Now this is one headline that is guaranteed to get Hollywood talking…
For months now, Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds have found themselves at the center of one of the entertainment industry’s messiest legal sagas, and while everyone has been focused on Blake’s battle with her It Ends With Us co-star and director Justin Baldoni, a new report from the US Sun this week claims that Ryan’s own career may have taken a major hit behind the scenes. But is his situation really as dire as some insiders are making it sound?!
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According to brand-new reporting from that outlet on Tuesday, industry insiders believe the legal drama has changed the way some Hollywood-based studio executives view the Deadpool star. After all, Ryan has spent years cultivating the image of one of Hollywood’s nicest, funniest, and most reliable leading men — but now, sources claim that perception may have shifted after court documents and private communications became public during the legal proceedings.
One insider told the outlet:
“People have seen a new side of Ryan after the legal proceedings — and studios are distancing themselves from him. He’s in a difficult position now and some of the biggest names are reluctant to work with him. The studios don’t want to invest millions into a project that will ultimately backfire.”
Whoa…
The same source continued:
“Some of the documents which were revealed during the court case have changed perceptions of him in the industry. It’s affected his reputation as Hollywood’s ‘nice guy’ and there are concerns that he might bring unnecessary complications onto productions.”
Seriously?! Those are certainly some dramatic claims!
The report also points to Ryan’s recent professional slate, noting that it has been roughly a year and a half since his last major starring role. While his production company, Maximum Effort, still has an active first-look deal with Paramount through the end of the year, the news outlet reports that several projects associated with the company, including Area 51 and an adaptation of Eloise, are no longer moving forward.
Of course, it’s impossible to ignore that Ryan’s last trip to the big screen wasn’t exactly a flop. Quite the opposite! Deadpool & Wolverine became a global box office monster, earning more than $1.3 billion worldwide and becoming the highest-grossing R-rated film ever released. That’s hardly the résumé of someone audiences have abandoned.
Ryan himself has also made it clear that he isn’t finished with Deadpool. Earlier this year, he revealed he’d written ideas for another installment, though he emphasized he isn’t in a hurry to bring it back just yet because he believes the character works best when audiences have time to miss him.
Still, according to another insider speaking with the outlet, Marvel‘s future plans could reportedly be more complicated than fans realize. The source claimed:
“Deadpool is obviously an iconic character within the Marvel Universe. But it’s tricky to in the current climate, as his role presents different risks professionally. There have been a few discussions about alternative options — though he has not been entirely dismissed.”
Alternative options?! Really??
Another source made an even bolder prediction, saying:
“Studio execs do not want to deal with drama or any liabilities given the investment it takes to make a blockbuster movie. They are worried about movies being a disaster financially. There’s a view that he’s essentially done in Hollywood.”
WOW!!! That’s a massive statement!
…But whether it actually reflects reality remains to be seen.
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Of course, much of the controversy stems from Blake’s lengthy legal dispute with Baldoni. And throughout those legal proceedings, several of Ryan’s private text messages became public through court filings — with those exchanges generating plenty of conversation online.
Among the unsealed messages, Ryan reportedly wrote about “Baldoni and these other buckets of dumb-dumb-juice,” referencing studio execs and Hollywood head honchos involved in the ordeal. Other reported messages allegedly referred to Baldoni as a “thoroughbred, predatory fraudster” and an “inexplicably toxic mess,” while another exchange criticized studio execs in especially colorful language.
And now, the chickens on that are supposedly coming home to roost. According to another insider quoted by the US Sun:
“Ryan was too reckless with this lawsuit and lacked respect. He dragged Sony executives into this mess while exposing Josh Greenstein and even Matt Damon. He has let himself become someone to be cautious of in Hollywood.”
Another source added:
“He’s always seemed like such an easy guy to get along with. He hardly had a bad word to say about anyone. Those messages surprised a lot of people and left them wondering if he’s hiding other parts of himself.”
The legal battle reportedly affected the couple’s personal life, too. The US Sun says Blake and Ryan’s absence from Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce‘s highly anticipated wedding only served to further fuel long-running speculation that their once-close friendship with the pop superstar may have cooled after Taylor became connected to the legal saga.
Behind closed doors, meanwhile, friends reportedly say the past several months have been incredibly difficult.
One Reynolds pal told the outlet:
“This has been an incredibly difficult and tense period for their family. The pressure from the outside world has gotten to them, but they don’t want to admit that publicly because they’re determined to appear strong and unaffected. In reality, it’s been a huge setback for both of them. It hasn’t only affected Blake — it’s now affecting Ryan too.”
The same source continued:
“They’re essentially having to lie low for a while, even if they don’t necessarily want to acknowledge that. Ryan is finding the impact it’s had on his career particularly difficult, while friendships and professional relationships have also come under pressure. Neither of them can really see an easy way through this at the moment.”
So… is Ryan Reynolds really “essentially done in Hollywood,” as some insiders are now claiming? That’s certainly a sensational allegation, but Hollywood has a long history of surprising comebacks, shifting public opinion, and blockbuster success changing the conversation overnight.
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For now, these claims are certainly eye catching. Meanwhile, Ryan’s future projects — and audience interest — will likely tell the real story in the months ahead.
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