In October, Ryan Reynolds finished filming Spirited, his modern, musical version of A Christmas Carol with Will Farrell and Octavia Spencer. When the film wrapped, he posted it to Instagram along with the announcement that he’s taking a “sabbatical from movie making.” Since then, his film Red Notice opened which had enough star power to get a huge promotional junket, so it feels like he’s been everywhere. Plus, I just saw Free Guy so that also makes me feel like I’ve been inundated with Ryan lately. But if Ryan is really taking a break, that means that after Spirited is released, we won’t see him for a while. Recently, Ryan opened up as to why he’s stepping away. It’s to be a more “present dad” to his three daughters. And that’s a pretty good reason.
Ryan Reynolds is opening up about why he decided to take a break from acting.
The Deadpool actor, 45, spoke with LinkedIn News Senior Editor at Large Jessi Hempel, who asked about the actor’s “sabbatical.”
“Well, I’ve done a lot of [acting],” Reynolds said in the video interview, published Monday, adding that he’s “extremely passionate” about his creative agency Maximum Effort, which he co-founded in 2018, and software platform MNTN, where he serves as the Chief Creative Officer. MNTN acquired Maximum Effort in June.
Reynolds continued, “The biggest thing for me, and I know you have kids as well, is that I don’t want to miss this time with my kids.”
The actor — who shares daughters James, 6, Inez, 5, and Betty, 2, with wife Blake Lively — also shared why this is the “perfect time” for him to take a break.
“When I’m shooting a film, I’m oftentimes in Europe, I’m away, there are incredibly long hours, it’s a ton of constant, kind of requirement to be there the whole time — not just because I’m performing but I’m also generally producing and writing on my movies as well,” he said.
“They tend to chew and blow bubbles with every aspect of my life when I’m shooting a film,” he added. “So allowing myself to step away right away, it’s sort of the perfect time. Not just for my family but for MNTN and for Maximum Effort, to just kind of focus on those for a little while.”
Reynolds later said he simply wants to “live life like a normal human,” stating, “I want my kids to have a pretty normal schedule. For many years when my wife Blake would shoot a film, I would not shoot a film and I would be with the kids and vice versa. So we would sort of trade off. We never really worked at the same time. But always we were away. So the kids were away too.”
That lifestyle has become challenging as their children get older, he explained. “Now that they’re in school, they have a somewhat normal schedule. I think it’s totally important for their development and I really enjoy being a present dad. I love taking them to school in the morning, I love picking them up. I love that I have the hours in between to focus on the things that I’m really passionate about like MNTN and Maximum Effort,” Reynolds said. “It is a juggling act.”
All things being equal, school is when things really shift to child-oriented lives for parents (if they weren’t already). We travelled all the time before we had to adhere to school schedules. Prices, lack of crowds, flexibility – it was so much better. So I understand why Ryan crammed so much in while he could and is hitting pause now. It makes sense. And honestly, good for him. It would be really easy to keep going while assuming there will always be time after the next project. But the time to truly be present can get away from anyone. I think he’ll be glad he took this breather. He can make movies during summer break. Or find a local project.
Like I said, that’s all things being equal, though, which they decidedly are not in Ryan’s case. He has very wisely set his family up financially, so he has no problem taking time off from making movies. In addition to MNTN software and his Maximum Effort creative agency, he’s got Aviator Gin and his stake in Mint Mobile. Even if he’s an active partner in all of those, he can do those jobs from an office and still be a present parent to his girls. I admire Ryan for diversifying, especially if it allows him to make the personal choices he wants to. I also think it’s not a bad time for Ryan to maybe step back. I really like Ryan but like Jennifer Lawrence said, people can get sick of you if you’re everywhere for an extended period. Ryan and Blake Lively have done a lot to reinvent themselves – and for the record I think it’s honest growth for them. Now is a good time to let those favorable impressions simmer with the public.
Photo credit: Avalin Red and InStar Images
Good for him. I imagine being away from home so much also starts to weigh on actors when their kids get to the age where they really notice just how often their parents are gone.
I feel like we’re going to see a lot of actors who have worked through the pandemic taking breaks — after the initial delay in filming, a lot of actors worked back-to-back on projects trying to make up for lost time.
His girls will be thrilled, and I’m sure Blake will also appreciate having her husband around; long separations are tough on a marriage. I HAVE seen a lot of Ryan, and it’s been in good stuff, so good time for a break. Good for him!
I think that is wonderful.. children grow up way to fast and there is no second chance.
When you really think about it, Free Guy was pushed back a few times and the next thing we see is a Year of Ryan and everything coming out in a certain time frame.
I have come across his YT channel and I have to admit it is very smart. It is nothing but ads and very tongue in cheek. His side businesses really work in his favor.
Blake and ryan take turn doing movie. I guess they want to make sure one of them is with the kids while the other one is working. Good parenting.
Good for him. I can’t fault him or Blake for hustling to find multiple ways to make money, since now they can both take some time off and be with their family.