Ryan Reynolds is doubling up on his chances at the box office this weekend, playing both a dead cop and a speed-racing snail.
In "R.I.P.D.," Reynolds and Jeff Bridges play a pair of undead cops working to protect the living from evil spirits. In DreamWorks' "Turbo," Reynolds is downsized to an animated garden snail who gets to race in the Indy 500.
We've seen Reynolds as a superhero, a chubby teen, and even a jerk frat guy who never graduates, but do we really know anything about the actor? To get you ready for your Ryan Reynolds-filled movie weekend we've collected a handful of fun facts you may not have known about the popular actor.
1. Reynolds has been afraid of flying since he went skydiving and his parachute failed to open at the first attempt. So while playing the Green Lantern was definitely a challenge, he was able to face his fear through repetition. "By the forth or fifth day of doing it you kinda start to get used to it."
2. Reynolds is Canadian and was born in Vancouver.
3. He attended Kwantlen College for a few months before leaving to pursue his acting career.
4. It feels like most actors were the stars of their high school drama class (you know the type). As it turns out, Reynolds failed his drama class.
5. He made his acting debut playing Billy on the Canadian soap opera "Hillside," also known as "Fifteen" in the U.S.
6. For "Just Friends," in which Reynolds plays the overweight high school version of his character, Reynolds wore a 12-pound makeup face that took four hours to put on. When he stepped outside in full makeup he was so unrecognizable that when a fan came up to him, he pretended he wasn't himself.
7. Reynolds was engaged to singer Alanis Morissette. The couple called the engagement was off in June of 2006.
8. Reynolds and Morissette were traveling in Indonesia when the tsunami struck in 2004. They were uninjured since they were staying on the opposite end of the island from where the tsunami hit.
9. Reynolds used to work in a grocery store.
10. Reynolds is the youngest of four brothers, and two of his three older brothers are policemen. We wonder if they helped him prep for "R.I.P.D."
11. Reynolds dated Rachael Leigh Cook for a year beginning in 2001. He proved himself a real sweetheart when he secretly followed her to London and surprised her while she was shooting her film "Blow Dry."
12. In 2002, Reynolds badly injured his back jumping from a bridge in Zurich, Switzerland.
13. For his role as Hannibal King in "Blade: Trinity," Reynolds gained 25 pounds. According to Men's Fitness his three-month-long workout was six days a week and consisted of a 3,200-calorie daily diet.
14. Reynolds is a big fan of the Green Bay Packers.
15. For his part in "The Amityville Horror", Reynolds chose not to become close with the actors who played his children so that when his character began going crazy, it would be easier for him to act abusive. In fact, he was so distant from the young actors that they told those on the set, "Ryan doesn't like us!"
16. Reynolds loves riding motorcycles.
17. Reynolds married Scarlett Johansson in a private Canadian ceremony on September 27, 2008. The couple divorced in 2010.
18. In November 2008, Reynolds ran in the New York City Marathon on behalf of the Michael J.
Fox Foundation. Reynolds, who has claimed to be anything but a runner, ran for his father, Jim Reynolds, who was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease in 1995.
19. Reynolds is of Irish descent.
20. For his film "Buried," Reynolds said that he suffered from claustrophobia towards the end of filming, similar to his character who is trapped in a coffin. The coffin he shot in was gradually filled with more sand as filming went on. He described the last day of shooting as "unlike anything I experienced in my life, and I never ever want to experience that again."
21. Reynolds was named the Sexiest Man Alive by People Magazine at the same time that his then wife, Scarlett Johansson, was named Babe of the Year by GQ Magazine.
22. Reynolds was offered the role of Xander in the show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." The part instead went to Nicholas Brendon.
23. Reynolds appeared on the BBC show "Top Gear" as the Star In a Reasonably-Priced Car. He posted a time of 1.43:7, which was good enough for eighth place.
24. In September 2012, Reynolds married actress Blake Lively in South Carolina. The two live together in Bedford, New York.
25. Although raised as a Roman Catholic, Reynolds has said, "Religion poisons everything good in this world."
Sources: IMDb, Wikipedia
