Ryan Reynolds Expands Disney Ties With First-Look Deal Between Maximum Effort and 20th Television
The man behind Deadpool’s mask name drops Mary Poppins in the press release.
Ryan Reynolds is expanding his connections to Disney, with his production company Maximum Effort signing a new first-look deal with 20th Television.
What’s Happening:
- As reported by Deadline, the new deal will involve Reynolds and his team at Maximum Effort developing and executive producing comedy, drama, limited series and unscripted series. Though this will be open for all linear and network streamers, there will be an emphasis on platforms across Disney Entertainment Television - presumably including ABC, FX, Hulu and Disney+.
- As Deadline notes, the show that first gave Reynolds high profile exposure, Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place (later given the far less fun title Two Guys and a Girl) aired on ABC, already owned by Disney at the time. That show was also produced by what was then called 20th Century Fox Television, meaning yes, that Pizza Place and its characters are now Disney IP!
- Right after Two Guys debuted, Reynolds as seen in The Wonderful World of Disney TV movie Tourist Trap and he would go on to star in Disney’s The Proposal before starring in 20th Century Fox’s Deadpool films and then, after 20th’s purchase by Disney, in Free Guy and Deadpool & Wolverine for 20th Century Studios and Marvel Studios. On the TV side these days, Reynolds and Maximum Effort are producers on the docu-series Welcome to Wrexham for FX, which he appears in alongside Rob McElhenney .
- This marks the first big ongoing TV deal for Maximum Effort, though the company is under a first-look feature film deal at Paramount. The deal doesn’t explicitly call for Reynolds to star in any of Maximum Effort’s TV projects, though it’s obviously always a possibility.
What They’re Saying:
- Ryan Reynolds: “Disney and 20th Century Studios have helped co-author my career in a not insignificant way. From Two Guys to Deadpool and Welcome to Wrexham, every pivot point in my career has found its start at the Magic Kingdom. So in looking for a home for our TV business, 20th was our first and, blessedly, last call. We want to thank Dana [Walden], Eric [Schrier], Karey and Carolyn [Cassidy] for their reckless faith in us and Maximum Effort looks forward to many happy years under the Disney umbrella. Which I am assuming was Mary Poppins’?"
- Karey Burke (20th Television President): “Welcoming Ryan back in the television fold 25 years after Two Guys and a Girl stormed into living rooms on ABC, feels like a homecoming in the best possible way. Ryan’s creative instincts and entertainment acumen are legendary, and his ability to tap into pop-culture and fandom are unrivaled. We are incredibly excited to welcome the entire Maximum Effort team to the studio, and can’t wait to dive back into the television space together."
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