Warning: Spoilers for Chief of Station below!

Those who enjoyed Aaron Eckhart in The Bricklayer need to check out his latest movie, which continues his recent career trajectory. Eckhart first came to people’s attention as the star of In the Company of Men and Your Friends and Neighbors, which were controversial dark comedies from director Neil LaBute. Eckhart’s movie CV has been a wild ride since then, covering major blockbusters (The Dark Knight), Oscar-winning dramas (Erin Brockovich), disaster movies (The Core) and even a little horror (Incarnate).

Despite being both a great actor and a handsome leading man, somehow, the studios never quite found a spot for Eckhart. Every attempt to position him as a movie star post-The Dark Knight misfired, Eckhart instead moved into co-leading films like the Has Fallen series. Just like Liam Neeson did with Taken, Eckhart is making himself over as an action star with intense thrillers like The Bricklayer, where he got to display both his acting and action chops.

Aaron Eckhart Is Following The Bricklayer’s Success With Chief Of Station

Chief of Station continues Aaron Eckhart’s move into the “geriaction” genre

The rise in popularity of movies like Taken or The Expendables led to the term “geriaction,” a genre of action vehicles fronted by aging stars like Neeson or Sylvester Stallone. While some critics employ the term derisively, there’s a certain pleasure in watching an old pro prove they still have it. The Bricklayer cast Eckhart in the lead after the likes of Gerard Butler passed, and the star finally proved his geriaction credentials to the world at large. However, he had already been fronting action and thriller movies for years, such as Line of Duty and Muzzle.

Eckhart’s latest is Chief of Station, where his ex-CIA agent chases down the people responsible for his wife’s death. The Jesse V. Johnson-directed action film co-stars Olga Kurylenko and Alex Pettyfer and is a slower burn in terms of setpieces compared to The Bricklayer. Even so, Eckhart’s Chief of Station is an enjoyable slice of action cinema, with the actor doing all the fistfights, gun battles and car chases required of the genre.

While Eckhart has been delivering dramatic work on recent TV series like The First Lady, a glance at his film work since 2019 shows he’s almost exclusively focused on action roles. The Bricklayer was the one that used him the best, but Chief of Station confirms Eckhart will be sticking with the action genre for the foreseeable future. His next action film will be Classified, where he plays yet another CIA agent seeking revenge.

Chief Of Station Is A Reunion For Aaron Eckhart & Olga Kurylenko

Eckhart’s new movie is great news for fans of forgotten thriller Erased

In a few ways, Eckhart’s move into action thriller terrority was predicted by 2012’s Erased, where he plays – what else? – an ex-CIA operative who goes on the run with his daughter when targeted by assassins. Erased received tepid reviews and wasn’t much of a hit, but it was an early sign Eckhart held untapped potential as an action lead in genre films. Over a decade on, he’s made good on that promise, and fittingly, Chief of Station reunites Eckhart with Erased co-star Olga Kurylenko.

Sadly, Kurylenko doesn’t get much screen time in Chief of Station, and only enters the story in the final act to help Eckhart’s Ben out of trouble. Still, the two co-stars have good chemistry together, to the point that it stings the film didn’t introduce Kurylenko’s Krystyna earlier. Like Eckhart, the actress has also moved into fronting streaming action movies such as The Courier, and Chief of Station also reunites Kurylenko with director Jesse V. Johnson following White Elephant and Boudica.

Eckhart Needs The Bricklayer 2 To Cement His Action Makeover

The Bricklayer is an Aaron Eckhart franchise waiting to happen

Chief of Station serves its function as a diverting late-night action flick, but it’s not as distinct or memorable as The Bricklayer. The latter got the mix of character and action just right, with Eckhart investing a familiar tale of CIA spies and assassins with some heart. The original Bricklayer novel was followed by a sequel novel featuring Eckhart’s Steve Vail titled Last Chance to Die. While The Bricklayer 2 has yet to be confirmed, both director Harlin and Eckhart appear open to returning.

Any action star worth their salt has a dependable action franchise they return to, be it Stallone with Rambo or Scott Adkins with Undisputed. Chief of Station doesn’t set up any further entries, but The Bricklayer’s Vail could easily go on to more misadventures. Considering the first film was a hit, it should get a budget increase too, so it would be a shame for Eckhart not to cement his place as an action lead with his very own franchise.