Cobie Smulders has successfully carved a new niche for herself in the movies after "How I Met Your Mother."

From comedy to action films, Cobie Smulders is slowly inching towards a lead role as women slowly erase the damsels in distress in action films.

The former star of hit comedy series "How I Met Your Mother" is now best known for her recurring role as SHIELD director Maria Hill in Marvel's Cinematic Universe. The Wrap reports that she is in talks to take the lead role in the sequel to Tom Cuise's "Jack Reacher."

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"After playing Agent Maria Hill in the blockbuster "Avengers" movies, Cobie Smulders is poised to add another action franchise to her resume, as she's in early talks to play the female lead opposite Tom Cruise in 'Jack Reacher 2,' multiple individuals familiar with the project have told The Wrap."

Tom Cruise took interest in Lee Child's character from the long-running book series that now spans 20 novels. Jack Reacher is a former military cop who chose to go under the radar.

Cinema Blend notes that Cruise is experimenting again: "Like with his work in the Mission: Impossible, Tom Cruise has once again decided to mix up the female leads with the franchise, and if Smulders does agree to feature then she will replace Gone Girl's Rosamund Pike as the primary female character."

That is plausible because each Reacher novel is usually a new case with new characters all around with Reacher himself as the only constant. There would be some recurring characters, but they rarely pop up because the lead character does not want to stay in one place.

The first movie was based on the novel "One Shot." /Film notes that the sequel will be based on a more recent book.

"This film, however, is reportedly based on the novel "Never Go Back," published in 2013. The novel is the conclusion to a slow-simmering Reacher plot that builds over the course of a couple books. During a confrontation in one novel Reacher 'meets' the new commander of his old unit via phone, and this book opens with him arriving in Virginia for an in-person meeting."

The site also noted that Smulders character name is "Danika." The major female role in the novel is Susan Turner, so it may be an altered version of the character. What's essential is "that the script will still pair her and Reacher together in a story that shows off her skills and intelligence just as much as it highlights Reacher's."

TagsCobie Smulders, Jack Reacher 2