Summary

Collider’s Steve Weintraub talks with John Krasinski, Wendell Pierce, and Michael Kelly for Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan: Ghost War.

The trio discuss why returning to the Prime Video series as a movie was the right move, A Quiet Place Part III, and Taylor Sheridan’s Lioness.

Collider also talks with Ghost War director Andrew Bernstein.

It’s been three years since we saw the fourth and final season of Prime Video’s Jack Ryan, and according to series star and executive producer John Krasinski, even with A Quiet Place Part III now underway, he still hasn’t been able to let go of the CIA analyst fully. “I never felt good about leaving the character behind,” he tells Collider’s Steven Weintraub in an interview for Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan: Ghost War, the streamer’s upcoming spin-off movie. Ghost War, directed by Andrew Bernstein from a screenplay co-written and produced by Krasinski, thrusts a reluctant Jack Ryan back into the world of espionage. After a covert international mission reveals a deadly conspiracy underway, Ryan must now confront a rogue black-ops unit that seems to know his every move. To best their enemy, Ryan, CIA operative Mike November (Michael Kelly), and their former boss James Greer (Wendell Pierce) team up with Emma Marlow, Sienna Miller’s whipsmart M16 officer, to unravel this intricate web of betrayal. Don’t miss Collider’s interviews below, where Krasinski, Kelly, and Pierce discuss the move from a TV series to a feature-length return, and why a movie was the right choice to continue Jack Ryan’s legacy, opening up the universe to a whole new audience. The trio talks about “one-upping” the show in terms of scope and spectacle, and Krasinski and Pierce break down the scene that Pierce calls “one of the highlights” of his career. Don’t miss our conversation with Bernstein, as well, where he discusses Ghost War’s record-breaking car chase and more!

John Krasinski Is Ready to Close His Chapter With ‘A Quiet Place 3’

Kelly also shares an exciting tease for Taylor Sheridan fans.

John Krasinski carrying Cade Woodward in A Quiet PlaceImage via Paramount Pictures

COLLIDER: Before we jump into Jack Ryan and my silly questions… JOHN KRASINSKI: Dunkin’ Donuts. Oh, we’re getting there. Don’t worry. KRASINSKI: Great. [Laughs] Exactly. Michael, individual for you. I’m a fan of Lioness. Are you a part of Season 3? What can you tell people? MICHAEL KELLY: I am, yes. We have completed it, and I don’t know for sure, but I think it’s somewhere around the end of the summer, probably, it’ll come out. It’s really good, man. Really fun. John, I am a fan of these movies called A Quiet Place. I think you’re involved with them. I’m curious, when do you start filming the third one? What do you want to tell fans about it? KRASINSKI: We start filming one week from today, and this is how nervous and stressed out I am. So I’m glad to be distracted because, yeah, it’s a lot. We’re so excited. Listen, I’m just really excited that I’m being given the chance to close out my chapter. This was always seen as a trilogy in my head. I just wanted to figure it out in an organic way, and I think we have.

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One other thing before we get into Jack. Disclosure Day is coming out this summer, as you guys know. I think John’s aware. For each of you, do you have a favorite Spielberg? KRASINSKI: Without a doubt, it has to be Jaws for me, because for me, Jaws changed my life in every single way cinematically, in not only how exciting and thrilling a movie can be, how brilliantly a movie can be shot, but also script. I think that that movie doesn’t get given as much due as it should as a script, because it’s such a huge, massive hit movie, but the truth is, I always turn back to it to look at how relationships, especially between three people, are really done. WENDELL PIERCE: Schindler’s List. Yeah. Man, that… KRASINSKI: That is the review of everybody for Schindler’s List. “Yeah. That is…” PIERCE: I am haunted by the little girl in the red coat. That movie really just nailed me to my seat in the theater for a good 20 minutes afterwards. I couldn’t even stand. It was just so impactful. KELLY: It’s a tough one. I think that he is our greatest storyteller. I’m not going to say filmmaker or whatever. He’s our greatest storyteller. But for me, I would go Jaws, too, just because I remember visiting my family, my dad’s brothers and sisters, and all the cousins, we all got together, and we saw the movie. We were staying at the shore, at the Jersey shore, and I just remember the impact that it had on me as a kid. And of course, watching it later, you realize how great it is, but at the time, to see it and just be like, “Oh my god,” like, it killed me. It killed me for many summers. Coming to the most important subject: John, this is for you. True or false: You moved back to New York City so you could live next to a Dunkin’ Donuts? KRASINSKI: That is true. Yeah. I usually dictate most of my movements with Dunkin’ Donuts. You guys, you won’t understand. This is a 20-year joke between the two of us. KRASINSKI: It’s true. It was our first interview. Literally. Yeah, it’s 20 years. So I guess the next most important thing is, did you put a scene on Emirates first class so you guys could all get first class for life on the airline? KRASINSKI: I wish I could say yes, but I don’t think it’s for life. Definitely for that one flight. But I will tell you that what you see in that scene is not Mike November. That’s just Michael Kelly in first class. This dude grabs every freebie. I think he had six eye masks and 14 glasses of champagne on that one flight. I like how he’s laughing and not denying it. KRASINSKI: Correct! KELLY: [Laughs] Whatever, man. It’s a good time. KRASINSKI: “They’ve got a shower?!” “Oop, Michael’s on the plane.”
John Krasinski Reveals Why He “Never Felt Good” Leaving Jack Ryan Behind

The trio discuss why it was time for a Jack Ryan movie.

