Reacher author Lee Child on why he's feeling "professionally, incredibly jealous" of the Maria Sten-starring Francis Neagley spinoff series.

Following his team-up with the 110th in season 2, and the subsequent takedown of tech mogul Shane Langston, Lee Child has his anti-hero tackling human trafficker Zachary Beck in the latest instalment, which is adapted from the author's seventh book, Persuader.

"As you know, Reacher is a big, tough guy," the author tells Entertainment Weekly. "He can take anybody on, but I wanted to have him face an opponent that would be a real problem.