The Reason Ryan Reynolds Just Mingled With King Charles And Queen Camilla
Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney started planting roots in the U.K. when they purchased the Wrexham Association Football Club — a formerly great team that had been relegated to the minors. The Hollywood A-listers were not interested in being silent owners, and wanted to feel a connection to not only Wrexham AFC, but the community. "You realize they're normal people who got rich, rather than being rich people," a fan told ESPN in August while attending a game in a Philadelphia Eagles jersey as a nod to McElhenney. "There is a version of the story where we are villains," the "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" star said. "F*** that," Reynolds responded in regards to buying the team.
The "Deadpool" star and McElhenney made an immediate impact to the club by injecting money into player salaries and resources. Plus, they starred in the docuseries "Welcome to Wrexham" based on their first two seasons with the team. "Rob and Ryan have worked hard to put things in place to take the club forward for years to come," the team's manager, Phil Parkinson told Insider in August. "Credit to them because they've been great with the lads and myself," Parkinson added.
Although he had ingratiated himself within the small U.K. community, Reynolds had previously shown he was unafraid to crack jokes when discussing the royals. Which made it semi-surprising that the "Red Notice" star was able to gain an audience with King Charles III and Camilla, queen consort.
Ryan Reynolds's joke about King Charles
Ryan Reynolds uploaded a photo of himself and King Charles III on a soccer field to Twitter, and keeping with his typical snarky persona had a joke about the prestigious meeting. "Welcome to Wrexham Season 2: Charles in Charge," he wrote alongside the snap with the king. Camilla, the queen consort, was also on hand as the royal couple were given a full-access tour of the Wrexham Association Football Club's facilities which included being led out onto the field through the player's entrance alongside Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, per People. King Charles and Queen Camilla also took time to meet with multiple members of the staff, plus players from past and present.
Welcome to Wrexham Season 2: Charles in Charge. pic.twitter.com/TrwPkIMCzX
— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) December 9, 2022
The royal family's official Twitter account also posted photos from the meeting, and mentioned how integral the two actors had been in turning Wrexham AFC around while also impacting the small city in Wales. After rubbing elbows with the "Welcome to Wrexham" stars, Charles spoke about the experience. "I had the opportunity to see one of the other wonders of Wrexham, namely the football club, which is busy putting Wrexham on the map as never before," he said, per Harper's Bazaar.
When asked about the "Harry & Meghan" docuseries, both actors admitted they had not watched it because they did not follow the royals closely, but Reynolds said he was "impossibly excited" to meet the royal couple. "We will do anything to uplift and elevate this community and this club," Reynolds said, per the Daily Mail's Rebecca English.