Ryan Reynolds is under fire after a resurfaced video showed him improvising slapping a child in the face while filming 2005 movie, The Amityville Horror.
In the clip, Reynolds – who along with wife Blake Lively is embroiled in lawsuit drama with Justin Baldoni – is seen striking child actor Jesse James, then aged 15, who played one of his kids in the horror, with James seen looking visibly shocked at the slap.
In a 2005 interview with Radio Free, Reynolds joked James ‘had it coming’ saying: ‘No, it was actually horrible. I didn’t mean to do it. It wasn’t hard or anything. He looked up like he just won the lottery. It was just so cool to him. And I look over and the script supervisor’s crying, and I’m trying to apologize to her. I don’t know what’s happening.’
He bizarrely said the incident happened due to Native Americans possessing his character, saying: ‘It was one of those great moments. In a perverse way, I was sort of excited by the fact that something happened on film that was just totally unplanned. And it just came out organically enough, and not so organically that it actually hurt anyone. So everyone walked away from it, but it was definitely disturbing.’
The star also revealed he ‘didn’t ever talk to’ younger co-stars, saying: ‘I don’t want to get attached to the kids. I don’t want to get to know them and love them. I want to stay as far away from them as possible. It helps me do my job better.
He said the kids were ‘little adults who understood the process’, adding: ‘One of them is my financial advisor now!’
Ryan Reynolds is under fire after a resurfaced video showed him improvising slapping a child in the face while filming 2005 movie, The Amityville Horror
Reynolds’ wife Blake Lively filed a lawsuit against Justin Baldoni, 41, in which she accused him of sexually harassing her and creating a hostile work environment. He in turn sued her, Reynolds and her publicist for defamation, requesting $400 million in damages; Lively and Reynolds in 2014 in NYC
After the clip and interview was unearthed on TikTok amid the explosive legal drama, fans lambasted the actor for the incident.
One wrote: ‘That’s actual abuse’ while a second typed: ‘I would have sued if I was the parent.
Others wrote: ‘That’s literally assault’, ‘Poor kid’, ‘Justice for that child’. ‘wowww I’m done with him’ and ‘Ugh its uncomfortable to watch honestly.’
‘The script advisor crying is so sweet and empathetic. I hope the kid was okay.’
Others defended Reynolds saying: ‘That’s barely a slap’, ‘That wasn’t even a slap and besides that slap made the scene in the movie epic’ and ‘its a tap not a slap.’
DailyMail.com has contacted representatives for Ryan Reynolds for comment.
More claims about Reynolds resurfaced on social media in recent days, as the star is caught up in an ugly lawsuit between his wife and Baldoni.
Comedian TJ Miller, 43, claimed Reynolds was ‘horrifically mean’ to him on set and ‘insecure’ in a 2022 The Adam Corolla Show podcast interview that has now gone viral again.
In the clip, Reynolds – who along with wife Blake Lively is embroiled in lawsuit drama with Justin Baldoni – is seen striking child actor Jesse James, then aged 15, who played one of his kids in the horror, with James seen looking visibly shocked at the slap
In a 2005 interview with Radio Free , Reynolds joked James ‘had it coming’ saying: ‘No, it was actually horrible. I didn’t mean to do it. It wasn’t hard or anything. He looked up like he just won the lottery. It was just so cool to him. And I look over and the script supervisor’s crying, and I’m trying to apologize to her. I don’t know what’s happening’
The star also revealed he ‘didn’t ever talk to’ younger co-stars, saying: ‘I don’t want to get attached to the kids. I don’t want to get to know them and love them. I want to stay as far away from them as possible. It helps me do my job better’
The comments have remerged in the wake of ugly dueling lawsuits filed between Reynolds’s wife Blake Lively, 37, and her It Ends With Us director and costar Justin Baldoni.
Lively had filed a complaint and a subsequent lawsuit against Baldoni, 41, and his production company in which she accused him of sexually harassing her and creating a hostile work environment.
Baldoni, who has denied her allegations, subsequently filed a $400million lawsuit against Lively, Reynolds and her publicist Leslie Soane, in which he claimed the trio attempted to defame him in the aftermath of the release of their hit film.
Miller played Deadpool’s close friend Weasel who runs a bar for mercenaries in Ryan’s hit film franchise.
