Shawn Levy and Ryan Reynolds are just as familiar with each other as they are with Netflix success, which is one of the many reasons why we’re excited for Friday’s release of time traveling adventure The Adam Project.
The duo first collaborated on last year’s action comedy Free Guy, which went down a storm with both critics and audiences, ending up as one of the pandemic’s biggest hits as a result. Levy, meanwhile, is one of the executive producers on the streaming service’s monolithic series Stranger Things, while Reynolds became the first star to have two movies wind up on the platform’s all-time most-watched list thanks to 6 Underground and Red Notice.
Factor in strong early buzz for a father/son story wrapped in the trappings of a blockbuster genre film, and we’ve got every reason to believe The Adam Project could follow in the footsteps of Reynolds’ previous monster-sized Netflix films.
In an interview with Collider, Levy explained why he believes his latest directorial effort offers audiences the best of both worlds by combining popcorn escapism with a genuine emotional core.
“I feel like so much of the movie marketplace now, it’s like movies, they tend to be one of two things. They tend to be popcorn, escapism or emotional, weighty, thematic, idea based movies. I’d like to think, and I know my favorite movies, they get both. They are unembarrassed about wanting to entertain and they are absolutely determined to also make you feel, to also make you connect to themes that feel relatable and resonant.
So with Adam Project, we wanted an old fashioned, eat your popcorn, enjoy the ride kind of movie. But we also believe that if we did our jobs right, you could connect to feelings in people that are universal, the way we look back at ourselves, the way we forgive our parents, the way we come to appreciate our parents, all of this, that’s what the movie’s about. So to entertain, but also to connect. Those were the dual goals for us on Adam Project.”
The Adam Project is guaranteed to dominate both the Netflix most-watched list and the cultural conversation for at least the weekend if not a whole lot longer, and if it manages to hit the same sort of heights as Free Guy, then fans will be eager for Levy and Reynolds to continue their fruitful partnership for as long as possible.