All three of you have done action before, and I’m just curious, which of you was the first one to quote the great Danny Glover and say, “I’m getting too old for this shit,” making this, and was it a sequence or a stunt? KRASINSKI: That’s really good. Who was the first? I usually live by that quote. I think on this one, what I have learned in my elder wisdom is stretching because, weirdly, where I’ve gotten hurt the most on this show is going from a standstill to a sprint, which you think I would have been able to figure out by now, but nope. It’s usually like, “John, we’ll be ready after lunch.” “Sure. No problem.” And then when we go, it just immediately quads out. I basically can’t walk for two weeks after I do one running scene. Jack Ryan is a world-class data analyst. If he had to look at the Dunder-Mifflin quarterly reports, would you find a global conspiracy, or would he realize that Kevin Malone is a genius? KRASINSKI: [Laughs] Why can’t it be both? Why can’t Kevin Malone be behind a global conspiracy? You’ve added Sienna Miller to this cast as Emma Marlow. On a scale of one to Greer’s grumpiest morning, how quickly did she realize that the three of you are essentially a traveling comedy troupe disguised as CIA? PIERCE: Almost immediately, so does that make it 10 or 1? I don’t actually. KELLY: The funny thing is that she actually became part of that within an hour. KRASINSKI: She’s the funniest human. KELLY: She’s so funny. KRASINSKI: Oh my god.

Image via Amazon MGM Studios

Being serious, Jack Ryan as a TV show accomplished so much with huge action and spectacle, but John, I am very curious, you co-wrote the screenplay, so what was your goal in making the movie? What did you want to accomplish in this that hadn’t been on the TV show? KRASINSKI: For me, I was going through exactly what Jack’s going through at the beginning of the movie, which is saying you’re done with something and not being quite sure you were. And so when I said that the show was ending and that I was moving on from that, I never felt good about leaving the character behind because I’ve always loved playing the character. Then, as far as what we were trying to achieve, I think that there’s a whole new audience that we’re excited to reach that maybe haven’t seen the show. I think that Jack being pulled back into the CIA is very similar to Season 1, when he’s just coming into the CIA back then. So, for me, we never wanted to go near the movies without being extremely respectful, and I think that because of these relationships, we were able to do it. So, I do think that it became 10 times more intense and 10 times more action-packed, and weirdly, therefore, maybe 10 times more fun to shoot. KELLY: Yeah. I’ve always been a fan of the show. I’ve loved the show. I watched with my kids and my wife. We actually really love it, and I knew this film would be great. Then, when John gave us an early sneak peek at it, I was like, “Oh my god.” It blew my expectations away. I was like, “Wow, we really one-upped the series,” and that’s a tough thing to do, but we did it. PIERCE: What I look forward to is the fact that this is a standalone movie. If you haven’t seen any of the four seasons, you can still come into this, and it has the impact. So, I’m looking forward to the new group and pool of fans that we’re going to create with this movie.
This ‘Ghost War’ Scene Is “One of the Highlights” of Wendell Pierce’s Career

“I’ve always thought that Greer’s being demoted was such a wonderful opportunity to delve into that storyline.”

Image via Amazon MGM Studios

There’s this great scene of Jack and Greer in the MI6 office, and they’re arguing over the way intelligence is gathered. Greer says, “There are people in the world who kill the monsters, so you don’t have to.” John, I don’t know how much you wrote that scene specifically, but talk about how important it was that the audience feels that both people are making a valid point. For the two of you, what is it like actually preparing for a scene like that, where there’s a lot of dialogue and a lot of emotion, and you need to make the audience feel that both of you are right?

