Ryan Reynolds' Journey to Deadpool: A Success Story

Ryan Reynolds — this name needs no introduction. In fact, as soon as we hear “Ryan,” the image of Deadpool pops into our mind.

But how well do you know the man behind the Deadpool mask?

Did you know that years before becoming Deadpool, Ryan had actually given up on his dream of becoming an actor?

Did you know that during his struggling days, Ryan worked as a waiter and cashier too?

There are many such unseen and unheard chapters from Ryan’s life that no one ever made a video about.

But today, I will unfold his full journey in front of you.

And before we begin, I want to say a special thanks to one of our viewers, Pranav Lamba, for suggesting this story.

So ladies and gentlemen, let’s begin.

Ryan Reynolds was born on October 23, 1976, in Vancouver, Canada.

His father, James Chester Reynolds, was a police officer, and his mother, Tamara Lee, was a retail saleswoman.

Ryan was the youngest among his four brothers.

In school, Ryan was below average in studies.

He was more interested in sports and other activities than academics.

He was very popular among friends and teachers for his sense of humor.

His teachers recognized his talent at an early age and often motivated him to perform on stage.

At a very young age, Ryan realized this was his passion.

However, his parents wanted him to focus on studies and get a good job.

But Ryan had other dreams.

Ryan’s acting career began at the age of just 15.

Yes, at an age when most of us were worried about failing high school, Ryan was already facing the camera.

In 1991, he got a role in a Canadian TV show called Hillside, which was based on the problems of youngsters.

Although the show wasn’t particularly successful, it gave Ryan direction in acting.

After this, he did many small roles in TV shows and movies like Ordinary Magic, The Odyssey, and The X-Files.

All these were cameo roles, and he wasn’t getting a breakthrough as a lead actor.

Things were so bad that he couldn’t even pay his bills with those roles.

For survival, Ryan did all kinds of odd jobs — from being a waiter to cleaning cars.

Eventually, he took up a cashier job at a Safeway grocery store.

The biggest problem with that job was he had to deal with customers face-to-face.

People often recognized him and asked, “What are you doing here, Mr. Actor?”

Now, who wants to tell the same struggle story to 50 people every day?

Ryan’s struggling life continued, but there was no progress in his career.

By the age of 19, Ryan was on the edge of depression.

And society wasn’t helping either.

“We told you to focus on studies and get a job. Acting is for rich people.

We’re middle-class — without a job, we can’t survive.”

Now imagine — a 19-year-old guy, with society making him feel guilty from all sides —

Of course, he would start doubting himself.

One day, Ryan killed his own dream with his own hands.

He enrolled in Kwantlen Polytechnic University for a stable job path.

In simple words — Ryan became part of the crowd.

But sometimes, we give up on our dreams — but our dreams don’t give up on us.

A few months after joining the university, Ryan met actor Chris William Martin.

And for the first time in months, Ryan found someone who motivated him to chase his dream again.

Chris offered him to come to Los Angeles with him.

Ryan shifted to LA.

Even after coming to LA, rejections and disappointments continued —

but this time, Ryan was mentally prepared.

In 1998, Ryan got the role of medical student Michael Berg in the TV show Two Guys and a Girl.

The show became an instant hit and ran from 1998 to 2001 with 4 seasons and 81 episodes.

This show made Ryan popular among youngsters.

Now his next target was Hollywood movies.

And he didn’t have to wait long.

In 2002, Ryan got the lead role in Van Wilder.

It was an adult comedy movie — and Ryan’s humor added charm to it.

I was 11 when this movie came out, and trust me guys, due to its adult comedy, it became a cult hit among teenagers.

The success of Van Wilder got Ryan into the eyes of big producers and directors.

Still, Ryan wasn’t achieving the level of success he had dreamt of.

But a new fear started haunting him —

He was afraid audiences would typecast him only as a comic actor.

So, Ryan decided to explore action and serious roles.

In 2004, he appeared with Wesley Snipes in Blade: Trinity, the third part of the Blade series.

Blade Trinity was a massive hit, and audiences loved seeing Ryan do action.

With his first action film, Ryan changed people’s perception.

But Blade Trinity was just a trailer.

The next year, Ryan starred in The Amityville Horror, based on a real-life paranormal incident.

He played George Lutz, a man possessed by a demon, trying to kill his own family.

Ryan’s performance filled audiences with fear — and people stopped underestimating him.

Trust me, guys — if you haven’t watched The Amityville Horror,

then you’re missing one of Ryan’s best performances.

Then came movies like Waiting, Smokin’ Aces, and Definitely, Maybe.

But his career really picked up speed in 2009 when he played Wade Wilson a.k.a. Weapon 11 in X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

The movie was a massive hit — and Ryan officially entered the Marvel Universe.

Ryan always wanted to play Deadpool —

but for various reasons, the Deadpool project kept getting delayed.

And in the meantime, Ryan made one big mistake.

In 2010, he signed a superhero movie called Green Lantern.

But the problem? Green Lantern was a DC character.

By signing Green Lantern, Ryan disappointed Marvel fans — and got a lot of hate for it.

Green Lantern turned out to be a box-office disaster, and Ryan received heavy criticism as an actor.

You might think — “One flop after so many hits? Not a big deal.”

But the media dragged this failure so much that Hollywood started questioning Ryan’s credibility.

Ryan said that after Green Lantern, he went into severe depression.

His demand dropped so badly, he was only being offered small-budget films.

During this downfall, Ryan did whatever he could to stay relevant in the industry.

But as they say — when a lion takes a step back, it doesn’t mean he’s giving up.

Maybe he’s preparing for a long jump.

And this fits Ryan perfectly.

In 2015, 20th Century Fox finally announced the Deadpool movie.

Ryan got one last chance to reclaim his credibility.

If Deadpool had flopped — Ryan’s career would’ve ended.

But Ryan worked hard on developing the Deadpool character.

In fact, he didn’t even charge a fee for Deadpool.

Can you imagine how personal this character was for him?