10 Low-Key Surprising Facts About Ryan Reynolds' Personal Life That You Probably Didn't Know

So many childhood tidbits! 👀

Editor
Ryan Reynolds wearing a Terry Fox shirt.

Ryan Reynolds wearing a Terry Fox shirt.

Ryan Reynolds is a national treasure in Canada and there's just so much interesting information about the iconic actor out there that might be surprising to some given his current A-lister status.

The 46-year-old is as beloved to Canadians as maple syrup and he often shares his love for his home country in interviews and viral moments where he's always dropping something interesting about his childhood or crumbs of info about his home life with Blake Lively and their four kids.

From his favourite movie he's acted in to what he considers to be the best restaurant in the entire world, here's an insight into Ryan Reynolds' personal life and his relatable childhood in Canada.

He loved working at the supermarket

According to his LinkedIn, Reynolds was a forklift driver at a Safeway supermarket in Vancouver back in the 1990s.

In an interview with CBC, he shared how much he loved working there on overnight shifts and said his coworkers were some of "the funniest people on earth."

"Some of the biggest impressions on me, actually, like as a performer, were the people, the folks I was working with at night," he revealed.

Who knows — maybe some of those Deadpool personality quirks come from that time in his life!

He used to bag Sarah McLachlan's groceries

He also shared that he used to serve another famous Canadian icon as a teen.

"I used to bag Sarah McLachlan's groceries and I always noted that she was incredibly kind to everybody that she met in that store," Reynolds said. "Didn't have to be."

"No one even knew it was her, half the time she had a toque pulled down," he said of the "Building A Mystery" singer. "But yeah, it was her. She was awesome."

The movie he's seen the most

In an interview with Leo, Reynolds shared that the movie he's rewatched the most times is Planes Trains and Automobiles.

"Steve Martin is beautiful in the film, and John Candy is a revelation," he said. "Every time I see it I notice something new. There are references to the film littered throughout Deadpool 1 and 2."

Reynolds and fellow celeb Colin Hanks are working on a documentary of Candy's life and the impact the legendary Canadian had.

"Expect tears," warned Reynolds of the project, which has the blessing of Candy's children.

His favourite film he's been in

When it comes to his favourite movie he's ever been in, it's not one of his huge Blockbusters like Red Notice, Deadpool, or The Adam Project.

Instead, he said that Mississippi Grind, a 2015 film about two men going on a gambling road trip, is his top pick.

"I just love the pacing and tone, and I think Ben Mendelsohn is a treasure," he revealed.

His favourite restaurant is in Vancouver

He's travelled all over the world for work, but for Reynolds, nothing beats a resto in his hometown of Vancouver.

In an interview with Netflix, he revealed that Minervas in the Kerrisdale neighbourhood is his all-time favourite.

"It's a Greek restaurant, it's incredible," he said.

The feeling seems to be mutual as the restaurant appears to stock Reynolds' brand of gin, Aviation, and even has a signed bottle by the Vancouverite.

He struggles with anxiety

Although he may appear cool and charismatic in public, he's been candid about his mental health struggles.

"I've had anxiety my whole life really," he said. "And you know, I feel like I have two parts of my personality, that one takes over when that happens."

He explained that he has a "little guy" who takes over in moments of high stress, like when he's on a talk show.

"I feel, like, my heart rate drop, and my breathing calm, and I just sort of go out and I'm this different person. And I leave that interview going, 'God, I'd love to be that guy!'"

While chatting with young patients at SickKids Hospital, Reynolds revealed he uses "box breathing" to help him out when he's feeling overwhelmed.

"When I do that it kind of makes me calm, like I sort of feel like I'm present," he said. "Like I'm actually here in this exact moment right now — and in this exact moment right now there is nothing that is scary or makes me nervous the way when I think about things in the future."

His childhood in Canada was tense

He always shares his love for Vancouver, but apparently, his younger years weren't always easy.

"I don't want to paint this picture that it was this, like, horrible place to grow up," he said of his family situation. "But it was very tense."

It seems his relationship with his father wasn't always perfect.

"I used to sort of describe him as, like, a skin-covered landmine," he shared. "I attribute some of why I'm good at my job from that. I'm perceptive. I watch carefully for danger. And, you know, as an adult, that can really come in handy."

That being said, he told David Letterman that his father would have loved meeting his grandkids.

"I think he would've really been softened by them in a way that he wasn't with boys."

He was a paperboy for the Vancouver Sun

Before he made it to Hollywood, Reynolds' first job was delivering newspapers for the Vancouver Sun, which his wife Blake Lively had made into a painting for him.

"The house in the painting is my childhood home," he said. "My brothers and I spent years trying to kill each other on that lawn. There are a lot of Easter eggs in the painting, including my idol, John Candy on the front page of the newspaper."

"The house no longer stands but it’s a living, breathing thing in my head. This piece of art is the greatest present my wife has ever given me."

He goes way back with Dwayne Johnson

Reynolds and Dwayne Johnson were actually friends for many years before they filmed the Netflix hit Red Notice with Gal Gadot.

The pair shared that they both started out in Hollywood together with Johnson'sThe Scorpion King and Reynolds' Van Wilder premiering at the same time.

They even spent time in Cancun together for MTV's Spring Break to promote their movies back in the day, which is both hilarious and wild.

He loves being a girl dad

Given that he has three girls with his wife Blake Lively, it's no wonder he loves being a girl dad.

"Oh my god, I would not have it any other way," he said, about having three young women in their house. "When we had our youngest I was quietly terrified it was going to be a boy."

Since he made that statement, Reynolds and Lively welcomed a fourth child, but they haven't revealed as yet whether or not their new little one is a boy or a girl.

That being said, three little girls is a decidedly different vibe than his own childhood.

"I grew up with boys, and it was like, you know, I was constantly being thrown through walls when there was a perfectly good door five feet away," he joked.

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.

Sarah Rohoman
Editor
Sarah Rohoman is an Editor for Narcity Media focused on Canadian celebrities and is based in Toronto, Ontario.
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