Tryin' Reynolds

Ryan Reynolds is revolutionizing advertising one yuck at a time. Yet for many in the industry, the sound of the Canadian actor’s maple syrupy pipes is cause for panic. What can we do in the face of such an obvious and alarming disrupter? Like Odysseus before him, he’s entered our walled city under false pretenses, waiting for the perfect time to burn it to the ground. If the analogy holds, then we should get a much-needed 10-year break from his unmatched creativity. 

Just not yet.

That doesn’t mean you should worry. The only way to take on someone like Reynolds is to mirror his masterplan. He entered advertising relatively late in life as a slightly amusing half-wit thespian. Ads revived a career that was approaching an inevitable flatline. At the time, he wasn’t even the most famous Canadian named Ryan. Should Gosling ever adopt the title of Creative Director, then we’re all finished. Reynolds included. 

 

Instead of trying to make better ads than him, which isn’t going to happen, we must take a different tack. You don’t look like him, you don’t have millions of dollars to toss into the breeze, and you certainly don't have other North Country pals like Rick Moranis to help you in a pinch. So we’re not going to make better commercials. We can't. But we can still compete - only in a different way.

Because we can definitely make better movies than him. That’s not even up for debate. And it won’t take much. Van Wilder? Deadpool? I’m sure there are more, but honestly, who cares? Let's get rolling.

The Hollywood system is broken. You walk into a studio today (after a rigorously sanitizing) with a clipboard and a blank piece of paper, you’ll walk out with three to five films green lit. Start with the superhero genre using the formula that never fails [insert-any-word + man/woman/boy/girl]. 

Have no fear, Treeman is here to protect the mighty sequoias of the Sierra with his lanky sidekick, Willow Woman, assisting him down by the riverside. Birdboy, formerly Birchboy, the sworn protector of all feathered frenemies yearns to fly. And of course the deeply conflicted Gravelgirl, is here to pave a road straight through your heart - as well as your nearest National Forest. 

You see? Conflict, intrigue - everything's there and in a short paragraph no less. Do that and then sprinkle in a few sequels, a couple prequels, a crossover film or two and you, my friend, will have a dominant franchise on your hands. For the final piece, enlist a semi-famous British actor who insists on being called 
“Sir” and watch as the money rolls in by the ducat. Now if you want to produce an art film like The Hot Dog Salesman of San Jose, you still can. But that’s for passion, not profit. Superheroes must come first.

Where are my midlevel creatives uncomfortably fitting into spandex suits for a blockbuster film? That would send a message to all actors in Hollywood that advertising will not go quietly into the night. You want to make ads? Fine. That just means we're going to make a few movies, too.

Ryan Reynolds came to our world and changed the entire industry. It’s high time we did the same to his.