Before he was Deadpool, Ryan Reynolds almost fought supernatural creatures on Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
It was the mid-90s, and the Welcome to Wrexham star had just finished appearing in Canadian teen soap opera Hillside (or Fifteen as it was known to American audiences) when he auditioned and was offered a role alongside Sarah Michelle Gellar on the teen supernatural drama.
Ryan turned down the role rumoured to be of Xander Harris in the series, a part that would ultimately go to the late Nicholas Brendon, because he didn’t want to relive his high school experiences. While it has never been confirmed that the role he was offered was Xander, the wisecracking yet lovable member of the Scoobies feels the perfect fit for the Canadian actor.
He spoke about turning down the role during a 2008 interview with the Toronto Star, admitting the choice was hard because he loved the show and its creator, Joss Whedon. “But my biggest concern was that I didn’t want to play a guy in high school. I had just come out of high school, and it was f—–g awful.”
The actor spoke about his high school years during a 2012 appearance on BBC’s Top Gear, admitting he was “a bit of a pariah at school.” Per Digital Spy, The Proposal star recalled being kicked out for moving his teacher’s car down the block as a prank. “In Canada, if you move it more than 10 feet, it’s a felony,” he remembered. “I didn’t know that. One city block was 100% grand theft.”
Instead, he took on a role in the sitcomTwo Guys and a Girl, which ran for four seasons between 1998 and 2001. The series also starred Richard Ruccolo and Traylor Howard as 20-somethings navigating love, work, and growing up in Boston.
Luckily, turning down the role in Buffy the Vampire Slayer didn’t affect Ryan’s career as he went on to be one of Hollywood’s biggest film stars.
