Ryan Reynolds Enters A World Of Imaginary Friends In The IF Trailer
Did Dwayne Johnson and Ryan Reynolds get wind of Patrick H. Willems' "When Movie Stars Become Brands" video calling them out for prioritizing their business enterprises over their art? Less than 24 hours after the news broke that The Rock is joining forces with A24 and director Ben Safdie to take a break from his typical (which is a polite way of saying "boring") movie roles with the mixed martial arts biopic "The Smashing Machine," the trailer has dropped for "IF," an original Reynolds-led fantasy comedy from a bona fide filmmaker.
Ever since "Deadpool" catapulted him onto the A-list, Reynolds has focused less on tackling intriguing projects across a wide range of genres (like he'd done up until that point in his career) and more on cultivating a brand that allows him to act while also promoting his various other professional ventures like his Aviation American Gin line or his stake in Mint Mobile. However, with "IF," it appears as though he's actually stretching his acting muscles a little further to make a film that doesn't automatically read like something that was cooked up by an algorithm and might even have something to say. The bar's on the ground, folks, and it's not like this is a return to the days of Reynolds tackling genuinely challenging acting gigs like "Buried" and "Mississippi Grind," but it's a step in the right direction all the same.
You can watch the trailer for "IF" above!
John Krasinski's fantasy film heads to theaters in May 2024
Written and directed by John Krasinski, "IF" follows Reynolds' character and a young girl (Cailey Fleming) who, per the film's synopsis, "discovers that she can see everyone's imaginary friends" and "embarks on a magical adventure to reconnect forgotten IFs with their kids." Judging by the trailer and the "IF" footage presented earlier this year at CinemaCon, Krasinski's fantasy movie has something of a classic Amblin vibe, combining family-friendly humor with, potentially, more poignant themes about growing up and the loss of childhood imagination. Given Krasinski's previous efforts as a director on the first two "A Quiet Place" films, it's possible "IF" will also have a darker streak than this trailer suggests. Failing that, this might just be the unofficial live-action movie adaptation of "Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends" we've been waiting for!
Bobby Moynihan, Fiona Shaw, and Alan Kim join Reynolds, Fleming, and Krasinski in the "IF" cast, with Steve Carrell, Louis Gossett Jr., Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Jon Stewart, Maya Rudolph, Sam Rockwell, Awkwafina, and Christopher Meloni among those either voicing the various "IFs" or playing their now grown-up kids. The movie will open in theaters on May 17, 2024, two weeks after "The Fall Guy" kicks off what is shaping up to be an unusual and even kind of exciting spring/summer blockbuster season after the dual actors' and writers' strike forced Hollywood to dramatically change up its original slate for next year.