Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds is often seen as the epitome of charm and success, with his good looks, wealth, and fame painting a picture of an all-around nice guy.

He is known for being a devoted family man, cherishing his relationship with wife Blake Lively and their four children. Reynolds also enjoys strong friendships with fellow celebrities, including Hugh Jackman.

While Reynolds is celebrated for his humor and quick wit, few would have guessed that beneath his polished exterior lies a reservoir of deep-seated anger.

Recent developments in the legal dispute involving Lively and her co-star Justin Baldoni from the film “It Ends With Us” are shedding light on this unexpected side of Reynolds.

To summarize the situation: Lively has accused Baldoni of sexual harassment during the 2023 film shoot. On Thursday, legal teams for both parties met in a New York courtroom as Baldoni sought to dismiss the lawsuit before it proceeds to trial in late spring.

Baldoni’s attorneys argued that Lively’s claims amounted to ‘trivial grievances’ and ‘petty slights’ that do not meet the required legal threshold. The judge is expected to decide soon whether the case will be dismissed or if it will go to trial on May 18.

There was also a mass unsealing this week of hundreds of exhibits including texts between Lively and famous friends such as Taylor Swift. There were also indiscreet chats involving Baldoni’s PR and British actress Jameela Jamil, who had nothing nice to say about Blake, describing her as a ‘suicide bomber’ and a ‘villain’.

But perhaps the most startling, which have until now sailed under the radar, involve Lively’s husband, Ryan Reynolds.

Blake Lively (L) and Ryan Reynolds attends the ‘It Ends With Us’ New York Premiere at AMC Lincoln Square Theater on August 6, 2024 in New York City

Lively has accused Justin Baldoni (pictured) of sexual harassment on the set of It Ends With US

Dozens of text exchanges involving Reynolds have been unsealed, and their tone and volume is staggering.

While most people write texts of just a few words, Reynolds’ longest furious, expletive-laden message – to one of his agents at William Morris Endeavour (WME) – runs to more than 1,000 words. Another single message is over 600 words long.

The bulk of his passionate invective, which dates back to last summer, is reserved for Baldoni who, as well as starring in the film, was also the writer, director and producer.

His wife, we know from the release of her emails with Taylor Swift, thought Baldoni was a ‘clown’ and a ‘doofus’.

But Reynolds goes much, much further, describing him as a ‘predator’, ‘fraud’, ‘sociopath’, ‘s***ball’, ‘human rounding error’ and ‘bucket of dumb dumb juice’.

When he played superhero Deadpool, Reynolds famously wrote some of the character’s foul-mouthed cracks, and in real life it seems he has a propensity for rhetorical demolition and nasty invective.

‘This guy is genuinely touched in some very strange ways. Like, a melon-baller lobotomy makes more sense than his self-propelled, malignant stupidity and revolting behavior,’ he says of Baldoni.

In another text, Reynolds writes: ‘I know I sound angry but I promise you I have way more rage in the tank. I just feel depleted and exhausted and, as they say, ‘Keep away from the dying animal’.

Lively’s team maintains that there is evidence of a smear campaign against the actress

‘I can’t and won’t sit by watching my wife – who’s been asked to shape-shift around a problematic man since the very beginning of this movie – complete a grand slam home run . . . Only to be dragged through the mud while people ring the ‘shame bell’ behind her.’

Of course, Reynolds is entirely within his rights to protect the reputation of his wife.

At the time, she was being slated on the internet for the perceived tone-deaf way she was promoting It Ends With Us, a film about domestic violence, as a fun girls’ night out, and telling audiences ‘grab your florals’.

However, Reynolds’ rage – expressed to the most senior agents at WME, which at the time also represented Baldoni – had a predictable outcome, with Baldoni being dropped by them after the film came out.

It says a lot about how involved Reynolds was with the film, despite not having any official role.

Is Reynolds’ support of his wife just marital cheerleading – or are they teaming up to destroy her co-star?

