Home Joe Rogan Episode
Joe Rogan · 2025-10-08

Joe Rogan Experience #2390 - Jack Carr

Thriller author Jack Carr joins Joe Rogan to talk his Vietnam novel Cry Havoc, the SEAL teams, AI's threat to art, watches, trucks, and a paranoid post-Charlie-Kirk world.

Joe Rogan Experience #2390 - Jack Carr
The guest

Jack Carr: Former Navy SEAL turned bestselling thriller novelist behind the James Reece series (The Terminal List), which Amazon adapted into TV shows starring Chris Pratt. His latest novel, Cry Havoc, is an espionage thriller set in 1968 Vietnam.

What this episode covers

Jack Carr explains the obsessive research behind Cry Havoc, his 1968 Vietnam espionage thriller, going so far as to buy a period dictionary, vintage watches, and 1960s magazines to write without the benefit of hindsight. He and Rogan range across the decline of reading and AI's encroachment on music and books, the making of the Amazon adaptations Terminal List, Dark Wolf, and True Believer, and a shared obsession with vintage Land Cruisers and tool watches. The conversation turns darker on the assassination of Charlie Kirk, the eerie public celebration of it, and Carr's instinct for sensing 'evil.' They close on immigration, media failure, the cultural power of Rogan's podcast, hunting and conservation, and the unsettling experience of being a remote, security-conscious public figure.

Recommended on this episode

BookRecommendedISBN verified

Brotherhood of the Rose

David Morrell

“which were just incredible”
“wrote a series of books in the '80s, Brotherhood of the Rose, Fraternity of the Stone, League of Night and Fog, which were just incredible”— Jack Carr
BookRecommendedISBN verified

Fraternity of the Stone

David Morrell

“which were just incredible”
“wrote a series of books in the '80s, Brotherhood of the Rose, Fraternity of the Stone, League of Night and Fog, which were just incredible”— Jack Carr
BookRecommendedISBN verified

The League of Night and Fog

David Morrell

“which were just incredible”
“Brotherhood of the Rose, Fraternity of the Stone, League of Night and Fog, which were just incredible. And I got to kick off the book tour with him”— Jack Carr
ProductRecommended

Neuro Gum

Neuro

“I like that... it tastes good... gives you a little nootropic boost”
“Another one is Neuro Gum. We have some of that stuff. I like that cuz it's just it tastes good. It's gum and it gives you a little nootropic boost”— Joe Rogan
ProductRecommended

Ineos Grenadier

Ineos

“you could do no better. It was awesome”
“If you're looking for an off-road vehicle that's like fully outfitted from the factory, you could do no better. It was awesome”— Jack Carr
ProductRecommended

Toyota Land Cruiser

Toyota

“They're great in snow and anything else. And they always work. Toyota is so good”
“It's awesome four-wheel drive. They're great in snow and anything else. And they always work. Toyota is so good. They're so reliable”— Jack Carr
ProductRecommended

Garmin GPS watch

Garmin

“I can put that on full charge. It'll go like a month and a half... that could save your life”
“I have a Garmin. And it's a digital watch. It's got maps on it and stuff like that. But I use it when I go hunting”— Joe Rogan
MediaRecommended

Bad Monkey

Apple TV+

“good. It's on Apple”
“Did you see a Bad Monkey with uh with Vince Vaughn? No. good. It's on Apple”— Joe Rogan
MediaRecommended

Peaky Blinders

BBC

“It's really awesome”
“Did you watch Peaky Blinders? No, I need to watch it. It's really awesome”— Joe Rogan
MediaRecommended

Grizzly Man

Werner Herzog

“It's a fun documentary... He's brilliant”
“It's a fun documentary. It's Werner Herzog. He's brilliant and he he turns it into a comedy”— Joe Rogan

The guest's own work

BookBy the guestISBN verified

Cry Havoc

Jack Carr

“I've been really looking forward to talking to you about this book cuz I know that you've been obsessed. You've been obsessed by this era”— Jack Carr
BookBy the guestISBN verified

The Terminal List

Jack Carr

“But since we had a success with The Terminal List, now they're taking this risk with us. Just like my publisher did”— Jack Carr
BookBy the guestISBN verified

True Believer

Jack Carr

“So I was in Morocco filming True Believer just a couple weeks ago. So we finished up filming out there with Pratt and everybody”— Jack Carr
BookBy the guestISBN verified

Savage Son

Jack Carr

“So I told Tom that probably if we do Savage Son as a as a movie, he's probably not going to have his shirt on much”— Jack Carr
BookBy the guest

Red Sky Morning

Jack Carr

“that's people's favorite I think of the books. That and Red Sky Morning the last one and and mine is this one”— Jack Carr
ProductBy the guest

Alpha Brain

Onnit

“Alpha Brain's great. There's a Alpha Brain black label that's a new one that's a stronger version of Alpha Brain”— Joe Rogan
ProductBy the guest

Alpha Brain Black Label

Onnit

“There's a Alpha Brain black label that's a new one that's a stronger version of Alpha Brain. I think we have some”— Joe Rogan
MediaBy the guest

The Terminal List

Amazon / Jack Carr

“you already have the Terminal List and the Dark Wolf on TV. Yeah, you're way better off”— Jack Carr
MediaBy the guest

The Terminal List: Dark Wolf

Amazon / Jack Carr

“we have 7 hours for Dark Wolf, 8 hours for for The Terminal List, we'll have 8 hours for True Believer”— Jack Carr

Also referenced (named, not recommended)

