According to imdb.com, Ryan Reynolds has 89 acting credits (including upcoming projects), stretching back to 1991, when the then-teenager appeared in the Nickelodeon TV show Hillside (a.k.a. Fifteen, and available on Amazon Prime). Here are 10 more recent performances by Reynolds.
Foolproof (2003) – In this bizarre Canadian experiment to craft a U.S.-style thriller, Reynolds stars as a man who plans theoretical heists and then is forced to commit a real one. In August, Reynolds set up a short-lived service, MintMobile+, that streamed Foolproof – and nothing else. “Binge over 80 minutes of Ryan Reynolds,” it boasted. (Amazon Prime)
Harold and Kumar (2004) – Billed only as “Male Nurse,” Reynolds steals his single scene in which he drags an unsuspecting Harold and Kumar into an operating room, then falls for Kal Penn’s character – all in two minutes flat. (Netflix, Crave)
The Proposal (2009) – Reynolds star opposite Sandra Bullock in this rom-com about a businesswoman facing deportation (to Canada!) who forces her assistant to marry her. Do they fall in love? It’s a rom-com, isn’t it? (Apple/iTunes)
Buried (2010) – In this high-concept thriller, Reynolds plays a U.S. truck driver in Iraq, kidnapped and entombed in a coffin in an unknown location with only a lighter and a cellphone. (Apple/iTunes)
Green Lantern (2011) – A rare critical bomb for Reynolds, but I liked his turn as Hal Jordan, a.k.a. Green Lantern. Just don’t hold out for a sequel to this superhero movie, unless it’s of the tongue-in-cheek variety. (Apple/iTunes)
The Change-Up (2011) – This body-swap comedy finds family man Dave (Jason Bateman) and ladies man Mitch (Reynolds) switching places after peeing in the same fountain. It could happen. (Apple/iTunes)
Mississippi Grind (2015) – Reynolds and Ben Mendelsohn play a couple of hard-luck gamblers traveling from Iowa to New Orleans, hitting every racetrack, greyhound match, poker game, pool hall and casino on the way. (Amazon Prime, Hoopla)
La La Land (2016) – Reynolds and Emma Stone star in this jazz-infused – psych! La La Land stars fellow Canadian Ryan Gosling, whose vague similarity in name and appearance has caused numerous wacky mix-ups. (Netflix if you’re still interested)
Life (2017) – This horror film fails in the end, but the premise of a sample of Martian soil stopping off at the International Space Station to prevent terrestrial contamination is strong science. And as astronaut Rory Adams, Reynolds commits. (Netflix)
Deadpool / Deadpool 2 (2016/2018) – Reynolds’ biggest claim to fame, the two R-rated movies have earned more than $1.5-billion on a combined budget of just $170-million. And in a crafty move, the studio re-released the second movie in a PG-13 version featuring Fred Savage hearing the story Princess Bride style. (Apple/iTunes)
Deadpool 3 is in the works. Reynolds is a voice in The Croods 2 and plays a self-aware video game character next year in Free Guy. And with in-development projects including a new Christmas Carol, a new Clue and the previously Untitled Netflix Time Travel movie (now The Adam Project), you can bet there’s plenty more of Reynolds still to come.
National Post
Copyright Postmedia Network Inc., 2020
