Ryan Reynolds’ most recent movie, If, has confirmed an unfortunate, surprising truth about Ryan Reynolds’ career. The 47-year-old actor is known as one of the world’s biggest movie stars, having risen to prominence in the 2000s through movies like The Proposal and X-Men Origins: Wolverine. However, after years of struggling to live up to his full potential, the actor hit big with the 2016 film Deadpool, which is still one of Ryan Reynolds’ best movies today. Like Hugh Jackman or Robert Downey Jr. before him, Reynolds seemed perfect as Wade Wilson/Deadpool, and it’s been his most lucrative role.

With the release of Deadpool and its 2018 sequel made Reynolds a household name, resulting in him being cast in multiple films of the same ilk. He’s cornered the niche on comedy/action movies that hone in on his witty humor, like Red Notice, The Hitman’s Bodyguard, or Free Guy. Like many stars, Reynolds’ influence has expanded beyond just his film career, with his name attached to various projects like game shows, commercials, and even the Wrexham football team, which is the subject of Ryan Reynolds’ Welcome to Wrexham series with It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia star Rob McElhenney.

IF’s Box Office – How Much Ryan Reynolds’ Movie Has Made & Is It A Success?

IF Has Underperformed At The Box Office, Grossing Just $138 Million

Ryan Reynolds’ most recent film was IF, a family animation movie directed by John Krasinski. The IF cast is packed with celebrity voices for animated characters, with Reynolds leading the movie as one of the few to appear in live-action. IF has grossed $138 million worldwide, a number that wouldn’t seem too poor if not for the $110 million budget, and a theatrical release generally needs 3x of its budget for a clear profit. It’s not impossible that the movie could do well on streaming, but its weeks at the box office haven’t been promising.

Movies have been struggling at the box office all year, with Furiosa being the most recent example. However, one of the most significant reasons for the Ryan Reynolds movie bombing is IF’s negative reviews on various sites. The film has a brutal 49% score on Rotten Tomatoes, though that’s contrasted by a far more generous 89% Audience Score. IMDb found it somewhere in the middle, with a 6.7/10. Those aren’t the numbers audiences are leaving their homes to go to theaters for, but it might do well enough for its tenure on streaming.

Ryan Reynolds Has Surprisingly Become More Of A Streaming Star In Recent Years

Most Of Ryan Reynolds’ Recent Success Has Been In Streaming Movie Releases

IF’s box office struggles highlight an interesting trend in Reynolds’ recent career choices, as it’s his first theatrical release (aside from cameo roles) since Free Guy in 2021. Most of his recent movies, like Red Notice, Spirited, The Adam Project, and 6 Underground, have been streaming releases. Red Notice even holds the record as Netflix’s most-watched movie, and The Adam Project is also in the top 10. His style of films falls perfectly in Netflix’s domain of easy-to-consume, light-hearted action or comedy, so it’s no wonder they’ve done so well.

In terms of his theatrical releases in the 2020s, Free Guy was a reasonable success, with $331 million at the box office. It’s undoubtedly a hit, but it’s still nowhere near his Deadpool numbers. On the other hand, Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard was a flop with $70.1 million. Before this stretch, he had a decent run of theatrical release films amid his Deadpool hype in the late 2010s, making his pivot to streaming seem like a strange choice. Luckily for Ryan Reynolds, he may have the biggest box office success of 2024 still to come.

Ryan Reynolds’ Next Movie Will Be A Massive Box Office Success

Deadpool & Wolverine Could Be 2024’s Biggest Box Office Hit

Deadpool & Wolverine is a contender to be 2024’s most gigantic commercial hit. Dune: Part Two was a smash success, but its numbers were still way below the Marvel standard. Aside from Deadpool, the biggest competition could be Joker 2, seeing as the first one made over $1 billion. Beetlejuice 2 could be a hit, but grossing MCU numbers would be an outrageous success. The Lion King made over $1.6 billion, but it seems less likely the Mufasa prequel will reach those numbers. Wicked is another option, but ultimately, 2024 seems ripe for Deadpool to dominate.

Given the return of Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, Deadpool & Wolverine has all the pieces in place to be an enormous hit. Of course, Ryan Reynolds’ career isn’t in any jeopardy, but it’ll be fun to see him get back on track as a movie star who can bring audiences to the box office. Given the underperformance of movies like IF and Furiosa, movie theaters need some exciting star power.