Ryan Reynolds, known for his sharp wit and undeniable charm, is a master at pushing boundaries, both on screen and off. While he might seem daring as Merc with a Mouth, the truth is, behind the scenes, he’s far more relatable — full of nerves just like the rest of us.
Yep, don’t be fooled by his fearless Deadpool persona because he had a personal fright that he later managed to overcome. So, how’d Reynolds beat that? It all started with his first superhero role — and if you think it was Deadpool, then nope!
It was his often-forgotten turn as Green Lantern. But saving the universe wasn’t the only thing it helped with. That gig actually helped him tackle that pretty personal fear: flying!
And if that wasn’t enough, it also led him to find the love of his life (yes, we’re talking about Blake Lively). So, you could say that role helped him in more ways than one. Curious how? Keep reading because we’ve got all the details right here!
How Green Lantern helped Ryan Reynolds conquer his fear of flying
Ryan Reynolds wasn’t always the fearless, funny guy we see on screen. He once had a crippling fear of flying that started after a terrifying skydiving experience.
Yes, skydiving (something that’s supposed to be rapturous) turned into a nightmare for him. During a 2013 appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Reynolds shared the story.
He was working toward a skydiving license, but during one jump, things went horribly wrong. His parachute didn’t open properly and flapped uselessly in the wind, leaving him spinning out of control. The 47-year-old explained, recalling the incident (via Express):
So it’s just sort of flapping in the wind, and it really wasn’t slowing me down at all. It was just making me spin out of control and almost making me unconscious.
Though he had a backup parachute, fear froze him. For a few moments, he couldn’t pull the cord, scared it might also fail. Luckily, he snapped out of it and did what he needed to save himself. He survived, but the experience scarred him deeply, leaving him with a fear of flying.
Fast forward to 2011, when he signed on to play Hal Jordan in Green Lantern. Although most of the flying scenes involved high wires and special effects, the role gave him a chance to push past his anxiety.
And it wasn’t just for himself. His nieces and nephews were so excited to see him as a superhero, and he didn’t want to let them down. While Green Lantern may not have been a critical success, it became a turning point for Reynolds. It helped him vanquish a fear that had haunted him for years.
Green Lantern also helped Ryan Reynolds find the love of his life
While Green Lantern helped Ryan Reynolds tackle his fear of flying, it also gave him something far more precious – his wife, Blake Lively. Though the movie didn’t break box office records, it ended up being the start of something beautiful.
Reynolds and Lively met on the set of Green Lantern in 2010. Reynolds played the titular superhero, Hal Jordan, and Lively was cast as his love interest, Carol Ferris. At the time, both were involved with other people. Lively was dating her Gossip Girl co-star Penn Badgley, and Reynolds was married to actress Scarlett Johansson.
By the end of 2010, both relationships had ended. Reynolds and ScarJo announced their divorce, while Lively and Badgely called it quits. But even then, Reynolds and Lively didn’t start dating right away. They stayed friends for a year before things finally heated up.
In 2011, the two took a trip to Boston together on a train, and that’s when things changed. The chemistry was undeniable, and it didn’t take long for them to realize they were meant to be. By 2012, they were married in a private ceremony at Boone Hall Plantation in South Carolina.
Today, the couple are one of Hollywood’s favorite power couples. They’ve built a beautiful family together with four children: James, Inez, Betty, and their youngest son, Olin, born in 2023. While Green Lantern didn’t win over audiences, it gave Reynolds and Lively a love story for the ages.
How Ryan Reynolds faced another fear in a claustrophobic thriller
If you think flying is scary, imagine being trapped in a coffin for 95 minutes. That’s exactly what Ryan Reynolds had to deal with in the 2010 thriller Buried. The movie forced the star to defy his fear of confined spaces.
In Buried, Reynolds played Paul Conroy, a truck driver in Iraq who wakes up buried alive in a wooden coffin. With only a lighter, a cell phone, and limited air, Paul desperately tries to escape. The entire film takes place inside the coffin, which meant the actor spent weeks filming in a real, cramped space.
For someone who’s battled anxiety for much of his life, this role was anything but easy. Reynolds admitted to having moments of panic during filming. At times, he couldn’t even get out of the coffin between takes, which only made things worse. In an interview with The Standard, Reynolds said:
Claustrophobia is a primal fear that exists within everybody. For me, I was enclosed in there and had moments of utter panic.
But Reynolds didn’t let the fear forbear him. Instead, he used it to incite his performance, rendering one of his most raw and emotional roles to date. The film wasn’t flashy or raging like his usual projects, but it proved his range as an actor.
Beyond Buried, Reynolds has opened up about his tribulation with anxiety in general. He’s told GQ about how he used humor and acting as a way to cope, describing his Merc with a Mouth’s persona as a kind of “escape hatch” for his own stress.
Green Lantern is available to stream on Netflix!
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
