How Green Lantern’s failure changed Ryan Reynolds’ career to make Deadpool possible

Ryan Reynolds is known for his wildly successful Deadpool adaptations, but it turns out his biggest superhero failure, Green Lantern, indirectly made it possible.

The Deadpool star’s disastrous 2011 turn as Green Lantern was merely the latest in a long line of failed adaptations and production troubles. While director Martin Campbell wanted a different actor for Hal Jordan, Reynolds wasn’t bad as the spacefaring hero, and at least his performance has been somewhat reappraised as time passes.

In a new interview, Reynolds reflected on the legacy of the film for his subsequent career. The film prompted a major pivot for the now-producer that turned into one of the most beloved superhero film franchises of our era.

It’s all about the story

In the interview, Reynolds explained why he turned to producing after Green Lantern. “Of all my accomplishments,” he said, producing is “what I’m most proud of.” The choice came naturally after failures such as (and including) Green Lantern.

Disney/Marvel

“I could act in big or small movies and if those movies don’t work out, the consequences don’t always fall on the director,” he added. “Oftentimes, it’s my name associated with the failure… That happened a number of times, and it changed something in me.”

As a consequence, Reynolds is now more passionate about storytelling than he is about acting. “If I win, great. If I lose, I get to also feel like I was the architect of my own demise.”

That new ethos directly spawned his time with the Merc with a Mouth.

“The first time that happened in the most full-throated way was in producing the first Deadpool,” he continued, “That was where I found my voice.”

Deadpool overcame a terrible initial adaptation, fueling a trilogy whose latest film, Deadpool & Wolverine, went on to gross over $1 billion at the box office. It looks like the strategy worked.