Alex Cross is a crime, mystery, and thriller novel series written by James Patterson.
The protagonist of the series is Alex Cross, an African-American Metropolitan Police Department detective and father who counters threats to his family and to the city of Washington, D.C.
The series is usually narrated in first-person perspective by Alex Cross, and occasionally from the villains' point of view in third-person.
The series is published worldwide, with Little, Brown currently holding publication rights in the United States, in paperback, hardcover, and audiobook editions.
Pop Goes the Weasel was considered, and a script based on Roses are Red was written, but after Along Came a Spider was panned at the box office, the plans were canceled.
It was rumored to be based on I, Alex Cross, but director Rob Cohen denied this, revealing he only titled the film like such so as to tell fans: "their hero was back"; to avoid confusion the film's name was changed to Alex Cross with Tyler Perry replacing Elba.
Edward Burns and Matthew Fox were later confirmed to star as Cross's partner, Tommy Kane, and the main antagonist, Picasso.
Double Cross was on the New York Times Bestseller list (at number 1) for numerous weeks before being eventually surpassed.
The most recent film, Alex Cross, received poor reviews and had an underwhelming performance at the box office.