Meet Arnold Vosloo, the Actor Who Plays Jost Van Der Byl in 'Jack Ryan'

Arnold Vosloo makes a fleeting appearance on Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan, yet he succeeds in stealing the show. 

In the past, he featured in cult-classic horror movies like The Mummy — playing Imhotep, the former high priest who wreaks havoc on the town of Hamunaptra in a bid to take revenge on its people for having buried him alive — and The Harrowing, a hair-raising flick about the darkest secrets of a hospital. 

Ready to find out more about Arnold Vosloo, Jack Ryan Season 2's best side character?

Now, the topic of choice might lead you into thinking that Arnold is playing one of the bad guys. He has a solid record in bringing some of the most heinous, gut-wrenchingly repulsive characters to life — he showed us just what an annoyed mummy is capable of, after all —  which makes him the most-suited candidate to portray the No. 1. threat to national security.  

However, Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan sheds light on Arnold's lesser-known side. As the professional soldier, Jost Van Der Byl, he is quick to develop a close friendship with the protagonist of the series, Jack Ryan (John Krasinski). Brought together by a particularly unfortunate cause, the sudden disappearance of Jack's boss, James Greer (Wendell Pierce), the two men come up with the pitch-perfect plan to break into a prison complex where James is kept. 

Despite the careful planning, thorough research, and well-detailed strategy, Jack and Jost's rampant attempts are to remain futile. Unable to track down James, the two have to readjust the plan and search elsewhere. 

In the course of five episodes, we are to discover Arnold's caring side. This comes as a particular surprise for an actor who earned a reputation as the go-to bad guy of action movies, the scarily incalculable, vicious character who's able to inject a hefty amount of drama into any narrative, posing a serious threat to the main characters. Take his role in G.I. Joe: Retaliation: as Zartan, he shows us just how crude an antagonist can be. 

While Season 1 of the Amazon Prime series revolved around the secret's agent's relentless fight against the high profile terrorist cells operating in Yemen, Season 2 chronicles Jack's unparalleled attempts to publicly name and shame the businessmen and oil tycoons whose shady dealings left the country in a state of economic meltdown. 

Best classified as a spy thriller, an action movie, and a mockumentary rolled into one, Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan offers a unique form of entertainment. The agent's adventures are just as entertaining to watch as they are thought-provoking. It challenges the conventions of popular entertainment by inviting us to consider the personal dimensions of political affairs.