He said: "I was sitting in the bench, in the preacher curl bench, and I was thinking, 'I'm either going to hit myself 10 times because they don't like it, or I'm going to hit myself just one time for real and then it's done'.
The scene sees Paulie with his fist on a preacher bench while Reacher attempts to pull him back, prompting a cocky response from Paulie, "Weaker than I thought.".
Reacher devotees have been teased with a glimpse at a side-splitting showdown with the new baddie Paulie, portrayed by Olivier Richters, who disclosed that the scuffle was every bit as wince-inducing as it seemed on screen.
In the upcoming third season, the ever-stoical Jack Reacher (Alan Ritchson) becomes entangled in a DEA-related case, going undercover to spy on suspected drug trafficker Zachary Beck (Anthony Michael Hall).
Chatting with Screen Time, Richters shared that he was committed to making their tussle seem as realistically painful as possible, jesting that viewers might sympathise with Paulie's plight, "What he did in the gym, that was not cool.
