Ryan Reynolds reveals his Deadpool & Wolverine director Shawn Levy gave him indispensable parenting advice: It 'stuck with me forever'
Ryan Reynolds wants his kids to see his wins and his losses.
The actor, who recently revealed all four of his children have dual US/Canadian citizenship, said he was inspired by a conversation he had with the director of his upcoming film Deadpool & Wolverine.
'Shawn Levy actually told me something that stuck with me forever, that people tend to only talk about their wins,' Reynolds, 47, said in a taped conversation for People with costar Hugh Jackman, 55.
'But I think it's really important for your kids in particular to know that you lose, you don't get what you want all the time.'
The Emmy winner explained he wanted his children — daughters James, nine; Inez, seven; Betty, four; and a fourth child whose name and sex has not been announced — to learn that 'something you worked on really hard didn't work. You feel like you said something embarrassing today, you did something that didn't sit right with you.'
Ryan Reynolds wants his four kids to see his wins and his losses as he opened up about his parenting style; pictured in LA in 2016 with wife Blake Lively, 36, and daughters James (L) and Inez (R)
Reynolds credited director Shawn Levy for inspiring him. 'Shawn Levy actually told me... that people tend to only talk about their wins, but I think it's really important for your kids in particular to know that you lose, you don't get what you want all the time'
'It's just so important that [your kids] see that and they don't just hear, "Oh Dad nailed it." Because you lose so much more than you win,' he explained.
The IF star said Levy's comment 'really stuck with me.'
The actor shares his kids with his wife of nearly 12 years, Blake Lively, 36.
'Oh mate, you've been pretty open with your anxiety struggles, which I really applaud you for,' Jackman told his pal. 'Do you find being a dad makes it better or worse?'
'I think it makes it better because your focus is less on yourself and more on your kids,' he answered, adding, 'I know you know that too.'
Jackman is dad to Oscar, 24 and Ava, 19, whom he shares with estranged wife Deborra-Lee Furness.
Both dads try to keep their children out of the public eye.
'Now I love that I have anxiety, I love that I've had anxiety,' Reynolds said.
'Because when I see my kids experiencing some of that, which is probably genetic, I know how to address it in a way that is compassionate, that actually allows them to feel seen,' he explained.
Using the voice of experience, he continued, 'I know that I can't just fix it. And I can communicate all that stuff to them and with them. I'm always grateful for it.'
Jackman admitted when his kids were younger, he was a 'bit old-school.'
'I thought, "Don't burden them if you are anxious." Say you’ve got an opening night, or you’re hosting the Oscars—for three weeks before, I go a little distant.'
He shared that experience and others in a taped conversation for People with Hugh Jackman, 55. They star in the upcoming Deadpool & Wolverine which opens in theaters July 26
Reynolds revealed his experience with anxiety has helped him help his children. 'I see my kids experiencing some of that... I know how to address it in a way that is compassionate, that actually allows them to feel seen,' he said (Pictured in Santa Monica in December 2022)
Jackman admitted when his kids were younger, he was a 'bit old-school.' 'I thought, "Don't burden them if you are anxious"' The actor shares Ava, 19, and Oscar, 24, with estranged wife Deborra-lee Furness (Pictured in New York in April 2013)
Jackman said he had learned to tell his kids how he's feeling. actually just said to my son, "I’ve got to make this uncomfortable phone call. I’m a bit nervous about it. If I seem a bit off, that’s why"' (Pictured in London in December 2023)
'And then someone said to me, “But your kids don’t know that you’ve got the Oscars. Maybe they’re thinking you’re mad with them [or] they’ve done something.'
The Greatest Showman star said he took that advice to heart and changed his own behavior.
'I had to make an uncomfortable phone call yesterday, and I actually just said to my son, "I’ve got to make this uncomfortable phone call. I’m a bit nervous about it. If I seem a bit off, that’s why." And he goes, "Oh."'
When his son checked on him afterward, 'He said, "How did the call go, Dad?" I said, “I feel so much better,"' the X-Men star answered, to which Reynolds added, 'And he feels a part of your world.'
