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The three-year-long wait for Jack Ryan Season 3 indeed felt like an impossible mission of its own. Since its second season, released in 2019, the spy thriller series had been off-and-on about its new season. And now, finally, we have a release date, as the series is set to arrive this winter. Not only that, there are a bunch of updates on the all-new season of the Prime Video original series. But more on that in a bit.
Jack Ryan Season 3 follows the CIA star analyst-turned-spy into yet another explosive mission, packed with tension-filled, thrilling events. The second season closed with Ryan’s dangerous experiences in Venezuela and him having narrow escapes, as well as leaving some hanging questions. All of this will be answered and more in the third season. And if not, there’s always the fourth season to look forward to. Yes, it’s happening! Reportedly, the fourth season will arrive sometime next year and will be the final season of the series.
Starring John Krasinski in the titular role, the political action thriller is based on novelist Tom Clancy’s eponymous series and was created by Carlton Cuse and Graham Roland. Krasinski also serves as one of the executive producers on the show and helms the third season, which does sound great, given his success as a director with The Quiet Place and its sequel, which he wrote and directed.
Coming this December, Jack Ryan Season 3 is one of the most-awaited series of the year and if you are a fan, then you are definitely looking forward to it. While you wait for the new season to arrive, why not check out our complete guide on the release date, plot, trailer, cast and character, and everything we know so far about Jack Ryan Season 3?
When Is Jack Ryan Season 3 Coming Out?
Jack Ryan Season 3 is getting a Christmas release, set to arrive on Prime Video for streaming on and from Wednesday, December 21, 2022. You can bookmark the show's landing page on the streaming service by heading to the following link:
Watch the Jack Ryan Season 3 Trailer
The official trailer of Jack Ryan Season 3 just dropped and it’s not enough to just say it’s great. It’s explosive and gripping at every turn. As we know from the series plot, the trailer shows how the CIA agent is caught between hell and high water, with his agency declaring him a fugitive on one hand, and the enemies on the other. When Jack discovers a major international criminal organization and tries to stop a nuclear war, he is forced to become a fugitive and take matters into his own hands. However, as the clip shows, he does have support from his boss, James Greer (Wendell Pierce), and Mike November (Michael Kelly), both of whom believe in Jack.
With dangerous Russian assassins chasing him, and the CIA abandoning him on the field, Jack’s mission in the latest season is definitely going to put fans on the edge of their seats. The production values, as is obvious from the trailer, also seem to be amped up this season, with more high-octane actions, lots of firepower, and car chases across exotic locales in Europe. Watch the trailer above and get ready for a dangerously thrilling rollercoaster ride with CIA’s golden boy!
How Many Episodes Will Jack Ryan Season 3 Have?
Jack Ryan Season 3 is expected to have eight episodes, each running for an average of 50 minutes. The last two seasons also had eight episodes each, so the latest third season might continue that trend. All eight episodes will stream together on the day of the season premiere, i.e., on December 21, only on Amazon Prime Video.
Who's In the Jack Ryan Season 3 Cast?
One of the great things about the series is the ensemble cast, featuring some of the most popular names on the small and big screens. The first two seasons showcased several stars and the third season is also following suit. While many faces from Seasons 1 and 2 will not return, Jack Ryan Season 3 is sure to see the reprisal of some of its major characters. Needless to say, Krasinski returns as Dr. Jack Ryan (he’s a Ph.D. in Economics), a Marine vet and financial analyst for the CIA. He starts off with the T-FAD (Terror Finance and Arms Division) department and later gets promoted to the head of the division, now working at Capitol Hill. Ryan's characterization in the series is believed to be inspired by that of Harrison Ford when he played Jack Ryan in Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger.
Wendell Pierce and Michael Kelly are also returning to their original roles. Pierce stars as CIA agent James Greer, Ryan’s boss, and field partner. When we last saw him, Greer was struggling with heart issues and is most likely going to step back from fieldwork. Kelly will also reprise his role as Mike November, CIA station chief in Venezuela, who helped Ryan and Greer escape from a major riot on their last mission. James Cosmo, Peter Guinness, Nina Hoss, and Alexei Mavelov also join the cast for the third season. Cosmo stars as Luca, Guinness as Petr, Hoss as Alena, and Mavelov as Alexei.
