Notice! This article contains spoilers for season 1 of Cross.A lost story of Cross the first season serves as a perfect reminder to watch a controversial Morgan Freeman film that was released more than two decades ago. Featuring Aldis Hodge as the titular detective character Cross Season 1 unfolds like a typical crime thriller, where its protagonist races against time to capture a serial killer while fighting his own demons. However, despite playing with many familiar tropes and ideas, Cross establishes itself as a worthy competitor to other exciting detective shows on Amazon Prime Video with its timely twists and strong performances.
Interestingly, Cross is based on James Patterson Alex Cruz books. However, unlike most other thriller book adaptations such as Jack Ryan and Reach on Amazon Prime Video, Cross it avoids being loyal to its source material. Instead, it adopts an original plot, borrowing only a few narrative and character beats from the original books. Despite being original in more than one aspect, Cross features many hidden story details that subtly remind the viewer of a 23-year-old Morgan Freeman film.
Cross Season 1 Ignores Events From Alex Cross’ First Books (But References Them)
Despite having an original story, the first crossover season features subtle references to its source material
Amazon Cross doesn’t follow the beats of anyone’s story Alex Cruz romance. However, as its narrative suggests, it focuses on one of the early arcs of the character’s long journey as a talented detective. Although Cross avoids closely adapting the stories from the original books, it features some intriguing references to the first novels in the James Patterson series. For example, in the show’s first episode, the central serial killer, Ed Ramsey, claims to be a fan of Alex Cross and recalls how solving the Gary Soneji case made him a celebrity.
…Alex Cross has already experienced the events of Along came a spider and its timeline is further ahead than the previous books.
The Gary Soneji case is a direct reference to the events of James Patterson’s first case. Alex Cruz romance, Along came a spider. In the book, Gary Murphy/Soneji, who has dissociative identity disorder, is one of the main characters and has dissociative identity disorder. While Cross Season 1’s Ed Ramsey is an original villain who never appears in the books, the fact that he mentions Gary Soneji connects the show’s narrative to one of the source material’s main stories. It highlights that Alex Cross has already lived through the events of Along came a spider and its timeline is further ahead than the previous books.
Alex Cross’s first book was adapted into Morgan Freeman’s 2001 thriller Along Came A Spider
Unlike the show, the 2001 film is a loyal adaptation
Featuring Morgan Freeman as Alex Cross, 2001 Along came a spider was directed by Lee Tamahori. The film’s plot was based on James Patterson’s 1993 novel of the same title. However, due to its limited running time, the film avoided adapting many crucial plot points from the original book. With a budget of 28 million dollars, the film grossed $105.2 million at the global box office. Same as 2001 Along came a spider has an independent story, serves as a sequel to the 1997 film Kiss the girlswhich adapted James Patterson’s second book in the series Alex Cruz series.
Like the original book, from 2001 Along came a spider features Gary Soneji as one of the main players in its story, who is initially introduced as the main villain but is later revealed to be a ploy in another character’s overarching plan. Given how Morgan Freeman plays Alex Cross in the film, it doesn’t serve as an official prequel to the Amazon film. Cross season 1. However, since the show refers to the events of the film in the past, viewers can check it out to learn more about the story of Alex Cross and the criminal case he solved before crossing paths with Ed Ramsey.
How Aldis Hodge’s Alex Cross Compares to Morgan Freeman
Both deserve some appreciation, but one is much more memorable
Although the Morgan Freeman films accurately adapt the original books, Freeman was much older than Alex Cross is portrayed in the source material. Although the actor was almost 60 years old when he played Cross, Alex Cross is almost 30 years old in the novels. Since Aldis Hodge is 38 years old, his age and appearance are more in line with the original character. While Aldis Hodge’s demeanor and on-screen presence are enough to capture the character’s strength, the show focuses on highlighting his intellect, featuring engaging sequences where he is deep in thought.
|
Alex Cross Adaptation |
Rotten Tomatoes Critics Score |
Rotten Tomatoes audience score |
|
Kiss the Girls (1997) |
34% |
62% |
|
Along Came a Spider (2001) |
32% |
53% |
|
Alex Cruz (2012) |
11% |
47% |
|
Cruz (2024) |
77% |
67% |
In the movies, Freeman’s Cross appears similar to most detectives on the big and small screens as he examines the evidence for new clues. Hodge’s Cross, in contrast, is portrayed more as a genius who, time and again, sees things through his tunnel vision to discover intricate details that others may have missed. While both versions of the character have their own appeal, Aldis Hodge’s portrayal of the character in the Amazon film Cross it looks much more memorable.