Ryan Reynolds Brings Rick Moranis Back for New Mint Mobile Ad: 'I'm a Huge Fan'
Ryan Reynolds Brings Rick Moranis Back for New Mint Mobile Ad: 'I'm a Huge Fan'
Ryan Reynolds called on the acting icon, who stepped away from Hollywood after his wife died of breast cancer
Ryan Reynolds brought out some serious star power for Mint Mobile's latest ad.
The new commercial features Rick Moranis, the iconic Ghostbusters actor who stepped away from Hollywood in the early '90s after a series of hit movies. That didn't stop Reynolds from setting his sights on getting the star out of retirement to announce Mint Mobile's first-ever unlimited plan.
"It's hard to believe that Mint Mobile has gone so long without an unlimited plan," Reynolds, 43, says in the ad. "So, to introduce it, we brought in an actor we've all gone too long without: Rick Moranis."
"So why am I here?" Moranis, 67, asks after Reynolds tells him he doesn't actually have to promote the new plan.
"I'm a huge fan," Reynolds explains. "Massive."
"That's it?" Moranis asks before heading out of frame. "See ya," he says.
Mint Mobile's new unlimited plan offers talk, text and data for $30 a month.
Ryan Reynolds/ Youtube
In a statement, Reynolds explained how the commercial came to be and how much he was starstruck by Moranis on set.
"Like many Canadians and humans, I adore and worship Rick Moranis. From Strange Brew to Ghostbusters to Spaceballs to Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, his performances and lines are burned into my brain and heart. We asked Rick to do this 8 days before our shoot kind of on a lark but after a few emails and a conversation, he agreed. And it was wonderful. Everyone on set was completely star struck, most of all me. We’re so grateful he came back and hope he stays back."
The ad comes as Moranis is planning a return to acting in Disney's upcoming Honey, I Shrunk the Kids reboot, with Josh Gad starring as his son.
Moranis decided to take a step back from Hollywood a year after his wife, costume designer Ann Belsky, died in February 1991 of breast cancer. The couple shared two children — Rachel and Mitchell.
The actor slowly left public life after her death to focus on being a single father, but he’s never retired from the business, as he told The Hollywood Reporter in 2015.
RELATED: Rick Moranis Returns from 24-Year Acting Hiatus to Star in Honey, I Shrunk the Kids Reboot
While Moranis left Hollywood to focus on being present for his children, he didn’t express regret at his decision.
“I was working with really interesting people, wonderful people,” he said. “I went from that to being at home with a couple of little kids, which is a very different lifestyle. But it was important to me.”
He added, “I have absolutely no regrets whatsoever. My life is wonderful.”
