Ryan Reynolds gives the best dramatic performance of his career in The Adam Project, says director Shawn Levy. The upcoming Netflix film based on a spec script was also produced by Reynolds, who stars alongside child actor Walker Scobell, Mark Ruffalo, Jennifer Garner, Zoe Saldaña, and Catherine Keener. Filmed during the pandemic, The Adam Project is due to become available on the streaming service on March 11.
Firmly in the realm of science fiction, The Adam Project sees Reynolds play Adam Reed, a time-traveling pilot who crash-lands in 2022 and meets his younger self, played by Scobell. With the world under threat, the two Adams team up to find their father, Ruffalo's Louis Reed, and prevent time travel from ever being invented. The Adam Project trailer footage released so far teases an action-adventure that leans into Reynolds' star image, speckling the story with the winking humor that has been a staple in his films since at least the first Deadpool.
But, in a new interview with Total Film (via GamesRadar+), Levy tells prospective viewers not to be surprised if they shed a few tears over the course of the film. The director notes that Reynolds delivers all the humor and charisma his fans expect of him in The Adam Project, but says both of them were somewhat surprised at the emotional heft of his performance at times. Indeed, Levy believes it's some of the best dramatic acting that the movie star has done to date. Check out the director's full quote below:
When we signed up for a time-travel adventure, I’m not sure that either one of us knew it would become one of his greatest dramatic performances of his career. The amount of emotional authenticity he brings to this performance... we expect him to be a movie star, heroic and funny. But we don’t expect Ryan Reynolds to make us cry.
The actor then attributes this to the lines of dialogue he added that were based in his own relationship with his father, which made the narrative that much more emotional for him to act out. That said, Reynolds assures audiences this is still a "popcorn" movie; he has compared The Adam Project to films like E.T. and Back to the Future, and a balance of excitement with a few tugs at the heartstrings puts it right in that Spielbergian sweet-spot. The trailers certainly promise plenty of sci-fi action, particularly from Reynolds and Saldaña, who both have experience in that area on screen.
The last pairing of Reynolds and Levy, Free Guy, was a surprise hit, so Netflix will surely be hoping this project does big numbers for them. The producer-star is already a big draw, but the idea of seeing him flex his dramatic acting skills should intrigue his fans, who might be curious to see whether he can carry an '80s-style adventure movie. The Adam Project early reactions have been positive, though official reviews have yet to come in, so it remains to be seen if Reynolds' performance affects critics and audiences in the way it did his director.
Source: Total Film (via GamesRadar+)
