We never want them to become friends.
Ah, Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman. No celebrity feud has been this entertaining since the days of Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. Unlike Davis and Crawford, however, the war between Jackman and Reynolds is nothing but friendly fire.
Who could forget their People’s Sexiest Man Alive shenanigans? Or their fake political ads against one another in 2018? I mean, these are some grade A, next-level types of pranks here.
So is it any surprise really, that on opening night of “The Music Man,” where Hugh Jackman would star as the titular character, that Ryan Reynolds wouldn’t behave himself? I think not. And we’d all be disappointed if he did, anyway.
The Broadway revival had already been delayed after both Jackman and his co-star, fellow showtune icon Sutton Foster, tested positive for COVID-19 on Dec 28. Just days into the show’s run, "The Music Man" had been forced into a fermata, for you music geeks out there.Cut to Feb 10, as Jackman prepares to take the stage as con man Harold Hill. Jackman reveals in a hilarious tongue-in-cheek Instagram post that among the blessings of “gorgeous flowers, champagne and heartfelt wishes,” he also received Ryan’s gift … if you can call it that.
In Jackman's dressing room are two black-and-white portraits of Reynolds, one a sketch of him looking dapper while leering with arms crossed and the other a photo while he leaps in the air, sort of the same move Jackman does in the show. Perhaps one to intimidate, and the other mock? Who knows why mad men do what they do.
Attached is a note, with a passive aggressive pep talk from Reynolds.
“Hugh, good luck with your little show. I’ll be watching.”
Despite the jabs, however, Reynolds gave nothing but glowing reviews, calling the show “actually perfect.” But what he had to say about Jackman in particular was even more noteworthy.
“I don’t generally like to speak about @thehughjackman. Particularly in a positive light,” Reynolds wrote. “But his performance in @musicmanbway is one of the most electric things I’ve ever seen him do. The chemistry between [him] and @suttonlenore is off the charts.”
The only review of "The Music Man" that you really need.
I mean, if even Jackman’s infamous nemesis enjoyed it, this show has to be really something, right?
During an interview in 2020, Jackman told The Daily Beast, "It's gone back so long now … God, this is a classic sign where your feud has gone too long, where you don't even know why or how it started," regarding the playfully tumultuous relationship he shared with Reynolds.
But ask anyone, and I think they’ll tell you that we never want this delightful trolling to end.
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