The Hunt for Red October cast is led by Alec Baldwin as Dr. Jack Ryan and Sean Connery as Capt. 1st Marko Ramius. Scott Glenn plays CDR Bart Mancuso, Sam Neill plays Capt. 2nd Vasily Borodin and James Earl Jones plays Vice ADM James Greer. The Hunt for Red October (1990), directed by John McTiernan, opened in the US on March 2, 1990. Its TMDB credits list 60 performers, from Joss Ackland and Richard Jordan in Washington to Tim Curry, Peter Firth and Courtney B. Vance at sea. The cast is notable because it came together so late. Klaus Maria Brandauer was cast as Ramius first and left after filming began, so Connery took over in the spring of 1989. Baldwin became the first actor to play Jack Ryan on screen after Kevin Costner and Harrison Ford turned the part down. James Earl Jones then played Greer again in the next two films.
| # | Actor | Character |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alec Baldwin | Dr. Jack Ryan |
| 2 | Sean Connery | Capt. 1st Marko Ramius |
| 3 | Scott Glenn | CDR Bart Mancuso (USS Dallas) |
| 4 | Sam Neill | Capt. 2nd Vasily Borodin |
| 5 | James Earl Jones | Vice ADM James Greer |
| 6 | Joss Ackland | Ambassador Andrei Lysenko |
| 7 | Richard Jordan | Dr. Jeffrey Pelt, National Security Advisor |
| 8 | Peter Firth | Capt. 2nd Ivan Putin (Political Officer, Red October) |
| 9 | Tim Curry | Dr. Yevgeni Petrov (Red October) |
| 10 | Courtney B. Vance | Petty Officer Ronald 'Jonesy' Jones (USS Dallas) |
| 11 | Stellan Skarsgård | Capt. 2nd Viktor Tupolev (V.K. Konovalov) |
| 12 | Jeffrey Jones | Skip Tyler |
| 13 | Fred Thompson | Rear ADM Joshua Painter (Enterprise Carrier Battle Group) |
| 14 | Timothy Carhart | Bill Steiner |
| 15 | Larry Ferguson | Chief of the Boat (USS Dallas) |
| 16 | Daniel Davis | CPT Charlie Davenport (USS Enterprise) |
| 17 | Tomas Arana | Igor Loginov (Cook, Red October) |
| 18 | Anatoli Davydov | Officer #1 (Red October) |
| 19 | Rick Ducommun | Navigator C-2A |
| 20 | Ronald Guttman | Lt. Alexander Melekhin (Red October) |
| 21 | Krzysztof Janczar | Andrei Bonovia (V.K. Konovalov) |
| 22 | Anthony Peck | Lt. CDR Philip Thompson (USS Dallas) |
| 23 | Ned Vaughn | Seaman Beaumont (USS Dallas) |
| 24 | Mark Draxton | Seaman (USS Dallas) |
Billing order from the film's credits (TMDB). Actors with a Cinvibe page and characters with a character page are linked.
Also in the cast: Tom Fisher (Seaman (USS Dallas)), Pete Antico (Seaman (USS Dallas)), Michael George Benko (Ivan (Red October)), Ivan G'Vera (Officer #2 (Red October)), Artur Cybulski (Diving Officer (Red October)), Sven-Ole Thorsen (Russian COB (Red October)), Michael Welden (Gregoriy Kamarov (Red October)), Boris Lee Krutonog (Viktor Slavin (Red October)), Kenton Kovell (Seaman (Red October)), Radu Gavor (Seaman (Red October)), Ivan Ivanov (Seaman (Red October)), Ping Wu (Seaman (Red October)), Herman Sinitzyn (Seaman (Red October)), Vlado Benden (Seaman (V.K. Konovalov)), George Saunders (Seaman (V.K. Konovalov)), Don Oscar Smith (Helicopter Pilot), George H. Billy (DSRV Officer (Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle)), Reed Popovich (Lt. Jim Curry), Andrew Divoff (Officer Andrei Amalric (Russian Foxtrot Bomber)), Peter Zinner (ADM Yuri Padorin, Chief Political Officer, Soviet Navy), Tony Veneto (Padorin's Orderly), Ben Hartigan (Admiral (Briefing)), Ray Reinhardt (Judge Moore (Briefing)), F.J. O'Neil (General (Briefing)), Robert Buckingham (Admiral #2 (Briefing)), A.C. Lyles (Advisor #1), John McTiernan Sr. (Advisor #2), David Sederholm (Sunglasses), John Shepherd (Russian Foxtrot Pilot), William Bell Sullivan (Lt. CDR Mike Hewitt), Gates McFadden (Caroline Ryan), Louise Borras (Sally Ryan), Denise E. James (Stewardess), Peter Jason (Commander, USS Reuben James (uncredited)), Shane Black (Crewman, USS Reuben James (uncredited)), Mark Rodney (Assistant Joint Chief of Staff (uncredited)).
