When Ryan Reynolds Almost Played The Flash In 2004 – What Stopped Him From Suiting Up?
Discover the story behind Ryan Reynolds' near role as The Flash in 2004 and how his superhero journey could've taken a different turn. Did he almost become Barry Allen?
Ryan Reynolds Flash Role Near Miss ( Photo Credit – Instagram )
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Before Deadpool made Ryan Reynolds a superhero icon, he had a rocky history with caped crusaders. We’re talking two misfires that almost doomed his comic book career. The first one was X-Men Origins: Wolverine in 2009, where Reynolds played a version of Deadpool that fans would rather forget. Then came Green Lantern (2011), where he donned the iconic green suit. But what if he had picked another superhero role back then? Specifically, The Flash?
It turns out that Reynolds nearly suited up as Barry Allen, the Fastest Man Alive, before Green Lantern came into play. In 2005, he was all in to play The Flash for Warner Bros. But the studio had other plans, and Reynolds was eventually handed the Green Lantern ring. Still, this wasn’t the end of his flirtation with the speedy superhero.
In 2008, Reynolds almost voiced the Wally West version of The Flash for a video game that never saw the light of day. Bottlerocket Entertainment was working on an open-world Flash game with villains like Weather Wizard, Mirror Master, and Captain Cold.
Fast-forward, and Reynolds’ superhero career comes full circle. The Deadpool actor found his home in the Marvel universe, where his take on the Merc with a Mouth has become legendary. But in recent years, Reynolds’ superhero past has resurfaced in hilarious ads.
In a recent commercial for MNTN, the company’s chief creative officer, Reynolds, teamed up with The Flash TV’s Grant Gustin. Reynolds and Gustin shared screen time, throwing in plenty of The Flash references—because why not have a little fun with their DC pasts? In the ad, Reynolds couldn’t resist joking about Gustin’s Barry Allen and his own Green Lantern days. He told Gustin, “You’ll always be my Barry,” referring to Gustin’s nine-season run as the iconic speedster. Reynolds responded with, “That hurts, Seymour,” poking fun at his past.
While this ad may have been a lighthearted nod to their superhero history, it also made it clear that Reynolds and Gustin are forever tied to these iconic roles. Barry Allen may have hung up the suit with The Flash’s series finale in 2023, but Reynolds’ Green Lantern might never entirely leave the conversation. And while fans love Deadpool Reynolds, there’s still something hilarious about him poking fun at his less-than-glorious superhero moments.
So, even if Reynolds didn’t end up as The Flash, we got to see him and Gustin share some screen time, laughing at their comic book pasts. The ad perfectly blended nostalgia, humor, and superhero talk. If only Reynolds had gotten his Flash role, we could’ve been talking about Deadpool 3 with a completely different vibe.
