Work in Progress: JURNEE SMOLLETT

Summary

Work in Progress: JURNEE SMOLLETT Episode Release Date: July 25, 2025 by iHeartPodcasts

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Introduction

In this episode of Work in Progress with Sophia Bush, host Sophia engages in a deep and meaningful conversation with acclaimed actor Ryan Reynolds. Although the episode title references Jurnee Smollett, the transcript primarily features Sophia and Ryan discussing various aspects of their personal and professional lives, including their journeys in acting, balancing parenthood with demanding careers, and insights into their latest projects.

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Early Lives and Acting Beginnings

Sophia opens the conversation by highlighting Ryan's extensive experience in the entertainment industry, noting his early start as a child actor. Ryan reflects on his childhood experiences in acting, sharing anecdotes about his family's involvement in the industry.

Ryan Reynolds [07:09]: "I did the Flavor Flav verse. I don't even know. Maybe I had a clock around my neck. I don't know. A room full of white men at Warner Brothers."

Ryan recounts the pivotal moment when his mother opposed a spin-off of Full House to prioritize family stability, emphasizing her protective nature and the challenges of managing a large family in the spotlight.

Ryan Reynolds [08:06]: "She was very protective, very hands-on. We never had a nanny or anyone else watch us other than her."

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Balancing Career and Parenthood

The discussion shifts to the complexities of balancing a demanding career with motherhood. Both Sophia and Ryan share their experiences of managing time on set while raising children, touching upon the inevitable feelings of guilt and the strategies they've developed to navigate these challenges.

Sophia Bush [22:34]: "It's so easy for a year to go by and you're in the same place because there's so much going on in the world today."

Ryan Reynolds [16:54]: "And so it does take a lot of courage to say, I know what my worth is and I know what I deserve to receive in return."

Ryan discusses his journey through motherhood, highlighting the profound impact it has had on his personal growth and his relationship with his son.

Ryan Reynolds [26:28]: "He learned so much from how I move through life, how I deal with disappointment or sadness."

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Attachment Theory and Personal Growth

Delving into psychological insights, Sophia and Ryan explore the concept of attachment theory and its influence on their behaviors and relationships. They discuss the importance of self-awareness and the ongoing process of self-discovery, especially for individuals in high-pressure environments like the entertainment industry.

Ryan Reynolds [17:42]: "I noticed my patterns were the inability to detach."

Sophia Bush [14:57]: "I'm proud of us. We've clearly done some work."

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The Show "Smoke"

A significant portion of the conversation centers around Ryan's latest project, the Apple TV show Smoke. Ryan provides an overview of the show’s premise, character development, and his collaboration with renowned writer Dennis Lehane. He shares insights into the character he portrays, emphasizing the depth and complexity required for the role.

Ryan Reynolds [46:28]: "Smoke is a crime thriller for Apple TV that premieres June 27, created by Dennis Lehane."

Ryan Reynolds [50:21]: "Dennis really has created a heightened and fictionalized version of that. And my character is really the birth child of Dennis Mind."

Sophia connects this project to her own past experiences, creating a bridge between their professional journeys.

Sophia Bush [47:47]: "I played his daughter in a movie with Ray Liotta."

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Lessons from the Industry

Both Sophia and Ryan reflect on their experiences within the entertainment industry, discussing the importance of maintaining integrity, recognizing toxic environments, and the value of collaboration. Ryan shares memorable experiences working with legendary figures like Denzel Washington and Jamie Foxx, highlighting lessons learned from these interactions.

Ryan Reynolds [64:21]: "He is the birth child of Dennis Mind. When I met with him, one of the first things he said was, 'We all say we want to be happy, and yet why are we consumed by the very things that want to destroy us?'"

Ryan Reynolds [70:15]: "Jamie stopped the take, and he gave a long speech about how we will not tolerate anyone disrespecting anyone."

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Future Plans and Continuous Growth

In the concluding sections, Ryan articulates his vision for the future, focusing on producing and directing to amplify diverse voices in storytelling. Both discuss the importance of evolving professionally and personally, embracing being a "work in progress" to foster continual growth and resilience.

Ryan Reynolds [72:31]: "It is about becoming very intentional with stepping behind the camera, producing, directing, ushering forward stories."

