Ryan Reynolds and ‘The Adam Project’: A Sci-Fi Action Throwback That Found Its Audience

Deadpool star and bona fide A-lister Ryan Reynolds is (likely) waiting to return as the Merc With a Mouth in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday, with the character expected to return to the MCU after bringing in over a billion dollars at the box office with 2024’s Deadpool & Wolverine. And while he has found success since with this year’s Apple TV movie Mayday, the only other Ryan Reynolds-led effort that comes close to his Deadpool success is a sci-fi action outing that is officially one of the biggest hits in Netflix history.

That film is The Adam Project, a time-travel adventure that pairs Reynolds with young actor Walker Scobell and finds the usually quick-witted actor trading plenty of sarcastic quips for a more measured, wounded performance. The result is a movie that works as both a sci-fi action adventure and a surprisingly heartfelt family story.

Ryan Reynolds Joins Forces With His Younger Self to Save the Future

Ryan Reynolds leaves some of the sarcastic quips behind to make way for a younger version of himself in the sci-fi action movie The Adam Project, which finds the Deadpool actor joining forces with a pitch-perfectly cast Percy Jackson and the Olympians star lead Walker Scobell in his first acting role. Thus, The Adam Project centers on a 13-year-old Adam as he navigates his way through ordinary problems like school and bullies, before facing the extraordinary when he’s awoken in the night by a mysterious noise.

Adam quickly discovers that the older version of himself, played by Reynolds, has been injured after a crash landing after time traveling from the future into his own childhood. On a mission to save his lost love, the two Adams must work together to avoid enemies from the future and tackle issues from the past.

A Mission Built on Sibling-Style Teamwork and Time Travel

The younger and older Adams are not just two versions of the same character. They are two people shaped by different ages, responsibilities, and regrets. The film uses that contrast to turn a high-concept time-travel story into something that feels personal, even when the plot is dealing with futuristic threats.

The Adam Project Is a Solid Mix of Sci-Fi Action and Amblin-Esque Nostalgia

Directed by Deadpool & Wolverine’s Shawn Levy, and starring fellow MCU stars Mark Ruffalo and Jennifer Garner as Adam’s parents, with Zoe Saldaña as another time traveler, The Adam Project is the very definition of a throwback as it combines the delights of such classics as Flight of the Navigator and Back to the Future, and all draped in a Steven Spielberg/Amblin-esque vibe.

Thanks to the drive for nostalgia, as well as some surprisingly moving moments as the older and younger Adam confront their lives from years apart, The Adam Project was met with solid reviews upon release. The movie now holds respectable scores of 68% and 73% from critics and audiences, respectively, on Rotten Tomatoes, and has become one of the biggest Netflix movies of all time.

Nostalgia, Heart, and the Amblin-esque Vibe

The Adam Project has since accrued over 157 million views and more than 280 million hours viewed, placing it fifth in Netflix’s all-time top 10. The sci-fi action outing joins the likes of the survival thriller Bird Box, Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence’s satirical comedy Don’t Look Up, and the action movies Carry-On, Red Notice, and Alan Ritchson’s recent War Machine, with the fantasy epic phenomenon KPop Demon Hunters taking the top spot.

How The Adam Project Ranks Among Netflix’s Biggest Hits

While The Adam Project may have now faded from our collective memories somewhat since being released in 2022, audiences continue to discover the sci-fi action throwback, with recent RT reactions hailing it as “a great surprise,” a “great” movie where “everything falls perfectly into place,” and “Time travel sci fi, heartfelt family dynamics, Ryan Reynolds comedic quips throughout – what’s not to like?”

Its ranking among Netflix’s biggest hits shows that even a movie with a retro premise can become a major player for the streamer when audiences find it. The film’s blend of time travel, action, family, and Reynolds’s signature charm helped it perform strongly enough to sit near the top of Netflix’s most-watched titles.

The Adam Project may not have become a cultural phenomenon on the level of KPop Demon Hunters, but its Netflix success and enduring word-of-mouth make it a notable entry in Reynolds’s filmography. It is a rare case where a big-budget sci-fi adventure can feel both modern and classic, and where a superhero-adjacent star can take a risk that pays off in unexpected emotional ways.

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