Ryan Reynolds Gets Gaslit by “John Krasinski” in New IF BTS Clip

A behind-the-scenes clip for IF finds Ryan Reynolds being gaslit by Randall Park’s “John Krasinski.” Along with starring in IF, Krasinski is also stepping back behind the camera following his horror hits A Quiet Place and A Quiet Place Part II.  IF was originally titled Imaginary Friends and was announced back in 2019, but the pandemic delayed it. The film is headlined by Deadpool star Ryan Reynolds, and before viewers get a new look at IF during the Super Bowl on Sunday, feast your eyes on the special behind-the-scenes video where imaginary friends are brought to life. For the uninitiated, this bit recreates one of the cold openings from The Office where Krasinski’s Jim pranked Dwight (Rainn Wilson) by having Randall Park play him.

The video begins with Ryan Reynolds introducing himself before he’s joined by Randall Park as John Krasinski, writer and director of IF. Of course, Reynolds is confused by what’s going on. To his credit, Park doesn’t flinch and continues with the joke, pretending to be Krasinski and correctly answering questions like where is John Krasinski from (Boston) and who he’s married to (Emily Blunt). “John Krasinski is much shorter and less Asian than you are,” Reynolds says. The bit goes on for a little while longer until we get the official behind-the-scenes look at IF, which still features Randall Park as John Krasinski.

What is IF about?

IF centers on a young girl who discovers an ability to see people’s imaginary friends who have been abandoned by the kids they helped.

The ensemble cast of IF includes Reynolds, Krasinski, Cailey Fleming, Louis Gossett Jr., Fiona Shaw, Bobby Moynihan, and Alan Kim. IF will also feature the voice talents of Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Steve Carell, Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Maya Rudolph, Sam Rockwell, Sebastian Maniscalco, Christopher Meloni, Awkwafina, Jon Stewart, and Richard Jenkins.

IF, which was set to release on May 24th, is now opening on May 17th. That means the Paramount movie will not only come out a week earlier, but it will no longer face competition from the studio’s own as-yet-untitled SpongeBob SquarePants sequel, which moved off the original release to become a holiday 2024 release. The moves were part of a larger overall move by the studio to reshuffle its release schedule in response to the SAG-AFTRA strike.