NEED TO KNOW
- Rumors surfaced online that Ryan Reynolds and Robert Downey Jr. came into conflict on the set of a Marvel movie
- There is “zero bad blood” between the two superstars, who have never met in person, a source confirms to PEOPLE
- Reynolds has not been confirmed to be among the actors in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday
Contrary to online chatter, Ryan Reynolds and Robert Downey Jr. are not feuding.
There is “zero bad blood,” a source tells PEOPLE exclusively, between the two Marvel Cinematic Universe superstars.
Citing Cosmic Book News and John Rocha’s podcast The Hot Mic, outlets including The Express Tribune and The Times of India reported the rumor that a joke gone too far led to conflict between two actors on the set of an upcoming Marvel movie, presumed to be Avengers: Doomsday.
Social media users began to speculate that the actors in question were Reynolds, 48, and Downey Jr., 60. While the latter is confirmed to be filming Doomsday — as Doctor Doom, rather than reprising his previous MCU role of Iron Man — Reynolds has not been confirmed to be returning as Deadpool.
Robert Downey Jr. at the San Diego Comic-Con Marvel Studios panel in 2024.
Jesse Grant/Getty
Furthermore, the insider notes to PEOPLE, “The two have never met in person.”
In 2019, Reynolds and Downey Jr. squared off via playful messages while supporting Joe and Anthony Russo’s AGBO Superhero Fantasy Football League, which featured celebrities competing against each other in support of charities of their choosing. After Downey Jr. quipped, “Eat me” in a video to his competitor, Reynolds responded with a clip of him eating a cookie with the Sherlock Holmes star’s face on it.
Among the actors confirmed to be reappearing in the next Avengers installment are those in the X-Men franchise, 2025’s Thunderbolts and the new Fantastic Four, as well as Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Mackie, Paul Rudd, Tom Hiddleston, Letitia Wright, Simu Liu and more. Per Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige, Avengers: Doomsday will precede Avengers: Secret Wars (scheduled for Dec. 17, 2027).
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Fantastic Four star Joseph Quinn told PEOPLE in July that Downey Jr. was among the returning Avengers “giving us very sage advice” while filming Doomsday.
“He’s an amazing leader,” said Quinn, 31, of the Oscar winner. “He’s so generous. He’s hilarious, and he’s a remarkable actor. There’s no shock as to why he is where he is.”
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Ryan Reynolds in ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’.Marvel Entertainment/Youtube
Reynolds’ Deadpool franchise, which began in 2016 with the writer-actor playing the foul-mouthed antihero, merged with the Marvel Cinematic Universe under distributor Disney with the 2024 hit Deadpool & Wolverine, costarring Hugh Jackman.
When Extra asked him about a sequel in November 2024, the Canadian star quipped, “Oh, now bite your tongue! I would love that, but there’s a reason it’s been six years since the last one. It just sort of swallows my life whole.”
He added that he “wouldn’t mind introducing myself” to the four kids he shares with wife Blake Lively, and wanted to spend “a little time just walking them to and from school.”
Avengers: Doomsday hits theaters Dec. 18, 2026, while Secret Wars will open a year later on Dec. 17, 2027.