Ryan Reynolds on his growing business empire

Hollywood, one of the most competitive ecosystems in the world, is witnessing a new era of star entrepreneurship. Ryan Reynolds joins Washington Post deputy business editor Damian Paletta to discuss his growing business empire, philanthropy and this new model of movie stardom.

Highlights

“Most of what we do really is necessity being the mother of invention. A lot of times we’re working really quickly, working with limited budgets, but we’re also acknowledging and playing with the cultural landscape. So, that’s a huge part of what we do, we try to create marketing that’s moving at the exact same speed as culture is.” - Ryan Reynolds (Video: Washington Post Live)

“I want to make the marketing industry better; I want to make it more diverse with creatives. There are so many young people out there who come from overlooked, marginalized, or historically discriminated against communities that haven’t been offered or even knew that there was a chance to work in marketing or show [business] … One thing that really sticks with me is that there is not a dearth of talent out there. What’s lacking is opportunity … the more opportunity we create, the better everything’s going to get.” - Ryan Reynolds (Video: Washington Post Live)

“I love making those films that not only take us out of our reality for a moment, but they’re also infused with joy and empathy, but not at the cost of entertainment or hilarity in some instances … I think that’s what storytelling is all about really. At the end of the day, it’s a brief but wonderful respite from our lives. And a chance to sort of have a moment where a story carries us away to a different place. I’ve always loved that, it’s the greatest legal drug on earth.” - Ryan Reynolds (Video: Washington Post Live)

"Whether you're talking about the unexpected nature of sports, low-cost wireless, gin, connected TV marketing … the connective tissue between each one of those things is actually, ironically, storytelling, the same way it is with movies. That's the thing I love about these businesses."- Ryan Reynolds (Video: Washington Post Live)

Ryan Reynolds

Actor, Producer & Entrepreneur