More claims about Ryan Reynolds, as the star is caught up in an ugly lawsuit between his wife Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, resurfaced on social media in recent days; Reynolds seen January 7 in NYC
Comedian TJ Miller, 43, claimed Reynolds, 48, was ‘horrifically mean’ to him on set and ‘insecure’ in a 2022 podcast interview that has now gone viral again; Miller and Reynolds pictured in Deadpool (2016)
Fans have been catching up on the drama again in the wake of ugly dueling lawsuits filed between Reynolds’ wife Blake Lively, 37, and her It Ends With Us director and costar Justin Baldoni; Baldoni and Lively seen on set in January 2024
In his Adam Corolla Show interview, Miller claimed that he felt tension between himself and Reynolds on set.
‘As the character, he was, like, horrifically mean to me,’ Miller claimed, before sharing an alleged incident from the filming of the second film. ‘But to me. As if I’m Weasel.’
The Big Hero 6 star continued, ‘He was like, “You know what’s great about you, Weasel? You’re not the star, but you do just enough exposition that it’s funny and then we can leave and get back to the real movie.”‘
Miller said he ‘kind of listened and thought it was weird’ before walking away after the director called cut.
The Yogi Bear actor alluded to Reynolds possibly being ‘insecure’ for some reason, though he didn’t seem exactly sure why.
‘That’s exactly why he said that,’ Miller claimed. ‘Because I’m not funnier than he is at all, right? And I haven’t been in more movies than him.’
‘He’s such a good comedian that, when you cover his face, he’s so quick, he’s so funny. I love him as a comedian, but I think after he got super, super famous from the first Deadpool, then things kinda changed. I think he was like, ‘”See? You guys see?”‘
DailyMail.com has reached out to Reynolds for comment.
In his Adam Corolla Show interview, Miller claimed that he felt tension between himself and Reynolds on set; seen in 2016 in NYC
‘As the character, he was, like, horrifically mean to me,’ Miller claimed, before sharing an alleged incident from the filming of the second film. ‘But to me . As if I’m Weasel.”; L–R: Miller, Reynolds and Skrein in 2016
‘Would I work with him again? No. I would not work with him again,’ Miller said; seen in 2016 in Santa Monica, Calif.
Despite the alleged strangeness between the two stars, Miller was quick to say that he held no ill will when it came to Reynolds.
‘Would I work with him again? No. I would not work with him again,’ he said. ‘I sorta wish him well, because he’s so good at Deadpool, and I think it’s weird that he hates me.’
He continued, ‘I don’t wish them any ill will. I think [Ryan] should make a Deadpool 3 and continue to make movies. I just think he doesn’t like me, and I thought it was weird how he expressed that.’
At the time of Miller’s 2022 interview, Reynolds confirmed that he would be returning for a third Deadpool film, which eventually became the duo movie Deadpool & Wolverine, which arrived in theaters in July of 2024.
Miller had already filmed his scenes for Deadpool 2 when he was accused of sexual assault in 2017. In 2018 when the movie was released, the actor was arrested for allegedly making a fake bomb threat on a train, the case was eventually dismissed.
He was also accused of bullying his co-star from the TV show Silicon Valley, Alice Wetterlund on set, which he denied. He was not asked to return as Weasel in Reynolds’ third movie Deadpool & Wolverine.
Despite the apparent bad blood between Miller and Reynolds, just days after the 2022 interview, Miller claimed on the Jim Norton & Sam Roberts Show that the two had patched up their differences.
‘It was really cool, he emailed me the next day,’ Miller said. ‘It was a misunderstanding, so I emailed him back and now it’s, like, fine.’
He also claimed that his initial complaints were misconstrued, and it was just a story from on set that he found ‘weird.’
Miller played Deadpool’s close friend Weasel who runs a bar for mercenaries in the films; still from Deadpool (2016)
Despite the apparent bad blood, just days after the interview, Miller claimed on the Jim Norton & Sam Roberts Show that the two had patched up their differences; still from Deadpool (2016)
After Deadpool & Wolverine had been released to staggering success at the box office, Miller changed his tune and expressed interest in returning for a fourth film in the series.
‘We talked a little while ago,’ he said of Reynolds while appearing on SiriusXM’s The Bonfire. ‘I think him asking me, I think he’s just been such a good friend right now that I think it would be really, I think that would be awesome.’
