The fate of Reacher Season 3's beloved character, Richard Beck, is in question after a major revelation in Episode 6.
In Reacher Season 3, Richard Beck is the son of shady businessman Zachary Beck who gets entangled with his father's illegal arms dealing operations under the management of Jack Reacher's current enemy, Julius McCabe.
Episode 1 sees Reacher saving Richard from a staged kidnapping attempt to get inside Zachary Beck's business.
While Reacher initially only sees Richard as his ticket to get his undercover informant mission going, he eventually cares for the kid since he knows he is innocent.
Did Richard Beck Die in Lee Child's Persuader Book?
Richard Beck is a prominent figure in Lee Child's Persauder (the book that Reacher Season 3 is based on).
While most of Amazon Prime Video's on-screen adaptation stays truthful to the book (from the fake kidnapping of Richard to his dynamic with Reacher), one of the major changes in Reacher Season 3 is the absence of Richard's mom, Elizabeth.
In the book, Elizabeth is crucial in giving Reacher some much-needed information about her husband's business and his connections to Xavier Quinn (who is posing as Julius McCabe).
It is also established in the novel that Paulie (Quinn's terrifying seven-foot enforcer) abuses Elizabeth to mock Zachary and Richard.
One of the main goals of Reacher in the book is to ensure Elizabeth and Richard's safety while he finds a way to expose Quinn and eliminate him once and for all.
In the end, Reacher manages to rescue Elizabeth and Richard from Quinn, meaning that the mother-son duo lives to fight another day.
Will Richard Beck Survive in Reacher Season 3?
In Season 3, Episode 6, Richard Beck (played by Reacher Season 3 main cast member Johnny Berchtold) accidentally uncovers Reacher's secret after realizing that he is in cahoots with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Instead of exposing him to his father, Reacher convinces Richard that he is his best shot at making it out of this mess alive, pointing out that his main mission is to kill Julius McCabe due to an unfinished business in the past.
Reacher notes that Richard and his dad, Zachary, are already in prison because Quinn has full control of their lives. It is also made clear throughout Reacher Season 3 that Zachary cares for his son, which is why he is forced into doing Quinn's bidding.
However, Reacher's plan to destroy the illegal business from the inside gets derailed after his cover is blown after Quinn and his men manage to connect the dots and expose him as the mole.
While Reacher manages to escape and flee the mansion, it is clear that he will finish what he already started and fulfill his promise to Richard that he will do whatever it takes to protect him.
Season 3, Episode 6 already showed Quinn threatening Richard's life by making him play the dangerous Russian Roulette game that Reacher did in Episode 1.
At this rate, Richard's life will continue to be in peril, but Quinn still needs to keep him alive as a way to have leverage over Zachary Beck.
Given Reacher's relentless determination to keep his promise, there's a strong chance that he will find a way to save Richard similar to the books.
New episodes of Reacher Season 3 premiere every Thursday on Prime Video at midnight PT (read more about its official release schedule here).
