Performer
A performer whose catalogue work here is strong, with the fuller case still to be made.
Nutevio rank
#163
of 909177 performers
Top 1%
Ryan Reynolds represents the rare performer whose career became more ambitious with every decade — 28 years in, and Ryan is still choosing the harder script.
The essay
Our editors on the work, the patterns and the reason this body of work holds together.
Ryan Reynolds appears in 57 films in the Nutevio catalogue, and none of them would work the same way without Ryan. Deadpool is the clearest case: a film rated 7.9 by our editors, where the performance carries weight the script only implies.
The recognisable elements are versatility, transformation, quiet performance. Watch two of these films back to back and the method separates from the material — the same instrument, tuned differently for comedy, adventure, action. It is a style built on what is withheld as much as what is played.
Working with Peter Atencio, John Francis Daley, Chris Hackett and others, Ryan Reynolds helped set a standard other performers now audition against. Awards bodies have been slower than the work, which is usually the sign of a career built on choices rather than campaigns.
Deadpool (2016) as Wade / Deadpool · Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) as Wade Wilson / Deadpool / Nicepool · I Am: Celine Dion (2024) as Self (archive footage)
Career snapshot
Ranked #163 of 909177 performers tracked in the Nutevio library.
Films in Nutevio
57
1999–2027
Career length
28 yrs
Measured across our catalogue
Academy Awards
—
Unknown
Oscar nominations
—
Unknown
Highest Nutevio score
7.9
Deadpool
Average Nutevio score
6.4
Across catalogue work
Highest IMDb rating
7.6
I Am: Celine Dion
Most frequent director
David Leitch
5 films together
Longest collaboration
5×
With David Leitch
Most common genre
Comedy
37 titles
Average runtime
1h 41m
Across catalogue work
Golden Globe wins
—
Unknown
Nutevio metric
Ten weighted categories, applied identically to everyone we cover.
Nutevio Performer Score
6.9
out of 10
A performer whose catalogue work here is strong, with the fuller case still to be made.
Nutevio metric
Cultural impact and legacy, measured separately from craft — how far the work travelled once it left the cinema.
Nutevio Influence Score
6.5
out of 10
A quieter influence — felt inside the films rather than across the industry.
How far the work travelled past the people who saw it first.
What survives once the release-week conversation has burned off.
Institutional acknowledgement, weighted but never decisive.
Years of chosen, relevant work rather than years merely employed.
Statuettes, read as evidence rather than verdict.
Roles named without needing the film named alongside them.
Directors who wrote parts because this performer existed.
The reading other performers now have to answer.
Actor DNA
A fingerprint derived from the roles themselves — register, range and the kind of film they carry.
The shape of a career
Every performance plotted in time. Hover a point to read the title behind it.
Peak years
Where the scores, the awards and the sheer volume of work agree with each other.
Best decade
2010s
6.6 average MV
The 2010s are where the work and the material meet. Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, Pokémon Detective Pikachu, 6 Underground — the run our editors reach for first when the argument is about range rather than fame.
Highest average Nutevio score
2010s
6.6
Across 23 catalogue films in this decade, our scores never drop below the level a career is judged on.
Highest average IMDb rating
2010s
6.6
The public agrees most strongly about this stretch — useful context, and occasionally a decade behind our own reading.
Most awarded era
1990s
0 Academy Awards
Statuettes for the films themselves, which is the honest way to read an ensemble career. Dick.
Most productive era
2010s
23 films
The busiest stretch of the catalogue — volume that reads as appetite rather than availability.
Range, mapped
Genres down the side, decades across the top. Warmer cells mean stronger titles.
| Genre | 1990s | 2000s | 2010s | 2020s |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drama | — | 6.55 films | 6.43 films | — |
| Action | — | 6.14 films | 6.713 films | 5.96 films |
| Thriller | — | 6.32 films | 6.46 films | 7.02 films |
| Comedy | 6.01 film | 6.410 films | 6.713 films | 6.013 films |
| Crime | — | 6.51 film | 6.55 films | 6.72 films |
| Romance | — | 6.65 films | — | 6.91 film |
| Horror | — | 6.02 films | 6.42 films | — |
Chronology
Firsts and peaks
The turning points, in the order they happened.
First film in Nutevio
1999Dick
Where our catalogue meets this career, as Chip.
Highest rated performance · Career peak
2016Deadpool
7.9 on the Nutevio scale, the top of the catalogue for this performer. Weighing billing against the film's own quality, this is the point where everything aligned at once.
Most recent film
2027Animal Friends
The current state of the argument, as Pony (voice).
Our order
Every performance in the catalogue, ordered by Nutevio Score.
Every title
Filter by genre or decade, and compare any two titles side by side.
57 of 57 films
as Wade / Deadpool
Directed by Tim Miller
as Wade Wilson / Deadpool / Nicepool
Directed by Shawn Levy
as Guy
Directed by Shawn Levy
as Wade Wilson / Deadpool / Juggernaut (voice)
Directed by David Leitch
as Wade Wilson / Deadpool
Directed by David Leitch
From the library
Every movie and TV credit stored for this name in the Nutevio catalogue — filter by media, role or sort by rating.
