While Ryan Reynolds has become a major star in the superhero space thanks to his portrayal of Deadpool in Deadpool, Deadpool 2, and most recently Deadpool & Wolverine, the latter of which brought the iconic wisecracking mercenary into the MCU, comic book movie success hasn’t always been a sure thing for the actor. The 2010s in particular weren’t an especially great time for Reynolds on that front with Green Lantern failing to live up to expectations. And that infamous turn as Hal Jordan wasn’t the actor’s only foray into comic book roles around that time and with just days left on Netflix, now is the perfect time to revisit one that may not have kicked off a franchise but certainly deserves another look.
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Based on the comic book of the same name, R.I.P.D. opened in theaters in 2013. The film stars Reynolds as Nick Walker, a Boston police detective who is murdered by his partner, leading the deceased Nick to be recruited into the Rest In Peace Department (aka, R.I.P.D., a sort of afterlife law enforcement agency tasked with finding and capturing the souls of people who died but escaped judgment. The film also stars Jeff Bridges, Mary-Louise Parker, and Kevin Bacon. The movie is set to leave Netflix on August 1st.
R.I.P.D. Was a Box Office Flop But Has Found New Life on Streaming
While the concept of afterlife cops chasing down those evading their eternal judgment is an interesting enough concept and the film’s cast was solid, R.I.P.D. simply didn’t perform at the box office. The movie made just $78 million against a $150 million budget and it was widely panned by critics. Despite this, the film has found new life on streaming, which is increasingly becoming a familiar story for movies that might not have done so well at the time of release. In the case of R.I.P.D., it’s a film that benefits greatly from being a couch movie — something to enjoy casually at home. When you remove the blockbuster expectations, it allows you to enjoy it for what it is: a somewhat formulaic but consistent comic book adaptation. It ends up being quite a bit of fun, especially in terms of Bridges’ performance as Roycephus “Roy” Pulsipher, Nick’s R.I.P.D. partner.
R.I.P.D. is also worth watching because of its place in Reynolds’s overall comic book movie timeline. Just a year after R.I.P.D. hit theaters, test footage for a then-potential Deadpool movie was leaked, leading to the project getting a greenlight and ultimately resulting in 2016’s Deadpool. That film has gone on to be a massive success and has very much become Reynolds’ signature role. While R.I.P.D. doesn’t necessarily have anything in common with Deadpool other than they’re both movies based on comics, it makes for interesting observation to see just how far Reynolds came over such a short time and how his comic book movie career turned around.
R.I.P.D. leaves Netflix on August 1st.
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Image courtesy of Tor Books/Macmillan