Sophia Bush [75:39]: "I love it. Well, congrats on the show and all the things. Really happy for you."

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Notable Quotes

• Sophia Bush [14:57]: "I'm proud of us. We've clearly done some work."
• Ryan Reynolds [26:28]: "He learned so much from how I move through life, how I deal with disappointment or sadness."
• Ryan Reynolds [72:31]: "It is about becoming very intentional with stepping behind the camera, producing, directing, ushering forward stories."

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Conclusion

This episode of Work in Progress with Sophia Bush offers an intimate glimpse into the lives of two seasoned actors navigating the complexities of personal growth, professional endeavors, and parenthood. Through candid dialogue, Sophia and Ryan provide listeners with valuable insights into balancing life's demands while striving to remain authentic and continually evolving.

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Note: Advertisements, podcast promos, and non-content segments were excluded to maintain focus on the primary conversation between Sophia Bush and Ryan Reynolds.

Transcript

[Ryan Reynolds]

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[Sophia Bush]

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[Sophia Bush]

Hey everyone, it's Sophia. Welcome to Work in Progress. Welcome back to Work in Progress, friends. This week we are joined by an actor who I admire so much. Today's guest is is none other than Jurnee Smollet. She is an American actress born here in New York, one of six siblings and she has been working in film and television since she was a little girl. Known for her roles in Lovecraft, Country, Birds of Prey, Underground and True Blood. She is here to discuss her brand new Apple TV show, Smoke. The show centers around an arson investigator who begrudgingly teams up with a police detective as they race to stop two arsonists. It is a twisted game of secrets and suspicions and Journey stars opposite Taron Egerton in this incredible thriller. Today we're going to talk about what it was like to film the show, work with the iconic Dennis Lehane, and a lot about what it means to juggle this life performing and acting and traveling and creating with motherhood and self discovery and and you'll hear a little bit about the lessons the two of us have learned along the way. Let's dive in with my friend Journey. Hi, honey. I'm so happy you're here. Hi.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Hello, my love.

[Sophia Bush]

How are you?

[Ryan Reynolds]

I'm happy to see you. It's been forever.

[Sophia Bush]

I know. It's been a long time.

[Ryan Reynolds]

You look fabulous.

[Sophia Bush]

Thank you so much. You look fabulous. This press tour is working.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Oh, well, you know, I got a team of. Of experts helping it work.

[Sophia Bush]

We need it. Especially when you got little ones at home. It's like, somebody help me look like I've slept.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Right, Right. And then, you know, the press tour, it's almost like you're running a marathon. As you know, you just sit in that room and you get asked a lot of questions, and you got to.

[Sophia Bush]

Make them feel fresh every time.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah.

[Sophia Bush]

Oh, I feel it. Well, I'm excited about the project, but before we talk about, you know, what's happening in life at the moment, I want to go backwards a little bit.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Okay. How far back are we going?

[Sophia Bush]

Like, all the way back. Which is fun for you, especially because you've been working since you were a baby. But I always wonder, like, when I sit with somebody, whether I know them or I'm just meeting them. Whoever sits in that chair has an impressive resume, some cool new project, like something in the world. And I wonder if you could go back in time and hang out with your little self at 7 or 8 years old. Do you think the woman you are today would see herself in that little girl?

[Ryan Reynolds]

Oh, yes, because I actually meditate on that little girl a lot.

[Sophia Bush]

Really?

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah. Cause I do believe so much of what we're doing is in response to our childhood, you know, and I. I'm one of those nerds who's, you know, I'm reading books on attachment theory and, you know.

[Sophia Bush]

Oh, me too.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah. So you feel me, you know, and so, like, all of the primary attachments we had and the core memories we had during those moments, I think about, you know, just in how I see the world. It's also how I construct characters, you know, when I'm approaching them in my work. But, yeah, that little girl, I mean, she. She was. She was a lot of fun. She was. She was a lot of fun. There was a lot going on around me when I was six or seven.

[Sophia Bush]

How so?

[Ryan Reynolds]

Okay, so I think around that age, my fam. I was. I was doing Full House, or I just finished doing Full House, and my family had been. I had been offered by the producers of Full House. Offered. You know. You're seven?