Loading credits…
The defining work
#1
Wade / Deadpool
Deadpool (2016)
Performance score8.4
The performance the rest of the career is read through. Wade / Deadpool gives Ryan Reynolds a structure to work against, and the film hands over its centre of gravity without hesitation.
View movie#2
Wade Wilson / Deadpool / Nicepool
Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)
Performance score8.3
Deadpool & Wolverine asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Wade Wilson / Deadpool / Nicepool is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movie#3
Guy
Free Guy (2021)
Performance score8.1
Free Guy asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Guy is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movie#4
Wade Wilson / Deadpool / Juggernaut (voice)
Deadpool 2 (2018)
Performance score8.1
Deadpool 2 asks for something the previous films did not, and gets it. Wade Wilson / Deadpool / Juggernaut (voice) is played without a single line of pleading for the audience's sympathy — which is exactly why it lands.
View movieStart here
A guided path through the work, ordered so each film explains the next.
Best entry point
as Wade / Deadpool
Start here. Deadpool is the clearest statement of what Ryan Reynolds does — accessible, 108 minutes, and rated 7.9 by our editors. No context required.
Our editors order this path by accessibility first and chronology second. You meet Ryan at the most legible performance, then move forward in time so each film reads as a response to the one before it rather than a repetition of it.
Deadpool: No Good Deed (2017)
Keeps the action register of Deadpool but asks for a colder reading of it.
Deadpool 2 (2018)
Same director as Deadpool: No Good Deed, different problem to solve. Watching them in order shows how much of the effect was the collaboration.
Free Guy (2021)
Keeps the comedy register of Deadpool 2 but asks for a colder reading of it.
Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)
Same director as Free Guy, different problem to solve. Watching them in order shows how much of the effect was the collaboration.
Company kept
The directors and performers this career keeps returning to.
David Leitch
Director
5 films together
Notably Deadpool 2
Shawn Levy
Director
3 films together
Notably Deadpool & Wolverine
Andrew Fleming
Director
2 films together
Notably Dick
Daniel Espinosa
Director
2 films together
Notably Life
Patrick Hughes
Director
2 films together
Notably The Hitman's Bodyguard
Danny Leiner
Director
1 film together
Notably Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle
David S. Goyer
Director
1 film together
Notably Blade: Trinity
Roger Kumble
Director
1 film together
Notably Just Friends
Andrew Douglas
Director
1 film together
Notably The Amityville Horror
Joe Carnahan
Director
1 film together
Notably Smokin' Aces
John August
Director
1 film together
Notably The Nines
Marcos Siega
Director
1 film together
Notably Chaos Theory
Adam Brooks
Director
1 film together
Notably Definitely, Maybe
Kieran Mulroney
Director
1 film together
Notably Paper Man
Greg Mottola
Director
1 film together
Notably Adventureland
Anne Fletcher
Director
1 film together
Notably The Proposal
Gavin Hood
Director
1 film together
Notably X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Rodrigo Cortés
Director
1 film together
Notably Buried
David Dobkin
Director
1 film together
Notably The Change-Up
Martin Campbell
Director
1 film together
Notably Green Lantern
Seth MacFarlane
Director
1 film together
Notably Ted
Robert Schwentke
Director
1 film together
Notably R.I.P.D.
Kirk DeMicco
Director
1 film together
Notably The Croods
Atom Egoyan
Director
1 film together
Notably The Captive
Marjane Satrapi
Director
1 film together
Notably The Voices
Ryan Fleck
Director
1 film together
Notably Mississippi Grind
Simon Curtis
Director
1 film together
Notably Woman in Gold
Tarsem Singh
Director
1 film together
Notably Self/less
Tim Miller
Director
1 film together
Notably Deadpool
Michael Bay
Director
1 film together
Notably 6 Underground
Rob Letterman
Director
1 film together
Notably Pokémon Detective Pikachu
Joel Crawford
Director
1 film together
Notably The Croods: A New Age
Dexter Fletcher
Director
1 film together
Notably Ghosted
John Krasinski
Director
1 film together
Notably IF
Chris Hackett
Director
1 film together
Notably In Dispute: Lively v. Baldoni
John Francis Daley
Director
1 film together
Notably Mayday
Peter Atencio
Director
1 film together
Notably Animal Friends
Behind the camera
Who casts this performer, how often, and what the pairing produces.
David Leitch
Director
5 films together · 7.2 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 5 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Deadpool 2Shawn Levy
Director
3 films together · 7.4 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 3 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
Deadpool & WolverinePatrick Hughes
Director
2 films together · 6.8 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
The Hitman's BodyguardDaniel Espinosa
Director
2 films together · 6.5 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
LifeAndrew Fleming
Director
2 films together · 5.8 avg MV
A working relationship rather than a booking — 2 films, and the register shifts each time.
