Random Interesting Facts You May Not Know About Ryan Reynolds (19 items)

(#3) He Starred in a Series of Awesome (and Raunchy) Cancer Awareness Ads

Ryan Reynolds worked to get his passion project, Deadpool, made for years. The character is a fourth wall-breaking, wise cracking, "Merc with a Mouth." He's also suffering from a number of advanced forms of cancer. The marketing for the film is fantastic and features Ryan in a number of great scenarios, but the greatest of all was a tongue-in-cheek cancer awareness campaign.

Not only does he promote the film, but he manages to deliver some actually important health tips about breast cancer and testicular cancer... in character.
(#6) He Has a Star on Canada's Walk of Fame

Did you know that Toronto has its own Walk of Fame like the one in Hollywood? Well, they do, and Ryan Reynolds has a star on it. In October of 2014, both he and Rachel McAdams were honored with a star at the prestigious ceremony.
He told CTV news: "To be here, standing with this group of people, each one of them more amazing than the last, is an incredible privilege. It's a milestone like nothing else."
(#2) He Fought to Get "Deadpool" Made for Over a Decade

Ryan Reynolds LOVES Deadpool. He's a die-hard fanboy and it shows in how hard he's fought to get the film made (and how hard he's fought to distance himself from that X-Men Origins: Wolverine atrocity). He had been trying to get the solo Deadpool film off the ground since 2000!

For the next 15 years, the project hit every possible roadblock and was effectively dead in the water. It was only greenlit after some years-old test footage was leaked. After that, they had mere months to get it planned, shot, and edited!
(#10) He Has Been Acting Professionally Since He Was 13

You may not think of Ryan Reynolds as a former child star, probably because he's one of the few who made it out (mostly) sane. He said of his crazy start in the industry:

"I started when I was 13 years old. I did a really horrible soap opera called Fifteen for Nickelodeon that stoned college kids kept on the air for three years. And then the first movie I did was in Sri Lanka when I was 14. I spent three months there. ]

I was there without my parents working on a movie in a country that was in the midst of a civil war. It was pretty wild."
(#15) He Credits "The Nines" with His New Career Perspective

Ryan Reynolds has had a fairly tumultuous career, but a lot of his (fantastic) indie work is often overlooked. He credits The Nines for really changing his outlook on the movie-making process:

"That was such a wake-up call for me," Ryan said. "The movie was made on less than a million dollars. I loved the process. I loved the character I was given to play. I learned a lot about filmmaking from John August, who was directing.

That was the birth of my own ambition. There were particular films after that that I went after. I had a new view."
(#7) He Comes from a Family of Cops

Ryan has played a cop or military man a few times in his career (Smokin Aces, RIPD, Green Lantern), and is actually no stranger to the life of a law enforcement officer. He's the youngest of four sons.

Two of his three brothers are really life cops. Even his dad was a cop!