Alec Baldwin plays Dr. Jack Ryan in The Hunt for Red October, the CIA analyst who comes to believe that Ramius may be trying to defect rather than attack. Producer Mace Neufeld went to Kevin Costner first, and Harrison Ford also declined, so Baldwin became the first actor to play Ryan on screen. He turned 31 on April 3, 1989, the day principal photography began.
Sean Connery plays Capt. 1st Marko Ramius, commander of the new Soviet submarine Red October. He took over from Klaus Maria Brandauer after filming had already run for about two weeks. Mental Floss reports that Connery needed only one day of rehearsal and later said the gimbal mounted sets made him seasick.
Scott Glenn plays CDR Bart Mancuso, captain of the USS Dallas, the American submarine that loses track of Red October. Glenn, a former Marine, prepared aboard the fast attack submarine USS Salt Lake City during war games and studied its commanding officer, Tom Fargo. Fargo had the crew treat the actor as his equal in rank while he watched.
Sam Neill plays Capt. 2nd Vasily Borodin, one of the senior officers serving under Ramius aboard Red October. Neill is billed fourth, and his scenes take place aboard the Soviet boat. The production built most of its submarine interiors on Paramount soundstages and mounted them on hydraulic gimbal platforms so the sets could move like a boat at sea.
James Earl Jones plays Vice ADM James Greer, the senior CIA figure Jack Ryan reports to, in The Hunt for Red October. The AFI Catalog records director John McTiernan saying that Jones brought the character stern yet warm qualities. Jones is the only lead who stayed with his part as the series moved on, and he played Greer again in Patriot Games (1992) and Clear and Present Danger (1994).
Joss Ackland plays Ambassador Andrei Lysenko, the Soviet envoy in Washington, in The Hunt for Red October. In the setup, both the American military and the Soviet ambassador suspect that Ramius is planning an attack, so Lysenko sits at the center of the film's diplomatic story. Ackland is billed sixth in the TMDB credits and is listed in the AFI Catalog's principal cast.
Richard Jordan plays Dr. Jeffrey Pelt, National Security Advisor, in The Hunt for Red October, the White House official who has to weigh Ryan's defection theory against the fear of an attack. Jordan is billed seventh in the TMDB credits and belongs to the Washington side of the ensemble rather than the submarine crews. The AFI Catalog lists him as Jeffrey Pelt among the principal players.
Peter Firth plays Capt. 2nd Ivan Putin in The Hunt for Red October, credited as the political officer aboard Red October. Firth is billed eighth in the TMDB credits, directly after Richard Jordan, and the AFI Catalog lists him as Ivan Putin in its principal cast.
Tim Curry plays Dr. Yevgeni Petrov, the doctor aboard Red October, and is billed ninth. Curry belongs to the Soviet crew, and during production John Milius rewrote some of the script, including Connery's speeches and all of the Russian dialogue. The AFI Catalog lists Curry as Dr. Petrov in the principal cast.
Courtney B. Vance plays Petty Officer Ronald 'Jonesy' Jones, the sonar operator aboard the USS Dallas, in The Hunt for Red October. The AFI Catalog notes that casting Vance departed from Tom Clancy's novel, where the character is not written as Black, and that the same was true of James Earl Jones as Greer. Vance is billed tenth, the highest placed Dallas crew member after Scott Glenn.
Stellan Skarsgård plays Capt. 2nd Viktor Tupolev in The Hunt for Red October, credited aboard the Soviet submarine V.K. Konovalov rather than with the Red October crew. He is billed eleventh in the TMDB credits and heads the Konovalov names there. That group also includes Krzysztof Janczar as Andrei Bonovia, with Vlado Benden and George Saunders as seamen.