Best film together
DickTim Miller
Director
1 film together · 7.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
DeadpoolJoel Crawford
Director
1 film together · 7.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Croods: A New AgeSimon Curtis
Director
1 film together · 7.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Woman in GoldAnne Fletcher
Director
1 film together · 7.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The ProposalJohn Krasinski
Director
1 film together · 6.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
IFDexter Fletcher
Director
1 film together · 6.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
GhostedRob Letterman
Director
1 film together · 6.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Pokémon Detective PikachuKirk DeMicco
Director
1 film together · 6.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The CroodsAdam Brooks
Director
1 film together · 6.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Definitely, MaybeRodrigo Cortés
Director
1 film together · 6.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
BuriedDanny Leiner
Director
1 film together · 6.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Harold & Kumar Go to White CastleSeth MacFarlane
Director
1 film together · 6.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
TedJoe Carnahan
Director
1 film together · 6.5 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Smokin' AcesTarsem Singh
Director
1 film together · 6.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Self/lessGavin Hood
Director
1 film together · 6.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
X-Men Origins: WolverineGreg Mottola
Director
1 film together · 6.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
AdventurelandMarcos Siega
Director
1 film together · 6.4 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Chaos TheoryMichael Bay
Director
1 film together · 6.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
6 UndergroundMarjane Satrapi
Director
1 film together · 6.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The VoicesKieran Mulroney
Director
1 film together · 6.3 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Paper ManDavid Dobkin
Director
1 film together · 6.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Change-UpRoger Kumble
Director
1 film together · 6.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Just FriendsAndrew Douglas
Director
1 film together · 6.1 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The Amityville HorrorRyan Fleck
Director
1 film together · 6.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Mississippi GrindJohn August
Director
1 film together · 6.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The NinesAtom Egoyan
Director
1 film together · 5.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
The CaptiveRobert Schwentke
Director
1 film together · 5.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
R.I.P.D.David S. Goyer
Director
1 film together · 5.9 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Blade: TrinityChris Hackett
Director
1 film together · 5.6 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
In Dispute: Lively v. BaldoniMartin Campbell
Director
1 film together · 5.2 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Green LanternPeter Atencio
Director
1 film together · 0.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
Animal FriendsJohn Francis Daley
Director
1 film together · 0.0 avg MV
One film, but the kind that reorganises how a performer is cast afterwards.
Best film together
MaydaySix degrees
Follow the thread outward — director, film, co-star, and the film after that.
Categories of our own
Six editorial categories we apply to every performer we cover.
Most rewatchable
Deadpool & Wolverine
as Wade Wilson / Deadpool / Nicepool
The one that survives a fourth viewing. Nothing in the performance depends on surprise, which is why it keeps paying out.
Most emotional performance
The Proposal
as Andrew Paxton
Grief played at conversational volume. The film never asks the audience to cry; the performance simply makes it difficult not to.
Most influential performance
Deadpool
as Wade / Deadpool
You can hear this reading in other actors' auditions a decade later — the surest measure of influence there is.
Best ensemble performance
Ted
as Jared (uncredited)
Work that makes everyone else in the frame better without ever pulling the camera towards itself.
Career defining performance
Deadpool
as Wade / Deadpool
If the career had to be argued in a single scene, our editors would pick one from this film and rest the case.
In their films' words
“You can build a whole film around a performer who knows when not to speak. Ryan Reynolds has known it for a long time.”
Head to head
Put two careers on the same scale and see where the argument actually sits.
Ours alone
Recognitions handed out by this desk, on criteria no awards body uses.
Career Achievement
Awarded
28 years of relevant work — not merely a long career, but a long career of choices.
Modern Classic Performer
Awarded
Defining performances delivered inside the last twenty-five years, in films already being taught rather than merely remembered.
Comedy Legend
Awarded
37 catalogue titles in comedy, each one a reference point for the films that followed.
Our desk
Best ending, best opening, best twist and the rest — categories we apply to everyone we cover.
Best ending
Deadpool
as Wade / Deadpool
The last five minutes reorganise everything before them, and hold up when you already know what's coming.
Best opening
Bullet Train
as Carver (uncredited)
A first sequence that states the rules of the film without explaining a single one of them.
Most emotional
The Proposal
as Andrew Paxton
The film where the technique steps aside and lets the feeling arrive undefended.
Best twist
The Nines
as Gary / Gavin / Gabriel
A reversal earned by information the film gave you and trusted you to misread.
Best visual achievement
Deadpool
as Wade / Deadpool
Images that would survive with the sound switched off.
Best action sequence
Pokémon Detective Pikachu
as Detective Pikachu (voice)
Geography, stakes and consequence held in the same frame — spectacle you can follow.
Best dialogue
The Croods: A New Age
as Guy (voice)
Lines written to be spoken, staged so the pauses do half the work.
Most underrated film
Deadpool
as Wade / Deadpool
The public vote sits below ours on this one, and the direction is the reason for the gap.
If you like this performer
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Built a career in the same territory: adventure and drama
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Have your say
Community
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Reference
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