Reacher star Alan Ritchson has revealed he auditioned to play Thor before Chris Hemsworth sealed the deal.

In a new interview with Men’s Health, the actor opened up about his failed audition for the god of thunder in Marvel’s 2011 film, admitting he only thought about whether he would look the part.

“I didn’t take it seriously,” he explained. “I was like, ‘They’ll throw me the part if I look like the guy. Nobody really cares about acting’.”

However, the casting team told Ritchson’s reps that he hadn’t shown he had “the craft”, and the part ultimately went to Hemsworth.

Ritchson went on to secure small parts in shows such Black Mirror, New Girl, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine, as well as a main role in DC series Titans, before landing his breakthrough role as the titular character in Prime Video’s Reacher.

Filming for Reacher season three is currently underway, with Ritchson recently teasing that it’s taking place in Maine.

The star also opened up about the effects of the gruelling training regime for his character, revealing: “I want to clarify one thing, because in every interview someone says ’30 pounds of muscle’. I put on 30 pounds! I don’t know how much of that was lean muscle.

“I went from 205lb to 235lb in eight months. I was eating a tonne. I don’t think all of that was muscle. I f**king wrecked my body. It was too much. I didn’t have time to heal.

“I would strain something and I was like, ‘I don’t care! I’m working through it!’. I suffered the consequences.”