Ryan Reynolds learned one essential lesson while making his 2011 Green Lantern film, which he sums up as, “character over spectacle.” The actor spoke at the 2025 Time 100 Summit on Wednesday, reflecting on his career in Hollywood and its crossover with his efforts as an entrepreneur. On a panel called “Business of Creativity” with Eliana Dockterman, Reynolds credited Green Lantern with influencing his credited superhero work as Deadpool for the MCU. The actor was unusually genuine while speaking about the DC movie, with no self-effacing punchlines or camera takes. It’s clear that he hasn’t become a staple of the superhero genre by accident.
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“I learned all the most amazing lessons I could ever have in the creative space from that movie,” Reynolds said of Green Lantern. “On that film I saw a lot of money being spent on special effects, all sorts of stuff. And I remember suggesting, ‘Why we don’t we write like a scene the way people would talk? I don’t know, it could be a fun exchange of dialogue that all doesn’t cost anything?’”
Reynolds said that this is where he really internalized the lesson that special effects and flashy set pieces cannot replace authentic characters and stories — in other words, “character over spectacle.” He added, “The greatest superpower I ever had in my life, I’m not saying about just my career or anything, was knowing who I am.”
[READY: Ryan Reynolds’ First Marvel Role Is a Deep-Cut Character (And It’s Not Deadpool)]
During the panel, Reynolds focused mostly on the business side of his production company, Maximum Effort, and its intersection with his other work. However, toward the end Dockterman asked if we could expect Deadpool to show up as a “supporting character” in an MCU crossover down the line. Reynolds answered cryptically: “I do,” before detouring into a bit of background about making Deadpool & Wolverine after the Disney-Fox merger.
“The whole movie was an allegory for Disney buying Fox. I pitched 18 different movies to them,” he explained. “I was really grateful to get to tell a story, to see people like the characters that we made with Wesley Snipes, who should have a third act in this moment… That feeling of gasp… it’s a feeling that I just want more of. And I think I would be able to do that as a supporting actor.“
If that wasn’t enough of a tease, Reynolds ended by saying that he is currently writing “a little something” with “an ensemble,” which could be very promising if it involves Deadpool. On the other hand, it might be a tease about a non-franchise project for Maximum Effort.
All three of Reynolds’ Deadpool movies are streaming now on Disney+, while Green Lantern is currently streaming on Max. So far, there’s no word on when we’ll see the Merc with a Mouth on screen again, but it sounds like Reynolds and Marvel are not done with the character yet.
