Hugh Jackman showed his support for Ryan Reynolds after the Deadpool star’s emotional post about anxiety. Jackman and Reynolds famously starred in the much-criticized X-Men Origins: Wolverine, where the Australian actor once again portrayed Wolverine while Reynolds played the ‘Merc with a Mouth’ for the first time, albeit in a less than stellar version of the Deadpool character. Although their Wolverine and Deadpool characters never reunited on-screen due to Jackman retiring as Logan, the pair have grown to become the most popular frienemies, taking every opportunity to poke fun at one another with an obvious wink and a nod.
The never-ending feud between the two actors has continued by Jackman stating he would do a Face/Off remake with Reynolds as long as the two were not on-set together. However, more recently, they have increasingly used their tongue-in-cheek rivalry for good by poking fun at each other while also raising awareness for different issues or causes. In November, Reynolds and Jackman joined Sam’s Club for a competition asking fans to donate to their respective charities, and Reynolds even narrated an ad that promotes Jackman's Laughing Man Coffee brand that donates its profits to fair trade initiatives. Despite the humorous approach, the collaborations show their supportive friendship, which Jackman has shown yet again by responding to Reynolds' recent Instagram post.
May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and to help raise awareness, Reynolds shared an emotional Instagram post about his “lifelong pal, anxiety.” In his post, the Deadpool star notes that he’s late in posting the message because he overschedules himself, which is due to his anxiety. He then writes, “to all those like me who overschedule, overthink, overwork, over-worry and over-everything, please know you’re not alone.” The actor also stated that, “We don’t talk enough about mental health and don’t do enough to destigmatize talking about it.” In response to his friend’s sincere post, Jackman showed his support by commenting: “Mate – your honesty is not only brave but, I’m positive will help countless others who struggle with anxiety too. Good on you!” Full post can be seen below:
Based on their history of social media interactions, it’s surprising to see this moment of genuine support from Jackman. But at the same, it’s not surprising at all, considering the pair clearly have a strong friendship that extends beyond films. Reynolds’ post is not the first time he’s acknowledged his battle with anxiety as he’s previously stated playing his Deadpool character is a great tool to help him overcome the anxiety of doing promotional interviews. However, as the actor states in his message, mental health is not talked about enough, and this new post is another message to bring awareness to the topic of mental health. Jackman is certainly correct when writing Reynolds’ honesty “will help countless others who struggle with anxiety too,” as it may help many to know that a star like Reynolds goes through the same struggles as they do.
As much as it’s fun to see the Hollywood stars make fun of one another on social media, it’s also great to see the more real and human side of their friendship come out as well. It’s possible this message from Jackman will only increase the desire to see him revive his Wolverine character for Deadpool 3, which according to another tweet from Reynolds designed to raise awareness for mental health, was going to be a road trip film with Deadpool and Wolverine before Disney purchased Fox. Regardless of whether Jackman appears in Deadpool 3 or not, fans will love reading his supportive message for Reynolds.
Source: Ryan Reynolds