Ryan Reynolds has explained why his older version of Adam Reed is so harsh towards Walker Scobell's younger Adam Reed in Netflix's The Adam Project. Reynolds and Scobell play the same character at different periods of his life in the sci-fi action comedy film. The Adam Project saw Reynolds reunite with Free Guy director Shawn Levy.
In The Adam Project, Reynold's Adam Reed is a time pilot from a dystopian future who accidentally lands in the present day in a crash, stumbling upon his younger self (Scobell) still grappling with the loss of his father (Mark Ruffalo), who was a pioneer in developing time travel. With a pressing mission to find his long-lost love (Zoe Saldaña), Adam begrudgingly enlists his younger self's help on a mission that won't only prevent a dark future, but confront Adam with his long-held traumas from the past. While The Adam Project's promotion has played with time-travel elements, tropes, and showed off its sci-fi wonder, the film doesn't shy away from the concept's complexities, especially with how someone could handle seeing themselves at a different time, which has led to Reynolds explaining some of his character's attitudes towards his younger self.
As reported by Yahoo, Reynolds spoke to young reporters Lyla and Luna in an interview for the website about the Netflix movie where they asked why the older Adam treats his younger self harshly. Reynolds explained that Adam's poor treatment of the young Adam stems from how he sees himself and how he dislikes how he currently is. Reynolds continued by stating that through the journey he goes on in the film, Adam can learn to love himself more, and, by extension, grow to accept how he was when he was younger. Check out Reynold's full response below.
"You know what, that's a really good question. Some people in life-- and I hope that this isn't you when you're older. But some people in life have a tough time loving themselves. And I think my character in the movie is having a tough time loving himself. And because he doesn't really love himself, he doesn't really love his 12-year-old self either.
So, throughout the movie, he has to kind of learn how to not just love himself, but love this little kid that he used to be. So it's part of the journey. We sort of have to start there in order to go someplace. But you're right. He's not very nice to his younger self."
Reynolds hasn't shied away from The Adam Project's deeper emotional themes, revealing in an interview that he drew upon personal tragedy when developing the film. In an interview where the cast of The Adam Project revealed their personal connections to the film, Reynolds revealed how a line drew inspiration from the passing of his father. The star revealed that the older Adam's exchange when reuniting with his mother was inspired by how he and his siblings reunited to help his mother when his father passed away, an experience that was incredibly meaningful for her.
While it has been praised for its heart and fun spectacle in reviews, The Adam Project wasn't scared to explore the more personal, existential potential that the concept of time travel holds. While a future self encountering themself in the past isn't a new concept, it is usually reserved for works leaning towards older audiences, such as Looper. Instead, The Adam Project chooses to explore the unique dynamic in a film aimed towards family audiences, tackling the subject in a way that can connect with an unsuspecting wider audience.
Source: Yahoo