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

To do a spin off of Full House. You know, my character resonated with folks for some reason, you know, but my pay grade. And so my mom said no to the spinoff. And she said, I've got six kids at the time. She had five and one on the way.

[Sophia Bush]

Okay.

[Tony Robbins]

And.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And she was like, I ain't doing no more damn TV unless they're all in the same show. Cause y' all got me running around with all these different kids, and I'm trying to be everywhere with all of them. She was very protective, very hands on. We never had a nanny or anyone else watch us other than her. And she was stretched thin. And so the producers, Bob Boyette, Miller, Boyette, they said, wait, there's more. Bring them all in. And so they gave us all our own TV show. She had us go into this meeting.

[Sophia Bush]

How did that happen?

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yes, she had us go into this meeting. We performed Shut Them down by Public Enemy. I was Flavor Flav.

[Sophia Bush]

Oh, my God.

[Ryan Reynolds]

I did the Flavor Flav verse. I don't even know. Maybe I had a clock around my neck. I don't know. A room full of white men at Warner Brothers. And she had us perform this very militant song. And they gave us our own TV show, all six. Even the baby that was baking in the oven.

[Sophia Bush]

Oh, my God, this is amazing.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah. So there was a lot. A lot going on around me. A lot of excitement during that time. A lot of newness for the first time. Like, we moved into a house. That was really nice. I remember that, you know, so, yeah, that's that snapshot of my life during that time.

[Sophia Bush]

Wow. And did you love it? Did you love acting, performing, even from a young age?

[Ryan Reynolds]

I always did. I was always performing at home. My mom loved musicals and old films. Sound of Music probably has. Was on repeat throughout my childhood. American in Paris, you know, Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, Sid Charisse. I always wanted to be Sid Charisse with those long legs, you know? And so she would put. She would put down plywood on the floor in our apartment in Elmhurst, Queens, and she got me some tap dance shoes. Me and my brother Jussie would just tap dance all the time to these musicals. So I know I always loved the art of performing and. And that exchange that you get when you're performing for someone.

[Sophia Bush]

Right.

[Ryan Reynolds]

You know?

[Sophia Bush]

Well, it's so interesting because especially I think for a kid learning any skill like that, that really puts you in your body. It gives you a sense of agency really early, you know, you understand that you are capable, similar to sport, and.

[Ryan Reynolds]

I liken it to sports. Too. Yeah, I liken it to Little League.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah, absolutely. Little League. Ayso. Like, whatever it is. I think what we know that maybe folks who don't work in this industry might be a little misled about is that when you are an actor or a performer, a musician, whatever you do, you're part of a team. You're in a cast.

[Ryan Reynolds]

You work with a whole big crew of collaborators.

[Sophia Bush]

Yes. It's team sports, and you gotta learn how to support the team, but also stay in your lane. You need to be able to fill in for somebody if you're, you know, not able to do their job one day. And so, I don't know, I think it's pretty cool to hear about how early you were finding yourself in that work.

[Ryan Reynolds]

I completely agree with your perspective on it. And it's funny, because I find myself gaining so much inspiration from sports, from athletes. I watch it religiously. My son now has taken the sports obsession to a whole nother level. But I gained, and I always have gained inspiration from the way athletes push their bodies, how mentally tough they are, the way they have to work with other personalities and collaborate, and the flow that athletes have to be in. You can. When you're watching a tennis match, you're watching Coco, right. And you're just like, ooh, she's in the flow right now. Right. That's what we try to achieve on set or on stage. You know, you try to find that rhythm. It's like a musician, you know, a jazz band.

[Sophia Bush]

Yes.

[Ryan Reynolds]

They're improving. They're in tune with their partner. You know, the pianist can't go too far off without being in vibe with the basses. Right. Like, so there is something about that dance that you have to be in with the cameraman or camera woman. Right. Like with your fellow actor. It's very true. And I love that you. You have that same experience.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah, totally. And I think there's something really interesting, too. All these little connections are firing in my brain. Like you talking about the way you love to research, you know, for roles, but also for yourself as a person. You know, reading books on attachment theory, figuring out as an adult, where your patterns come from from your childhood. Like, I think that's especially important for anyone who's a performer, whether you're a performance artist or a performance athlete, because you do learn to push yourself to extremes. You do learn to put the work above all else. And eventually you have to come to terms with at some point in your life, like, oh, I'm so good at performing, I might not Be feeling. And I got to figure out how to recalibrate that.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Or I might be only allowing myself to feel when. When I'm performing.

