What did Ryan Reynolds say? Deadpool star seemingly references Justin Baldoni scandal in TIME100 cover story

TIME recently named Reynolds' company, Maximum Effort, as one of the 100 most influential companies this year. In his TIME100 cover story, Ryan Reynolds appeared to take a swipe at Justin Baldoni, referring to the media scrutiny faced by him and his wife, Blake Lively. Talking about how the public opinion surrounding the case affects him, the 48-year-old actor remarked,

"I can read something that says, 'He should be drawn and quartered.' I could read something that says I should win a Nobel Prize. Both are meaningless. None of us are comprised of our best moments. None of us are defined by our worst moments. We are something in the middle."

The Canadian star insisted the legal entanglements haven't derailed his business. Discussing the difficult time that his family had with the lawsuits, he stated,

"Accessibility and accountability are a big part of how I do things, the people that I work with know me, so there's never a question of anything like that. If you operate with some degree of core values and integrity, they're going to help you up. If you're an a**hole, they're not. And that's pretty simple."

In a report by The Daily Mail, Ryan Reynolds shared that his personal sense of self isn't tied to public perception but rather to having a good relationship with his family. He went on to say that nothing "that isn't under the roof of my home" matters.

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Ryan Reynolds makes subtle nod to ongoing legal feud while promoting Wrexham at Cannes

Ryan Reynolds couldn’t resist a cheeky jab during a Cannes Lions panel last week, and PageSix was quick to catch the moment.

On June 18, the outlet reported that the actor seemed to allude to his wife Blake Lively’s legal issues with Justin Baldoni while addressing an audience at Stagwell’s Sport Beach.

Ryan Reynolds was tossing out water bottles to cool off the crowd but stopped short. He jokingly said,

"I’m not throwing this. I’ve been around lawyers. You can walk up here and grab it."

The crowd laughed, but the comment didn’t go unnoticed, especially given the high-profile courtroom tensions surrounding the couple.

At the same event, Reynolds focused on brighter topics: namely, football. He was in town promoting Wrexham AFC, the soccer club he owns with Rob McElhenney. He admitted to once being a casual observer, but that’s clearly changed. He said,

"I’m used to being so tense at matches, I get 8,000 steps in just pacing, like I have rabies. This is when I knew I was a fan… I now love the sport so much [that] I f**king hate it."

Ryan Reynolds also reflected on Wrexham’s story as one that echoes across communities. He told the crowd,

“There is a Wrexham everywhere, in every state in the United States, in every country in the world, there are towns that have lost industry, that lost hope.”

And for the Deadpool star, sports aren’t just a pastime; they are so much more than that.

"We live in a world right now that is so… identity politics… almost a religion, for that to be checked at the door in sports… we all walk in, we go together, and the French call it collective effervescence."

He added,

"It’s a beautiful thing to watch people come together, especially when we feel so divided in every other aspect of our life."

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No coverage: Late-night TV ignores Lively-Baldoni case as Reynolds' influence looms

Despite the media buzz surrounding Blake Lively’s legal conflict with Justin Baldoni, none of the major late-night hosts, including Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, or John Oliver, have touched the topic on air. The silence may be linked to Reynolds’ ties to their 2023 podcast, Strike Force Five, which Mint Mobile helped sponsor.

Ryan Reynolds, a college dropout from Kwantlen Polytechnic University, finalized the sale of Mint Mobile to T-Mobile for $1.35 billion in the same year. With stakes in companies valued at over $14 billion, he also ranked as the second highest-paid actor of 2024, according to Forbes, with an estimated $85 million in earnings.