Hollywood is a small town. You’ve probably heard that a thousand times, but it’s mostly true. People bump into each other at the same juice bars, share the same agents, and occasionally, they end up in a high-concept sci-fi thriller that everyone completely forgets about two weeks later. That’s basically the story of Ryan Reynolds and Kevin Costner.
On paper, they are opposites. Costner is the stoic, old-school Americana icon who would rather be on a horse in Montana than anywhere near a TikTok filter. Reynolds is the fast-talking, fourth-wall-breaking marketing genius who has turned being "on" into a billion-dollar business empire.
But their paths have crossed in ways that are actually kind of fascinating, and recently, things got a little awkward.
That One Movie Nobody Remembers
If you want to understand the professional link between Ryan Reynolds and Kevin Costner, you have to look at the 2016 film Criminal. Honestly, it’s a wild premise. Reynolds plays a CIA agent named Bill Pope who gets killed off pretty early in the first act. To find a hidden hacker, the government decides to transplant Pope’s memories into the brain of a dangerous, unpredictable death-row inmate played by Costner.
It was a total box office bomb.
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It made about $38 million against a $31 million budget, which in movie math basically means it lost a ton of money once you factor in the marketing costs. Even with a cast that included Gal Gadot, Gary Oldman, and Tommy Lee Jones, it just didn't click. Critics weren't kind either. Most people felt like the movie wasted the chemistry—or lack thereof—between its leads.
Interestingly, Reynolds was just about to explode into the stratosphere with Deadpool when this came out. He was transitioning from "the guy who does romantic comedies and that one Green Lantern movie" to a global powerhouse. Costner, meanwhile, was in a bit of a lull before Yellowstone revitalized his career and turned him back into a household name.
The SNL 50 Moment Everyone Is Talking About
Fast forward to early 2025. The vibe between these two took a turn during the SNL 50 anniversary special. If you were watching the telecast or saw the clips on social media, you probably noticed the viral "stone-faced" reaction from Costner.
Here’s the deal: Ryan Reynolds got up during a segment with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler and made a joke about the messy legal situation involving his wife, Blake Lively, and her It Ends With Us director, Justin Baldoni. It was typical Ryan—self-deprecating, sharp, and meant to defuse the tension of months of headlines.
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The camera panned to Kevin Costner, who was sitting right behind them.
He looked... less than impressed.
Social media went nuts. People were tweeting things like "No mercy for Ryan Reynolds from Kevin Costner." It sparked a whole conversation about the generational divide in Hollywood. You have the older guard, like Costner, who often views personal legal drama and "smear campaigns" as serious business that shouldn't be joked about on live TV. Then you have the Reynolds era, where everything is content, and humor is the best way to control a narrative.
Whether it was a genuine "get off my lawn" moment or just Costner being caught in a weird facial expression, it highlighted how differently these two navigate the industry.
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Two Very Different Ways to Win
When you look at their careers in 2026, they are both winning, but the strategies are night and day.
- Kevin Costner is the king of the "Passion Project." He famously poured $38 million of his own money into Horizon: An American Saga. He even took out a loan against his Santa Barbara home to get it made. It’s high-risk, high-reward, and deeply personal. Even though the first chapter struggled at the box office, Costner doesn't seem to care about the "opening weekend" metrics as much as the legacy of the work.
- Ryan Reynolds is the king of "The Pivot." He doesn't just make movies; he buys companies like Mint Mobile and Wrexham AFC. His net worth has skyrocketed not just because of acting, but because he understands that being a celebrity is a platform for business. While Costner is betting on the Western genre, Reynolds is betting on himself as a brand.
The numbers tell a story too. Reynolds’ films as a lead have grossed over $6.6 billion. Costner’s domestic box office as a lead sits around $1.9 billion. Both are legendary, but they are playing different games. Costner wants to be the artist who defines the American frontier. Reynolds wants to be the guy who owns the frontier, the phone service on it, and the gin you drink while you're there.
What’s Next for the Duo?
Will we see them together again? Probably not on screen anytime soon. Costner is currently embroiled in legal battles over his Horizon financing and his abrupt exit from Yellowstone. He’s focused on finishing his four-part epic, despite some major setbacks with New Line Cinema.
Reynolds, on the other hand, is busy being the busiest man in Hollywood. Between Deadpool sequels and his various business ventures, he doesn't have much room for experimental sci-fi memory transplants anymore.
If you’re looking for a way to track their impact or just want to dive deeper into their filmography, here is what you should do:
- Watch "Criminal" on streaming (it’s on Max right now) just to see how weird the dynamic actually is. It’s a fascinating time capsule of two stars at very different points in their journey.
- Check out the "Horizon" behind-the-scenes footage. Even if you aren't a Western fan, seeing an actor bet his house on a movie is a level of commitment you rarely see in modern Hollywood.
- Follow the Wrexham AFC journey. If you want to see how Reynolds actually makes his money, that docuseries is a better masterclass than any business school.
The "feud" at SNL might have been a nothing-burger, but it served as a reminder that Hollywood isn't just one big happy family. It’s a collection of very different people with very different ideas of what it means to be a "star." Costner and Reynolds are the two ends of that spectrum. One is looking at the past, the other is sprinting toward the future, and every now and then, they end up in the same room—or the same brain—and things get interesting.