Jeffrey Jones plays Skip Tyler in The Hunt for Red October, one of the few principal characters credited without a rank, a ship or an office. He is billed twelfth in the TMDB credits, just ahead of Fred Thompson as Rear ADM Joshua Painter. The AFI Catalog lists Jones as Skip Tyler alongside the film's Washington and Navy players.
The Hunt for Red October cast came together between September 1988, when casting began, and May 1989, when Sean Connery was reported as the new Marko Ramius, according to the AFI Catalog. For this opening entry in the jack ryan movies, producer Mace Neufeld offered Jack Ryan to Kevin Costner first. Costner was committed to Dances with Wolves (1990), and Harrison Ford also turned the part down, which left the role open for Alec Baldwin. Paramount approved a $30 million budget in January 1989, and the Navy confirmed its cooperation in the same month.
The biggest change came after cameras rolled. Klaus Maria Brandauer had signed to play Marko Ramius, but he left soon after principal photography began on April 3, 1989, citing a prior commitment. Daily Variety reported on May 2, 1989, that Sean Connery was replacing him. The Hollywood Reporter later said the late switch added $4 million to the budget, covering rewrites and a one day delay. John Milius then revised some scenes, including Connery's speeches and all of the Russian dialogue. The full production story is on the page for the hunt for red october.
James Earl Jones is the only lead who carried on into later Jack Ryan films, and TMDB credits show him playing James Greer again in Patriot Games (1992) and Clear and Present Danger (1994). No one returns from an earlier film here, because The Hunt for Red October (1990) is where the film series begins, so every actor in the credits is new to their part.
The Ryan household was recast, and Harrison Ford took over as Jack Ryan in Patriot Games. Mental Floss reports that Paramount pressed Baldwin to commit at once to a contract covering the sequel and beyond, and that he chose a Broadway run in A Streetcar Named Desire instead. Anne Archer and Thora Birch then replaced Gates McFadden and Louise Borras as Caroline and Sally Ryan.
| Director | John McTiernan |
|---|---|
| Writers | Donald E. Stewart, Larry Ferguson |
| Producers | Mace Neufeld |
| Music | Basil Poledouris |
| Cinematography | Jan de Bont |
Alec Baldwin played Dr. Jack Ryan in The Hunt for Red October (1990), the first time the character appeared on screen. Kevin Costner and Harrison Ford had both turned the part down. Ford later took over the role in Patriot Games (1992) after Baldwin and Paramount did not reach a deal for the sequel, as Mental Floss reports.
Sean Connery played Capt. 1st Marko Ramius, the Soviet commander of Red October. Klaus Maria Brandauer was cast first but left after principal photography began, citing a prior commitment. According to the AFI Catalog, Daily Variety reported on May 2, 1989, that Connery was replacing him.
Alec Baldwin was 31 during filming of The Hunt for Red October. He was born on April 3, 1958, and principal photography began on April 3, 1989, his birthday. Sean Connery, born on August 25, 1930, was 58 when he joined the shoot that spring. Both birth dates come from TMDB, and the start date comes from the AFI Catalog.
Yes, Gates McFadden plays Caroline Ryan, Jack Ryan's wife, in The Hunt for Red October (1990), and Louise Borras plays their daughter, Sally Ryan. McFadden is billed 55th and Borras 56th in the TMDB credits. Both roles were recast for Patriot Games (1992), where Anne Archer plays Dr. Caroline 'Cathy' Ryan and Thora Birch plays Sally Ryan.
The Hunt for Red October has no single villain, because its tension comes from not knowing whether Ramius plans to defect or to attack. The opposing pressure comes from the Soviet side. At sea, Stellan Skarsgård plays Capt. 2nd Viktor Tupolev of the V.K. Konovalov, and in Washington, Joss Ackland plays Ambassador Andrei Lysenko.
No, James Earl Jones is the only lead from The Hunt for Red October who returned. He played James Greer again in Patriot Games (1992) and Clear and Present Danger (1994). Harrison Ford replaced Alec Baldwin as Jack Ryan, and the Ryan family was recast with Anne Archer and Thora Birch.
Yes, Fred Thompson plays Rear ADM Joshua Painter, credited with the Enterprise Carrier Battle Group, and he is billed 13th. The US Navy backed the film after script changes that portrayed the Navy favorably. It supplied submarine access, the carrier Enterprise, the Houston, two frigates and helicopters.
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