Ryan Reynolds released a video explaining the jaw-dropping process he went through to become Pikachu in Detective Pikachu.
An actor’s process when taking on a new role is always a spellbinding one, and Ryan Reynolds is no exception. Happily, Reynolds decided to pull back the curtain and let us into the grueling process he underwent to become Pikachu in the upcoming film, Detective Pikachu.
When the first trailer was released for Detective Pikachu, so many of us were blown away at how Ryan Reynolds was able to lose himself completely and embody the role of Pikachu. Nothing is more challenging for an actor than becoming a Pokemon, and Reynolds managed to make the transformation seem effortless onscreen.
In this newly released video from Reynolds himself, we learn that though Reynolds makes playing Pikachu look fun and easy, his process to become the character was anything but. In fact, Reynolds explained that from the moment he was cast, he spent his time becoming the tiny, yellow Pokemon.
From making the choice to not pick up his daughters from school (Pikachu doesn’t have kids, after all), to living “at Pikachu’s level” by crawling on his belly, to even attempting to lose 180 pounds to live at Pikachu’s weight (that is, until doctors stepped in to stop him), Reynolds wasn’t just playing Pikachu–he was Pikachu.
Of course, Reynolds wife, Blake Lively, doesn’t seem as impressed with her husband’s transformation. She comments in the video that Reynolds uses his normal speaking voice and that she and the couple’s daughter won’t be seeing the film. Of course, we all know an artist is rarely fully appreciated in his own time, especially when it comes to playing a small yellow creature who can wield electricity and is also a detective.
To see this breathtaking, super-serious, not-at-all-fun-or-funny performance of a lifetime from Ryan Reynolds, you can experience it when Detective Pikachu arrives in theaters on May 10.
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