KRASINSKI: Third part first. You were asking before about how to make the move to the movie. To me, I’ve always thought that Greer’s being demoted was such a wonderful opportunity to delve into that storyline at some point, because not only was he put in a very difficult position, but he’s also carrying this with a great deal of guilt, and that there’s a burden to him with that. So I always knew that that would be a really interesting thing to tap into for the movie. I also will say, and again, he’ll react however he reacts — I know how he’s going to react — but Wendell is one of the greatest actors I’ve ever seen, let alone had the opportunity to work with, so I knew that in moving from the television show to the movie, the key was going to be he and I not only having the forefront of the story at a lot of times, but also at some point, like brothers, like family, we would have to defend each other’s sides. Because the truth is, like most things in life, he was just doing the best he could. And I love the idea that Jack is so set in his ways about black and white that he didn’t see that sometimes people are just doing the best they can, even if they make a mistake, or even if they do something that they regret. PIERCE: For me, that scene was one of the highlights, not of just the movie, but of my career. To do that scene with John was like the culmination of everything that our relationship has been over the four years of the show. Then also, his writing in it actually examines and really memorializes the discussions going on and the debates that go on in the intelligence community, and it’s the checks and balances that they go through to stay true to that true north, and hold themselves accountable and hold each other accountable. Starting the research of this, going all the way back to when it began, meeting the different offices and consultants that we had on the show, it was always very important for us to examine the personal journeys that they’re on to make sure that it’s reflected in the work. There were so many times where I’ve challenged even the officers who are actually friends of mine now on why they were a part of the intelligence community and what was important to them, and why is the mission important to them? And what they’ve all told me is to understand that it’s a time and a place for you to exercise your right of self-determination and actually do the things necessary to make this world, this country, your home, the place that it can be, and ultimately, we all dream of. So, that’s what’s reflected in that scene. It’s two men who are holding each other accountable and reminding each other what’s important to them and what their values are, and then, “How are we going to go out and act on those values? Be careful and take heed of what you do, there’s accountability.” And that’s what I love about the scene.
‘Ghost War’s 14-Minute Car Chase Broke Records

Krasinski says this action sequence is why he “fell in love with movies to begin with.”

Image via Amazon MGM Studios

There is a massive action set piece that’s 14 minutes in central London, this massive spectacle. Can you talk about filming that sequence? Is something like that, for you guys, a huge pain in the ass or an example of why you have the best job on the planet? KRASINSKI: The latter. PIERCE: The latter, absolutely. KELLY: 100%. KRASINSKI: I think that that also is a perfect example of how this business looks like it’s just a bunch of people in front of a camera and then a couple of people behind the camera shooting those people, and it’s a huge ocean of talent and people. That particular sequence took not only hundreds and hundreds of people doing absolute perfect, A work, but also months and months of preparation and a lot of partnerships and a lot of people believing — that’s a big, scary thing for a city to do, and believing that we were going to be true to our word and not hurt anybody and not hurt the city. I think it’s the first car chase in London in over 20 years. And I’m pretty sure it’s the fastest London’s ever let anyone go in a movie, speed-wise, as far as that car chase. For me, I genuinely saw that scene as this is not only why I’m proud to be in the movies myself, but why I fell in love with movies to begin with. PIERCE: Yeah, it was an adventure for me to be in the center of that. It was like riding a rocket ship, you know? It was like being on the hood of the car, having my stunt driver, Bobby, controlling it from the boot, as they say in London, it was so exciting. I’ll never forget the first day I got there and I said, “Okay, so we have a couple of people there, and we have a couple of people there,” and the stunt coordinator said, “No, Wendell, everything and everyone you see, we control in this Parliament Square.” And that’s when I realized the depth of expertise. It was like it was my Artemis II. I was riding the rocket. It was my Artemis II.
‘Ghost War’ Takes Audiences to All-New Locations With Higher Stakes

Director Andrew Bernstein discusses his practical approach to the action-packed script.

For Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan: Ghost War, Amazon MGM Studios tapped filmmaker Andrew Bernstein to bring his expertise from the series to the first Jack Ryan feature. Bernstein is an Emmy Award-nominated producer and a director best known for his work on hit shows like The West Wing, Ozark, Fear the Walking Dead, Foundation, and It: Welcome to Derry. Bernstein is reported to reunite with Krasinski, opposite Matthew Rhys, for Amazon and Prime Video’s thriller series Silent River. In this interview, Bernstein discusses continuing Jack Ryan’s legacy of taking its audiences on location to some of the world’s most stunning cities and landscapes to capture the authenticity on screen. He talks about choosing London and Dubai, how early test screenings guided their editing process, and the complex process the 14-minute car chase required to film in Central London for the first time ever. Bernstein also discusses avoiding the “easy way,” keeping his vision for the film as practical as possible, wherever the script and studio allowed, and all the techniques they employed to do so.

00:11 – Andrew Bernstein comments on Silent River with John Krasinski.

00:31 – The filmmaker revisits his time on The West Wing.

01:50 – Bernstein discusses deciding on locations to film for the movie.

03:02 – How test screenings guided early edits of Ghost War.

04:02 – Ghost War shut down Central London for the first time ever.

05:39 – Bernstein talks about staying true to his practical vision while filming.

06:34 – Everyone on set was game for Ghost War’s wildest sequences.

Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan: Ghost War is now streaming on Prime Video.

Release Date

May 20, 2026

Runtime

105 Minutes

Director

Andrew Bernstein