BookReferencedISBN verified

First Blood

David Morrell

“I kicked off the book tour with David Morrell who who created Rambo back in 1972 with First Blood. So, that was a huge honor for me”— Jack Carr
BookReferencedISBN verified

The Day of the Jackal

Frederick Forsyth

“Here's Frederick Forsyth who wrote Day of the Jackal wearing his jackal coat in front of his Jaguar”— Jack Carr
BookReferencedISBN verified

So You've Been Publicly Shamed

Jon Ronson

“he's the guy who wrote So You've Been Publicly Shamed... it's about like the first mass cancellations through social media”— Joe Rogan
BookReferencedISBN verified

The Tears of Autumn

Charles McCarry

“No one's really done that since quite American Graham Greene, Tears of Autumn and Graham Greene was 1955 and Tears of Autumn was 1974”— Jack Carr
BookReferencedISBN verified

The Honourable Schoolboy

John le Carré

“and John le CarrĂ© was The Honourable Schoolboy in 1977. So it's been a it's been a while”— Jack Carr
ProductReferenced

Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon

Mercedes-Benz

“But, the reality of it is it's it's a military vehicle. The thing about G Wagons though is people do take them and then they build them out”— Joe Rogan
ProductReferenced

Rolex Submariner

Rolex

“this is 1968 Rolex like I had Yeah, so so I got that thing the Submariner so I surrounded myself with things that are like totems”— Jack Carr
ProductReferenced

Seiko (Captain Willard 6105)

Seiko

“That's the Willard. That's the one that Captain Willard wore in Apocalypse Now”— Joe Rogan
ProductReferenced

Tudor Submariner

Tudor

“it's these and the Tudors that guys were wearing back in Vietnam, the SEALs in particular. They had the Tudor Submariner. So I got one”— Jack Carr
ProductReferenced

Panerai

Panerai

“then put a Panerai on on Rafe Hastings, Tom Hopper's character, uh to differentiate him a bit”— Jack Carr
ProductReferenced

Staccato pistol

Staccato

“1911, .45, the new Staccato, that tells me something about that person, you know, what kind of hat they wear”— Joe Rogan
ProductReferenced

SIG Sauer P226

SIG Sauer

“So, I have the pistol behind my back, little 226 behind my back. Uh cuz I can do some work with that thing”— Jack Carr
ProductReferenced

Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses

Meta

“I've done several versions. I've tried them. They're pretty incredible. It's pretty incredible”— Joe Rogan
MediaReferenced

Mission: Impossible - Fallout

Paramount

“So I watched Fallout again just because of that cuz I wanted to see if I could tell what was filmed after”— Jack Carr
MediaReferenced

Apocalypse Now

Francis Ford Coppola

“I'm going to keep it to Apocalypse Now, Platoon, Navy SEALs, kind of like keep it in in that kind of thing”— Joe Rogan
MediaReferenced

Platoon

Oliver Stone

“you're on the set of Apocalypse Now when you're 10 years old, and then 10 years later you're in Platoon”— Joe Rogan
MediaReferenced

Navy SEALs

Orion Pictures

“I went to see Navy SEALs the the day before it came out... They cast Charlie Sheen, the guy from Platoon, in this?”— Jack Carr
MediaReferenced

American Primeval

Netflix

“Taylor's just like this by nature at like American Primeval, any role Taylor takes on he is uh just so invested in it”— Jack Carr
MediaReferenced

Jaws

Steven Spielberg

“Jaws came out again. It was like a 50th anniversary or something. So, I saw it in the theater with my son”— Joe Rogan

Big reveals from this episode

  • Carr says an OpenAI settlement used his books and this podcast, but his cut may be only ~$1,000 against $6,000 in legal fees.
  • Carr admits he got into the worst shape of his life after six years of nonstop writing, then got into the best shape of his life before falling off again at a December deadline.
  • Claims Navy supply was destroying issued Tudor Submariner watches with hammers in the '90s.
  • Carr names Cry Havoc as his favorite book he has written, 'hands down.'
  • Carr describes hearing his chief of staff scream the moment Charlie Kirk was shot, and racing to reach his kids before they saw the video.
  • Says he attended Tulsi Gabbard's swearing-in and that Chelsea Gabbard publicly posted about his book.
  • Rogan claims Kamala Harris's team fabricated the 'personal day' and studio walk-through stories around the cancelled podcast appearance.
  • Carr recounts answering his door with a pistol the day after Kirk's assassination when a man dressed all in black showed up asking about cement.

Worth remembering

  • 1968 was the bloodiest year of the Vietnam War; over 58,000 Americans died in the war overall.
  • Carr argues the Tet Offensive was a U.S. tactical victory turned strategic loss because of how the media reported it.
  • The Terminal List team deliberately avoided 'John Wick'-style choreography to keep fights primal and realistic.
  • Rogan says creatine improves cognition and reaction time after sleep deprivation, and takes ~20g (four scoops) a day.
  • The Seiko 6105 is the watch Captain Willard wore in Apocalypse Now, nicknamed 'the Toyota of watches.'
  • A rumored origin of Richard Mille's pricing: an extra zero was accidentally added to a $15,000 watch.
  • Chris Pratt held his breath underwater for over three minutes during the True Believer shoot.
  • Carr warns digital ID could be tied to social-credit and carbon-footprint scores to control purchases and movement.
  • Rogan claims the UK has arrested ~12,000 people for social media posts, versus ~400 in Russia.
  • Lanai has roughly 30,000 axis deer on an island of about 3,000 people, requiring active hunting to control the population.