Casey F. Ryback (born August 6, 1953) is a fictional character and

action hero An action hero (sometimes action heroine for women) is the protagonist of an action film or other form of entertainment which portrays action, adventure, and often violence. Action heroes are depicted in exciting or perilous chase sequences, figh ...

from the ''

Under Siege ''Under Siege'' is a 1992 action thriller film directed by Andrew Davis and written by J. F. Lawton. It stars Steven Seagal (who also produced the film), Tommy Lee Jones, Gary Busey, and Erika Eleniak. Seagal plays Casey Ryback, a former ...

'' films of the 1990s. Played by Hollywood action star

Steven Seagal Steven Frederic Seagal ( ; born April 10, 1952) is an American actor, producer, screenwriter, martial artist, and musician. A 7th-Dan (rank), dan Black belt (martial arts), black belt in aikido, he began his adult life as a martial arts instru ...

, Ryback is a

chief petty officer A chief petty officer (CPO) is a senior non-commissioned officer in many navies and coast guards, usually above petty officer. By country Australia "Chief Petty Officer" is the second highest non-commissioned rank in the Royal Australian Navy ...

, culinary specialist and former

Navy SEAL The United States Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the United States Navy's primary special operations force and a component of the United States Naval Special Warfare Command. Among the SEALs' main funct ...

operator with top training in martial arts, explosives, special-weapons and tactics. He appears in the 1992 film ''

'' and its

sequel A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music, or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same ...

, '' Under Siege 2: Dark Territory'', in 1995.

Biography

CPO (SEAL) Casey Ryback, USN (Ret.), was a decorated leader of SEAL Team Four until losing security clearance, demoted to

cook Cook or The Cook may refer to: Food preparation * Cooking, the preparation of food * Cook (domestic worker), a household staff member who prepares food * Cook (profession), an individual who prepares food for consumption in the food industry * C ...

aboard USS Missouri. He struck his CO (Commanding Officer) after his SEAL teammates were killed because of poor intelligence during the

invasion of Panama The United States invaded Panama in mid-December 1989 during the presidency of George H. W. Bush. The purpose of the invasion was to depose the '' de facto'' ruler of Panama, General Manuel Noriega, who was wanted by U.S. authorities for racke ...

Operation Nifty Package Operation Nifty Package was a United States Delta Force and Navy SEAL-operated plan conducted in 1989 designed to capture Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega. When Noriega took refuge in the Apostolic Nunciature of the Holy See (diplomatic quarter) ...

, in which they were sent to disable General Manuel Noriega's private jet at Punta Paitilla Airport. At the end of the first film, his former position was given back to him in a ceremony following his bravery. At the beginning of the sequel, Ryback had retired from the Navy as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

, shown by the salute and verbal greeting from his driver in the beginning of the film. He worked as a chef at the Mile High Cafe in

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

, Colorado. According to his fictional Colorado's driving license, he has brown eyes, black hair and he is 6 ft 5 in (1.96 meters) tall and weighs around 220 lbs (100 kilograms). At the end of the second film, when Ryback visits his brother's grave, he wears Navy Dress Whites with the shoulder boards of a Navy Lieutenant (O-3). This means he was awarded a direct commission after the events of the first film. In the original poster art of the first film, he wears shoulder boards of a flag officer. Not enough is shown to see one-star, two-star, or admiral. In the first film, he has the rank of Chief Petty Officer. As a SEAL, Ryback was awarded various U.S. military honors. His niece Sarah lists them as the

Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Naval Service's second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is equivalent to the Army ...

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

and

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the president to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

with clusters. Ryback would also have earned the

Special Warfare insignia The Special Warfare insignia, also known as the "SEAL Trident" or its popular nickname in the Navy community, "The Budweiser", recognizes those members of the United States Navy who have completed the Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) trai ...

, and other decorations during his 20 years of service mentioned in the first film, including the

Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal The Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (AFEM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces, which was first created in 1961 by Executive Order of President John F. Kennedy. The medal is awarded to members of the U.S. Armed Forces who, a ...

for operations in Panama, and most likely the Navy's Marksmanship Medals. The gold chief's stripes shown at the end of the first film also indicated multiple earning of the Navy's Good Conduct Medal. Missouri post refit

In the first film, the mercenaries on the do not know who Ryback is, believing he was just a mere cook. This added an element of surprise to the onslaught which followed. However, in the sequel, ''Under Siege 2'', in which Ryback boards a train with his niece Sarah (

Katherine Heigl Katherine Heigl ( ; born November 24, 1978) is an American actress and model. She portrayed Izzie Stevens, Dr. Izzie Stevens on the American Broadcasting Company, ABC television medical drama ''Grey's Anatomy'' from 2005 to 2010, a role that b ...

) to visit a recently deceased brother James (Sarah's father) in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

from

, the mercenaries who hijack the train have full knowledge of the man they are dealing with once they hear his name. For the hand to hand combat, in the first film Ryback uses merely

aikido Aikido ( , , , ) is a gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art which is split into many different styles including Iwama Ryu, Iwama Shin Shin Aiki Shuren Kai, Shodokan Aikido, Yoshinkan, Renshinkai, Aikikai, and Ki Aikido. Aikido is now practic ...

techniques mixed with striking and kicking, while in the sequel, he implements moves used in

combatives Combatives is the term used to describe the hand-to-hand combat systems primarily used by members of the military, law enforcement, or other groups such as security personnel or correctional officers. Combatives are based in martial arts but a ...

, such as the

rear naked choke The rear naked choke (RNC), also known as hadaka jime (裸絞) in Judo and "lion killer choke (Mata Leão)" in BJJ, is a chokehold in martial arts applied from an opponent's back. The word ''naked'' in this context suggests that, unlike other stra ...

and the open guard.

Influence and reception

Casey Ryback became one of well known names of action heroes in the action film genre in the 1990s compared to the likes of

John McClane John McClane Sr. is a fictional character and the protagonist of the ''Die Hard'' franchise, based on Joe Leland from Roderick Thorp's action novel '' Nothing Lasts Forever''. McClane was portrayed in all five films by actor Bruce Willis, and ...

from the ''Die Hard'' films. As David West writes, ''Under Siege'' is "cut from the same cloth as the 'Die Hard' series and stars Seagal as Casey Ryback..." The character of Ryback has been criticized in the media because he is invincible and would defeat his opponents rather too easily, removing the element of surprise in his personal combat. As Eric Lichtenfeld writes, "Ryback...is the ultimate warrior. As the action genre tends toward hyperbole, Ryback is an amalgam of everything that signifies Ultimate Warrior status, even more than Riggs had been in ''Lethal Weapon''. It is fitting then, that...Ryback's costuming progresses from a white cook's uniform...to an olive tank top, to the all-black garb that merges Ryback with the ship, and with which Seagal came to be identified.Eric Lichtenfeld, ''Action Speaks Louder: Violence, Spectacle, and the American Action Movie'' (Wesleyan University Press, 2007)
169
.

References

External links

Casey Ryback (Character) from ''Under Siege'' (1992)
," ''The Internet Movie Database''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ryback Film characters introduced in 1992 Action film characters Fictional chefs Fictional United States Navy SEALs personnel Fictional aikidoka Fictional karateka Fictional judoka Fictional eskrimadors Fictional military personnel in films Fictional United States invasion of Panama veterans Steven Seagal