[Sophia Bush]

Oh, that. Yeah. And it's interesting. Not that I want this conversation to be about this topic, but I just hear something in you that something in me recognizes. And I'm like, I don't know if it's when you've built your whole beautiful life and then you realize you're not happy. I think there's a wisdom that comes when women take up their agency and go through a divorce, as we both have.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yes, we have.

[Sophia Bush]

And I'm like, oh, whatever. The thing is that I've really learned through this construction and then deconstruction process. I see in you.

[Ryan Reynolds]

I see in you.

[Sophia Bush]

And I know it's hard, but not to be cheesy, I'm like, I'm proud of us. We've clearly done some work.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm proud of us, too, because it takes courage to say, I actually need more and I want more. I deserve more.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And society doesn't always hold space for those of us who feel that we're entitled to more.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Because it's like, well, you got this, this, and this. Sit down, shut up, be happy. Like, what you complaining about? Right. And so it does take a lot of courage to say, I know what my worth is and I know what I deserve to receive in return. So it's a risk. I don't know if I'll actually get it in this lifetime, But I feel that it's. I'm worthy enough to try to try that part. Yeah.

[Sophia Bush]

And I don't know if I don't want to project my experience onto you, but I think especially when you do the kind of work that requires so much of you and you do show up in big ways in big spaces when you know what a high bar you have for giving and you realize that bar is not being met in return. I actually think it's a really brave thing to say. It's not about entitlement. It's not about. It's not even necessarily about that deserving. Right. It's about, I believe that I'm worth what I'd give. And if someone doesn't, you know, how do you let that person be the closest person to you in your life? You can't.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And that could be a toxic relationship. That could be your co workers, that could be your agents or your lawyers. Right. You know, I've. I've found things like that have actually shown up and manifested in several different ways.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Sometimes I find, like, oh, it's so hard for me to let go of people past their expiration date. It's really hard to just go hard. Oh, this relationship has actually run its course. That was very hard for me. It's still hard, but it's less hard. I've gotten. I've walked it out enough, you know, to be able to detach. But in studying attachment theory, I. I noticed my patterns were.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

The inability to detach.

[Sophia Bush]

Yes.

[Ryan Reynolds]

You know, and go, wait, why is that? Like, what was that? You know? And you. You do do your own self a disservice because not everyone is built for a lifetime walk with you. Sometimes it's a season or it's a.

[Sophia Bush]

Reason or it's a lifetime.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Or it's a lifetime.

[Sophia Bush]

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[Sophia Bush]

So easy for a year to go by and you're in the same place because there's so much going on in the world today.

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[Sophia Bush]

I had to really think about that a lot because I realized, and it's weird, right? There's something you can love about yourself and also it can hurt you. Like, I don't like to give up on people, but sometimes that means I'm trying to hold onto something that no longer exists.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Do you feel that it's holding onto a potential? Like believing the potential and maybe not sometimes.

[Sophia Bush]

And sometimes I think it can be really. I think there's a difference between dreaming with someone and the dream being attainable in this life. You know, I. I really did a lot of work around what do I want the future to feel like? What do I want a family to feel like? What. What do I want to build?

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah.

[Sophia Bush]

And then I, I built it.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Right.

[Sophia Bush]

But I realized, like, it almost. I almost felt like I built a house, but the house was empty, you.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Know, and it wasn't a home. It was a house.

