultimately capture—the murderers.” That descriptor will be familiar to Patterson’s readers, but Cross will assure a defendant that he is “living rent free” in this criminal’s head, regardless of whether he chooses to comply with a confession. Of course, due process is key to prosecution, but Cross is known to deliver results after working his interrogation magic.
Patterson has gone on record with LA Mag to reveal how the TV show, which he very much enjoys, will be slightly “edgier” than his novels:
“It’s a little edgier, which I really like, and it’s a little more realistic. I’ve said it before, but I don’t really write realism. Sometimes, people will go, ‘Well, this isn’t very realistic,’ and I go, ‘Well, that’s not really a relevant criticism because I don’t write realism.’ You can say, ‘I don’t like it,’ and that’s a reasonable criticism, but it’s not realism because I don’t write realism.”
Cross is also the subject of 30+ books, so (like Reacher) we can expect this show to continue into infinity as long as the audience keeps watching. We’ll find out soon whether this crime thriller satisfies enough to move beyond the already in-the-works second season. From the first-season synopis:
Based on NY Times Bestselling author James Patterson’s #1 hero, Cross is a crime thriller that follows the investigations of brilliant forensic psychologist and DC Metro Detective Alex Cross. Together with his best friend and partner Detective John Sampson, Cross delves into the psyches of America’s most insidious killers while fighting to protect his family from the dangers of the criminal world.
Cast
Aldis Hodge will make the Alex Cross role his own after multiple portrayals by Perry and Freeman. First season cast members include Isaiah Mustafa, Samantha Walkes, Jennifer Wigmore, Eloise Mumford, Ryan Eggold, Juanita Jennings, Alona Tal, Caleb Elijah, Melody Hurd, and Johnny Ray Gill.
Amazon has already announced second-season cast members Matthew Lillard, Wes Chatham, and Jeanine Mason.
Release Date
The eight episodes of the first season stream on November 14, 2024. The second-season release date has yet to be announced.
Trailer
As seen below, criminals will attempt to outsmart Cross, but they shall fail.
