Hugh Jackman escalates Ryan Reynolds ‘feud’ with public plea to Academy

Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds are at it again. The Aussie actor has issued a desperate plea after the Deadpool star inched closer to a potential Oscar nod.

Hugh Jackman has escalated his ongoing ‘feud’ with arch nemesis Ryan Reynolds – imploring the Academy not to consider him for an Oscar nod.

Reynolds, 46, recently made the shortlist for the 2023 Oscars in the Best Original Song category for the track Good Afternoon from his Christmas flick Spirited, putting him in the running to score a coveted nomination.

The news hasn’t been received warmly by mate Jackman, 52, who, despite working with the song’s writers Benj Pasek and Justin Paul on The Greatest Showman, has begged the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences not to recognise the “insufferable” Reynolds in the official nominations list.

In a near two-minute video posted on Twitter, the Wolverine star began his message vaguely, saying: “Hey everybody, it’s 2023 and I really, really wanted to send out a positive message at the beginning of the year but recent events have made that impossible.”

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Hugh Jackman has begged the Academy not to consider Ryan Reynolds for an Oscar nomination.

Jackman added: “Don’t get me wrong, I love Spirited, it’s a great movie. The entire family watched it … I love Will [Ferrell], I love Octavia [Spencer], obviously I did The Greatest Showman with Benj and Justin – they’re incredible and I love their music.

“And Good Afternoon, the song, I laughed the entire way through. It’s absolutely brilliant. However, I just heard the Academy have short-listed Good Afternoon in the Best Song category.

“Ryan Reynolds getting a nomination in the Best Song Category would make the next year of my life insufferable. I have to spend a year with him shooting Wolverine And Deadpool. Trust me. It would be impossible. It would be a problem.”

But don’t get me wrong … pic.twitter.com/8ymOYUOq9m

— Hugh Jackman (@RealHughJackman) January 4, 2023

True to form, Reynolds quipped back with a hilarious response to Jackman’s public plea.

“Disagree. I think the deepfakes that sung and danced for Will and I would love to perform at the Oscars,” Reynolds wrote.

Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds starred in Spirited, which is in the running for an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song. Picture: Supplied

It comes after Jackman made a cameo in a recent video promoting Deadpool 3, where Reynolds teased the return of the Australian actor as Wolverine, a character he first took on 22 years ago, and retired in 2017 in Logan.

In the September clip, Reynolds says: “I’ve had to really search my soul for this one. His first appearance in the MCU needs to feel special.

“We need to stay true to the character. Find new depth and motivation and meaning. Every Deadpool needs to stand out and stand apart.

“It’s been an incredible challenge that’s forced me to reach down and reach inside and I have nothing. Yeah, just completely empty up here, and terrifying. But we did have one idea.”

At this point, Reynolds pauses before Jackman casually walks by in the background.

Reynolds asks, “Hey, Hugh, do you want to play Wolverine one more time?”

Reynolds and Jackman’s long-running ‘feud’ has been going on since 2017. Picture: Kevin Winter/Getty Images

At the time, many thought the move could have been a publicity stunt, however his latest barb at Reynolds appears to confirm it may happen after all.

The Twitter war between the friends – who regularly collaborate with one another on movies and endorsements – has been brewing online since 2017, much to the thrill of their respective fanbases.

Highlights have included Jackman asking people to urinate on Reynold’s Hollywood Walk of Fame star, and Reynolds quipping, “Pretty sure those are protesters,” in response to a post of Jackman posing with fans in Beijing.