Colonel Sullivan is the man who sets the final film in motion. He is the villain of Retribution, and the official synopsis for Rise of the Footsoldier: Morocco turns on his escape from American custody. Here is who he is, what he did in Ibiza, and why Pat Tate ends up on his trail.
Spoiler warning: this post gives away the ending of Retribution.
Who is Colonel Sullivan?
Jack Sullivan is a former British colonel in the Royal Marines, played by Tamer Hassan, who joined the franchise for the first time in Retribution. The American agents sum up his past in one short briefing: he was court-martialled during the Gulf War and then reappeared in Bosnia as a gun for hire.
He is a fictional character, like the rest of the Ibiza story. The film is set around 1994, and it opens with his men, led by Captain Sergio, stealing a shipment of American-made M4 rifles from a war zone in southern Bosnia.
What does he do in Retribution?
Sullivan brings the guns to the island, where he also keeps looted art hidden in old Civil War tunnels. He needs buyers, and Mustafa El Habib, the brother of Soho club boss Mo, introduces him to Terry Fisher and Greener.
Fisher protests that he is a drug dealer, not a gun runner, but Sullivan tells him he owes £400,000, made up of £300,000 for the guns and £100,000 for the inconvenience, and gives him 24 hours to pay.
Tate isn’t even looking for Sullivan at first. He is in Ibiza to avenge Kenny, and he only runs into the mercenaries because they are in business with the men he is hunting. It turns personal when Sullivan’s men kill Sam, the old-school villain Tate calls his mentor.
How does Retribution leave him?
At the compound, Tate gets the better of Sullivan and has him at his mercy. Then the Americans arrive, and CIA agent Cartwright tells Tate to let him go because they need him alive. Sullivan’s parting words are the best hint of what’s coming: “You should have killed me when you had the chance.”
Cartwright then has the whole scene passed off as a drug deal gone wrong, and tells Tate to disappear. Sullivan goes into American custody, and Tate goes home with his score unsettled. For the other loose ends, read how Retribution sets up Morocco.
Why is Tate hunting him in Morocco?
Not by choice. According to the synopsis from Rupert Street Films, Sullivan escapes from American custody. With their own hands tied, the Americans force Tate to go after him, and in return they offer the location of Terry Fisher, the man the synopsis holds responsible for Kenny’s death.
The synopsis doesn’t say how Sullivan escapes or why the trail leads to Morocco.
Our own guess, and it is only a guess: Retribution has already planted a Moroccan link. The agents identify Mo as Mohammed El Habib, an ex-soldier and senior member of the Moroccan mafia, and it is Mo’s brother Mustafa who brings Sullivan together with Fisher. Nothing official connects those dots yet.
Will Tamer Hassan be back?
That hasn’t been confirmed. Sullivan is clearly part of the story, but so far Rupert Street Films names only Craig Fairbrass and Andrew Loveday under “Starring”. The film is still in development, with no filming dates or release date announced. Our Rise of the Footsoldier: Morocco page will be updated as soon as that changes.
Who plays Colonel Sullivan in Rise of the Footsoldier?
Tamer Hassan plays him in Retribution (2026), his first film in the franchise.
What happens to Colonel Sullivan at the end of Retribution?
Pat Tate has him at his mercy, but the Americans need him alive, so he is taken into custody instead of being killed.
Why does Pat Tate hunt Sullivan in Rise of the Footsoldier: Morocco?
According to the official synopsis, Sullivan escapes American custody and the Americans force Tate to hunt him down, offering Terry Fisher’s location in return.
Image: the Atlas Mountains, Morocco. Photo by DimiTalen, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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