Ryan Reynolds Joins Wonder Woman Lynda Carter for Charity Campaign

Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively are raising money for children in need by giving fans the ultimate superhero crossover.

The couple recruited OG Wonder Woman Lynda Carter for their new holiday campaign in support of the SickKids Foundation, released on Thursday, December 12. Not only does Reynolds, 48, suit up as his beloved anti-hero Deadpool for the ad, but the couple’s daughter Inez, 8, reprises her role as Kidpool from Deadpool & Wolverine. (Reynolds and Lively, 37, also share kids James, 9, Betty, 5, and Olin, born in February 2023.)

Appearing to have stolen Santa Claus’ sleigh and his coveted sack of presents, Deadpool informs his younger counterpart that they are going to work together to “eliminate” sick children. “Oh, dude, that’s so f—ed up,” Kidpool remarks, to which Deadpool clarifies, “No. We’re eliminating the sickness by encouraging people to donate.”

Deadpool goes on to joke that the two of them will need help if they’re to achieve their goal, in part because they’re “technically R-rated, and these are kids, sick kids.”

Right on cue, Carter, 73, zooms into frame and offers her services to the pair. “What do you need me to do?” she asks, prompting the Deadpools to ask her to recreate Wonder Woman’s iconic spinning costume change from the 1970s TV series.

“She gonna do it!” Deadpool exclaims. However, rather than change into her Wonder Woman costume, Carter’s outfit transforms into an ugly Christmas sweater.

“Who did this?” she questions. In Deadpool’s fourth-wall-breaking fashion, he proceeds to poke fun at Marvel’s comic competitors, DC Comics, and the current rebooting of the DC film universe. “The DC lawyers. I knew it,” he quips. “It’s probably the same guy that got [Henry] Cavill and that other Batman.”

The skit ends with the trio hopping into Santa’s sleigh to set off on their money-raising mission. “We should probably go untie Santa,” Kidpool says. Deadpool jokingly replies, “Haha, never!”

As a part of the campaign, Reynolds and Lively will match all donations up to $500,000 made before midnight on Tuesday, December 24. The SickKids Foundation helps raise funds for The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Canada. Fans can also purchase Carter’s ugly Christmas sweater from the ad via the organization’s website, the proceeds of which go to the hospital’s patients and their families.

On Thursday, Carter praised Reynolds while sharing a behind-the-scenes pic from the campaign shoot via Instagram. “You are an amazing human, @vancityreynolds – watching you with your girl was awesome. Adoringly — Lynda 🫶,” she captioned a snap of her and the Canada native sharing a hug. “Join us in supporting @sickkidsvs this holiday season! I’m thrilled to be on board! ❄️🎄❄️.”

The SickKids Foundation shared the same photo via their Instagram Story, writing, “THE CROSSOVER WE DIDN’T KNOW WE NEEDED!!!”

The Deadpool and Wonder Woman team up comes shortly after Reynolds remarked that his Marvel superhero works better as a supporting character. “We center him sometimes because that’s what they want, but you can’t center him unless you take everything away from him,” he said during his Variety “Actors on Actors” conversation with Andrew Garfield on Monday, December 9. “You have to create a situation where he’s so much the underdog, and I don’t think I can do that again. So, if he comes back, it’s gonna be in someone else’s movie.”

Teasing the character’s future in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Reynolds pitched his ideal future project for Deadpool. “Channing Tatum was so excited to play Gambit [in Deadpool & Wolverine], and I would happily be the fifth banana in his movie or anyone else’s,” he stated.