Miller has had a troubled life away from his career. An anonymous woman who had previously attended George Washington Univeristy with Miller told The Daily Beast in 2001 that Miller had become violent with her during a sexual encounter they had in college.
She accused him of choking and shaking her and even punching her in the mouth during the alleged incident, which other people interviewed corroborated.
Reporting from The Daily Beast revealed that the university had been alerted to the woman’s claims in 2001, and he was allegedly expelled as the result of disciplinary hearings.
In 2019 Miller claimed that the woman was jealous because she thought his wife Kate Miller, whom he married in 2015, had ‘stole[n] her life.’
Miller’s career took another negative turn in April of 2018, when he was arrested at LaGuardia Airport in Queens, New York City.
Miller (seen with his wife Kate in 2019 in NYC) was accused in 2017 of having been expelled in 2001 after allegedly sexually assaulting and punching a woman during sex. He was arrested in 2018 for making a fake bomb threat on an Amtraik train
Federal charges related to a fake bomb threat were filed against him, and a Department of Justice press release accused him of making an emergency call on an Amtrak train in which he claimed that a woman onboard had a bomb in her bag.
The train was subsequently stopped and evacuated, and no explosive materials were found, but witnesses told investigators that Miller appeared to be heavily intoxicated and had previously had an altercation with a woman in the train’s first-class car before he was kicked off due to his alleged intoxication.
Miller was released on a $100,000 bond after appearing in federal court in Connecticut, and charges were dropped in 2021 after prosectors said that a brain surgery that he had in 2010 that may have had lasting neurological effects that could have influenced his behavior.
As part of the agreement to dismiss the charges, Miller agreed to repay law enforcement for costs related to investigation his false 911 call, and he agreed to undergo a program of ‘cognitive remediation’ to ensure that no similar incidents would occur.
Last week, Justin Baldoni escalated his legal war of words with Reynolds and his wife Blake Lively when he filed a $400 million against the two and her publicist, accusing them conspiring to trash his reputation with sexual harassment allegations that Lively previously made.
In court papers obtained by DailyMail.com, Baldoni accused Lively of hijacking the filming of their romantic drama It Ends With Us — which he directed.
He also accused her and her Deadpool star husband of ruining his experience of the film’s premiere by forcing him and his family to wait in a basement holding area surrounded by overstocked concession stand offerings and security guards to ensure that she wouldn’t see him in the theater.
In response to Baldoni’s new lawsuit, Lively’s attorneys issued a fiery statement to DailyMail.com, declaring: ‘This latest lawsuit from Justin Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios, and its associates is another chapter in the abuser playbook.’
Last week, Justin Baldoni escalated his legal war of words with Lively and Reynolds when he filed a $400 million against the two and her publicist, accusing them conspiring to trash his reputation with sexual harassment allegations that Lively previously made; seen in December 2023 in NYC
Lively had filed a complaint and a subsequent lawsuit against Baldoni, 41, and his production company in which she accused him of sexually harassing her and creating a hostile work environment; seen in August in NYC
They added: ‘This is an age-old story: A woman speaks up with concrete evidence of sexual harassment and retaliation and the abuser attempts to turn the tables on the victim. This is what experts call DARVO. Deny. Attack. Reverse Victim Offender.’
The statement claimed Baldoni’s production company Wayfarer Studios ‘opted to use the resources of its billionaire co-founder to issue media statements, launch meritless lawsuits, and threaten litigation to overwhelm the public’s ability to understand that what they are doing is retaliation against sexual harassment allegations.’
Lively’s attorneys added: ‘They are trying to shift the narrative to Ms. Lively by falsely claiming that she seized creative control and alienated the cast from Mr. Baldoni. The evidence will show that the cast and others had their own negative experiences with Mr. Baldoni and Wayfarer.
‘The evidence will also show that Sony asked Ms. Lively to oversee Sony’s cut of the film, which they then selected for distribution and was a resounding success.’
They continued: ‘Their response to sexual harassment allegations: she wanted it, it’s her fault. Their justification for why this happened to her: look what she was wearing.’
The statement concluded: ‘In short, while the victim focuses on the abuse, the abuser focuses on the victim. The strategy of attacking the woman is desperate, it does not refute the evidence in Ms. Lively’s complaint, and it will fail.’