In other casting news, Betty Gabriel is joining the team as Elizabeth Wright, the Chief of Station, replacing Marianne Jean-Baptiste from the previous seasons. Michael Peña is set to appear in a guest role as Domingo “Ding” Chavez, an officer of a counterterrorism unit called the Rainbow Six, who appears regularly in the novels. There is news about a spin-off featuring Chavez, which might also feature Krasinski’s Ryan, as a cameo or a special appearance. So, it suffices to say that we aren’t going to say goodbye to Jack Ryan anytime soon.
When and Where Was Jack Ryan Season 3 Filmed?
You would think that the delayed release is a result of delayed filming. On the contrary, the production for Jack Ryan Season 3 began in May 2021 and filming took place at various international locations including Prague. Considering the globe-trotting nature of Ryan’s missions, you can expect to see another set of gorgeous locales in the third season. And that's not all. The filming for the fourth season already started in February 2022, with locations in Croatia.
What Is the Background of Jack Ryan?
Jack Ryan is a fictional character created by American novelist Tom Clancy, who’s best known for spy and military fiction set during and after the Cold War. First appearing in print in 1984, there are about 32 novels featuring Jack Ryan and his friends, in what the author dubbed the Ryanverse. The CIA star spy has been portrayed by some of Hollywood’s famous actors like Harrison Ford, Alec Baldwin, Ben Affleck, and Chris Pine. The Prime Video series is the first time the character has appeared on the small screen and Krasinski is the fifth actor to have portrayed the iconic spy. Also, the Jack Ryan series is the longest that the character has been on the screen. The series premiered on Prime Video in 2018. In February 2019, ahead of the second season release, the series was renewed for a third season. In May 2022, Jack Ryan got a green light for a fourth and last season, the details of which are yet to be announced.
In behind-the-scenes news, there have actually been a few changes for Jack Ryan Season 3. Carlton Cuse, the show's co-creator, stepped down as showrunner after the second season and was replaced by Paul Scheuring. Scheuring also stepped down not long after that, now replaced by Vaun Wilmott.
The first season introduces Dr. Jack Ryan as the CIA’s financial analyst who is investigating a series of shady international bank transactions. His search catapults him from his cushy desk job into an international chase and lands him in the hands of a rising extremist group. By the second season, Ryan grows from being a brilliant analyst to an exceptional field agent. In season 2, he tracks down a shipment of illegal weapons and finds himself roped into deadly political warfare in Venezuela.
What Is Jack Ryan Season 3's Story?
Although this series revolves around a bunch of the same characters, each season is a different story and a new mission, giving something of an anthology feel to the show as a whole. Just like Seasons 1 and 2 had their own events that took Jack Ryan to different corners of the world, Season 3 will also see the CIA agent in a new place with a new goal.
This season, we find Jack Ryan working in Rome when he discovers a major international threat in Russia, where a bunch of autocrats have devised a way and weapons to restore the USSR, based on a 50-year-old secret scheme. When he shares this intel with the CIA, the agency stands down for fear of starting an international incident. But Jack sees this as a major threat that could start another World War. Thus, Ryan himself becomes a target of the CIA as well as a threat to the Russians who seek to eliminate him.
Check out the official synopsis of Jack Ryan Season 3, as published by Prime Video:
Season 3 of the action-thriller series finds Jack Ryan on the run and in a race against time. Jack is wrongly implicated in a larger conspiracy and suddenly finds himself a fugitive out in the cold. Now, wanted by both the CIA and an international rogue faction that he has uncovered, Jack is forced underground, crisscrossing Europe, trying to stay alive, while preventing a massive global conflict.
The new season will also and most likely address the personal side of Ryan’s life. We never got to learn what happened when his relationship with Cathy (Abbie Cornish) ended offscreen. Except for a random mention of his single status, the circumstances of Cathy’s absence in Season 2 are never actually revealed. Though reportedly she is not going to appear in the third season, there have been some reports that Cathy might make an appearance in the fourth and final season. So, this might be another angle to address in the third season.