They have one of the most famous “feuds” in the business, but truth be told, they love each other like brothers. Or least Ryan Reynolds sincerely feels that way about Hugh Jackman.
“And as I’ve gotten older, too, I find that there’s such value in working with people I love and adore and trust and have known for a long time,” Reynolds tells Yahoo Entertainment in a new interview promoting his upcoming holiday comedy-musical Spirited. “And [with] most of the movies I’m doing these days, I’m either working with people I’ve always wanted to work with or I’m working with friends and family, really. And I consider Hugh more in the family category than friends even.”
Thus why Reynolds is so excited about the fact that Jackman is reprising his role as Wolverine as the pair enter the Marvel Cinematic Universe for the very first time in 2024’s Deadpool 3— something we learned in a stunning (and reliably amusing) announcement in late-September.
Reynolds revealed to us the backstory of how Jackman, who had supposedly hung up his claws when his X-Man perished in James Mangold’s 2017’s gritty and much-loved Logan, ended up in the MCU with him.
“That was something that I had been asking or hoping to achieve since the first meeting I had with [Marvel chief] Kevin Feige after Disney bought Fox,” Reynolds says. “And it wasn’t possible. This was years ago and it wasn’t possible then.
“And then out of the blue Hugh called and said he was interested in coming back and I just took one more stab at the boss and I said to Kevin, ‘He’s asking to come back … This is something that Hugh is interested in doing and pursuing.’ And for whatever reason, Kevin saw the wisdom in that and said ‘Yes,’ and we’re off to the races. So for me it’s a dream come true.”
Reynolds is also excited about the fact that Shawn Levy, who helmed two of his most recent projects — 2021’s Free Guy and this year’s Netflix release The Adam Project — will direct them in Deadpool 3.
“Same with Shawn Levy,” Reynolds says about the “family” title. “This is our third movie together now. So it’s a lot of fun.”
In Spirited, Reynolds will follow in The Greatest Showman star Jackman’s shoes, making his first big-screen musical. Not that he’s trying to keep up with Jackman.
“Not even remotely,” Reynolds laughs. “Singing and dancing is in that man’s DNA. It is not in mine. But for me, it was super exciting to take on something that was obscenely challenging and scary.”
Spirited opens in theaters Nov. 11 and will stream globally on Apple+ starting Nov. 18.
Watch the trailer:
