Director Shawn Levy has revealed just why Mariah Carey’s song Fantasy has become the signature song of his upcoming movie Free Guy. The forthcoming action movie stars Ryan Reynolds as Guy, a non-playable character in the film’s video game world, and follows him as he goes from NPC to action hero. The film also stars Jodie Comer, Taika Waititi, and Joe Keery. The film was initially slated for release in July but was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The film is now scheduled to hit theaters in December, one of the last remaining major films to be released this year.
Mariah Carey’s song Fantasy has been featured heavily in the film’s promotional materials, including both trailers. The song was a massive hit after its release on September 12, 1995. It was the second song in history to debut at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, the first by a female artist. It remained atop the chart for eight consecutive weeks. The song was Carey’s ninth number-one single in her career at the time.
Director Shawn Levy gave details about how the film’s relationship with the song came about in an interview with Cinema Blend. While star Reynolds was working on dialogue for the script, he was listening to Carey heavily and ended up writing the song into the script:
Ryan, when he was doing the earliest dialogue polishes on this screenplay, he was listening to Mariah in his home, and he wrote “Fantasy” into the script. And I go, ‘What’s this about?’, and he’s like ‘It just feels good.’ So literally, based on nothing but Ryan’s instinct, and the fact that that was one of his writing tracks in the revisions of Free Guy, we approached Team Mariah and it lead to that song being the signature track. Not only in the movie, but in the campaign for the movie.
Levy also hinted at the song’s deeper importance to the film’s themes but refused to give away too much. Levy only revealed that the song is utilized in many ways in the movie that makes sense for Reynolds’ protagonist.
While at first, a Mariah Carey song may seem out of place in a movie about video games, upon the second look, the inclusion makes sense. The trailers indicate that, at least initially, Reynolds’ character Guy is living in a literal fantasy, unaware that he is part of a video game world. The film’s second trailer even hinted that the song might have something to do with Guy’s love interest Milly AKA Molotov Girl, played by Comer.
Reynolds’ heavy involvement in the script is not surprising either. He has already said this is his favorite movie he’s ever done. The rapport between Levy and Reynolds on the 2019 set is well known. Levy’s willingness to work with Reynolds’ musical inspirations, as out there as they may be, is probably one of the reasons why the two have worked together so well. While the true meaning of Fantasy when it comes to the film won’t be revealed until Free Guy hits theaters in December, fans can parse through all the Easter Eggs in the trailers and possibly find a clue.
