By Joanna Orland @ TIFF 2025
Beloved Canadian icon Ryan Reynolds opened the 50th edition of the Toronto International Film Festival with the documentary John Candy: I Like Me. As a producer on the film, Reynolds was emotionally invested with the subject matter of comedian John Candy — after all, without growing up watching another beloved Canadian icon make it in Hollywood, perhaps Reynolds himself wouldn’t have found the inspiration.
At In Conversation With… Ryan Reynolds, the actor discussed not only his love of John Candy and the documentary, but also gave an overview of his entire career. Through his long answers, comedic interjections, and epic tangents, he also gave the audience insight into and confirmation of his personality.
Two Guys, a Girl and a Movie Career
Reynolds discussed much of his early career, going back to his first acting job. Starting his acting career at such a young age actually put him off the industry, which led him to pursue his passion for improv. He moved to Hollywood hoping to join The Groundlings more than to find an acting job. When his big break finally came with Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place, it was a chance for him to play, to learn, and to grow as a performer.
Eventually, he made the jump to movies where he had a few hits and a lot of misses. The misses were not in vain as they led him to take a more active involvement in his projects. He figured if he was going to fail, it would at least be on his own terms. By removing the fear of failing, he found nothing but success.
Ryan Reynolds Is a Man of Many Words
For a man with such an extensive improv background, Reynolds certainly leans heavy into the “and” part of “yes, and…” The man can talk, and barely comes up for air. Answers to a question go on for five to ten minutes each, with tangents and side stories galore. As moderator Anita Lee tried to keep things on track, he still couldn’t stop himself, insisting on telling stories that had nothing to do with her questions. She, and the audience, of course didn’t mind as that’s what people want from the star.
The unexpected highlight of the talk was when Reynolds discovered he was being live-captioned for accessibility. This somehow led to hilarious banter between him and the captioner, as Reynolds tried to make things as challenging as possible. The captioner met the challenge, as did the moderator who managed to end the conversation on time, in spite of the superfluous anecdotes, and stories about everything including Denzel Washington.
Reynolds was far from being all jokes and tangents, especially during some heartfelt moments talking about John Candy. He repeatedly mentioned Candy’s need to please and how perhaps it wasn’t a healthy trait. Reynolds does show some similarities with this need to please, with needing to be funny in what could’ve been a serious career retrospective. His charming and funny personality is what has made him so popular late in his career, whether it be through Deadpool or otherwise. He clearly feels the need to perform more than to be casual with an audience, which in some ways is more telling than any of the stories he shared today.
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