Certainly the texts seem to show Reynolds insisting his wife should have the final edit of the film, get the credit for its success, and that its director and writer should write a public apology for creating a bad working environment. Some in Hollywood this week were remembering what happened to Tim Miller, the director of Reynolds’ film Deadpool 2, who abruptly left the project. It was widely reported that Reynolds had insisted that he was in control of the script.

The lawsuit between Lively and Baldoni certainly shines a light on who holds the power in the movie business. When one of your most successful clients is texting you twenty times on a Saturday – as Reynolds did last August – you had better listen.

You can almost hear the fear as Warren Zavala from WME responds to a rant by his $350million client: ‘First of all, I love your writing. I’ve read this a couple times. I think we should chat. I can’t respond in a way that plays at the same level.’

Dozens of text exchanges involving Reynolds (left) have been unsealed, and their tone and volume is staggering 

In another text to Patrick Whitesell, then one of the most senior figures at WME, Reynolds writes: ‘The thing I believe both my wife and I are missing most in this debacle, is your rage. And I hope I’ve illustrated why that is. I have never had anything but an intense love and admiration for WME and the entire company.

‘But I’ve also never needed WME like I do in this moment. I’m always comfortable handling my own s***. But this is a situation in which I need (along with Blake) a sense of solidarity and duty of care.’ Whitesell agrees, apologises and says he will ‘deploy’ the next day.

Interestingly, a spokesman for WME denied last year that Reynolds or Lively had put them under any pressure in their decision to terminate their contract with Baldoni. Reynolds adds that he wants ‘an unqualified, unreserved, full throat apology’ for Lively and the rest of the film’s team and cast from Baldoni and his producing partner Jamie Heath. He goes on to draft a version of that apology that he feels would be acceptable.

Reynolds writes at another point that he also wants an apology from Sony about the marketing campaign: ‘They just need to f***ing go straight at this.’

He sets out the statement he wants made before adding: ‘And this needs to be addressed IMMEDIATELY. This is the most disturbing thing I’ve ever seen in this business. Sony needs to step up for real. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.’

All of the above is extraordinary enough, but it’s not just Baldoni in the firing line from Reynolds.

Two film executives, Todd Black and Andrea Giannetti, are rudely dismissed as ‘f***ing textbook, ineffectual elderly people with no ideas or thoughtful communication skills. Just blunt instruments with six catchphrases and about five key words.’ For the record, he is aged 65 and she is in her fifties.

And anyone whom Reynolds deems isn’t adequately protecting his wife is also a prime target. ‘She f***ing refused to give up on the film. She didn’t sleep, she missed countless moments with her kids while sitting in edit rooms,’ he texted. ‘Blake – under NO CIRCUMSTANCES – should be asked to clean up this sloppy, cliched f***storm. The only thing they don’t seem interested in is the truth. And all Blake HAS is the truth.’

Baldoni pictured in December 2024 in LA

Blake Lively (pictured) was previously slated on the internet for the perceived tone-deaf way she was promoting It Ends With Us

Of course, preserving his Nice Guy image is essential to Reynolds’ success – both in the acting and commercial world.

Since first appearing as Deadpool in the 2009 film X Men: Wolverine, his career has been on a high plane. But as he has risen, reports about his temper have also bubbled. He appeared to chide kindly actor Eugene Levy on a red carpet in September last year, with lipreaders saying that he told the actor: ‘Bull****, man.’

After Levy allegedly replied to Reynolds: ‘Language. You don’t need to speak so harsh.’ Reynolds apparently fired back: ‘Please don’t ever tell me how I can talk to people.’ The two men later embraced on stage.

And a year previously, entrepreneur Martha Stewart surprised many when she told an interviewer that Reynolds – a friend and neighbour – was not a funny person. ‘You want to know something? He’s not so funny in real life. No, he’s not so funny. He’s very serious.’

After reading his text messages, it’s hard to disagree.