[Sophia Bush]

It was a house. And it was great. It was like a Pinterest, Pinterest, perfect house. But I think, particularly again, as performers and also as women, like, at least for me, I can see all that stuff. I can see the attachment theory. I can see what I learned that was good and bad from my parents in their relationship, from generational family stuff. I can see what I took from societal messaging and I can go, oh, I get, I get why I really tried to be as, like, responsible as possible and make this plan. But if the, if the plan is hollow, if the house is empty, like, don't you want to go fill it? And so I don't know. I think there's a really important shift that's happened. Certainly I really see it over the last decade, like, we could have this conversation, you know, over a bottle of wine with over the last decade, I've seen far more people, and I think it had a little to do with me, too. You know, far more people say these things are not right at work. And then a lot of people, once they started talking about the right and wrong in their life, were like, oh, I might actually have to talk about my life also. If I only send her work and I don't center my life, what am I doing? And so I always think it's interesting when us artists hit whatever point we hit where we realize, oh, I have to pour into myself the way I pour into my work, the way I pour into my characters, the way I pour into my people.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah. Do you think it's a deeper resonance, that desire to model worth and what you deserve and the right kind of life because you're also doing it for your son?

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yes. The stakes are definitely higher, I find after having a child who learns so much more from your choices than what you say to them. He learned so much more from how I move through life, how I deal with disappointment or sadness.

[Sophia Bush]

By watching you.

[Ryan Reynolds]

By watching me?

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

He learned so much about work ethic by watching me. He has now these goals and these ambitions, and he'll. It's. It's beautiful because he. He relates it back and he kind of mirrors himself to me. He's starting to do that in ways that I was like, oh, my gosh. Like, I don't know why I thought. And it probably is my own bias, but I thought, like, oh, if I had a daughter, they would probably mirror. But no, I mean, like, he looks at me and it's like small things, you know, like, he wants to get a six pack. So he's like, bobby, teach me how to get a six pack. You know, like, but. But he's. Yeah, he watches my behavior a lot and is influenced by that. So the stakes are, yes, way higher now. And. And I feel like the greatest gift I can give him is being my whole self. Alfre Woodard long ago gave me this book called Whole Parent, Whole Child. And it's a beautiful book, and write that down. And it talks essentially about that of you cannot be able to pour into your child and raise them to be their full, best self if you yourself are not.

[Sophia Bush]

Yes, there is a stat. A friend sent me a video that actually said that the highest predicting determinator of an adult's happiness is how happy their mother was. I've read that somewhere in their childhood.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yes, I've read that somewhere. And major. It is major, because you know what I found very early in Hunter's childhood, I was dealing and struggling with major mom guilt. You know, I nursed him for three years. I gave birth to him in my bathtub. I was like, yo, I'm a dude. Like, my mom was. She gave birth to all six of us. Natural childbirth, you know, nursed us, believed in extended nursing. And so, like, a lot of her philosophies and her standards, right, I was holding myself to. My mom's situation was so different.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And very unique. Right. She didn't have to ever have someone on set with us, watching us, because she was behind the camera and we were the ones in front.

[Sophia Bush]

Right?

[Ryan Reynolds]

And so in my situation, I'm the one in front.

[Sophia Bush]

It's reversed.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And so I'm going, well, you know, I want Hunter on set with me. I'm nursing. He refused a bottle because he got. He got hyped to it, right? He got smart to. He got hip to the fact that. Okay, like, around six months, I remember it was like, okay, if I take this bottle from my aunt, that means mommy might go to Target. So he started boycotting the bottle.

[Sophia Bush]

Right?

[Ryan Reynolds]

Smart. Really smart.

[Sophia Bush]

He's like, oh, I see how I'm gonna get the cuddles I want.

[Ryan Reynolds]

He's like, I'm not doing this. She's not passing me to auntie or uncle or to Daddy. It's gonna be her I want directly from the source.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

You know, and so he started refusing the bottle. And so, you know, me shooting Lovecraft country or Birds of Prey, doing stunt rehearsal, he's right there, you know, in the trailer or at rehearsal. And I had to have help. And I felt so much guilt about the fact that, like, oh, my gosh, I gotta go and do this scene. It's a really emotionally challenging scene. So for the next hour or so, I need him to stay in the trailer. He can't Tom on set. Cause he can't see Mommy like that, Right.

[Sophia Bush]

Like, you need to focus, and I.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Need to focus, and I need to focus. You need to do your work. Right? I need to do my work. But I dealt with a lot of mom guilt that wasn't processed, and I didn't really know where to put it. And it really was that philosophy of that book of giving yourself the approval to feed into your. Well, to do. To pursue your passions, to take the bath where you need to take the bath, to go to Target when you need to just have alone time. Right. Or whatever that thing is. Giving yourself the approval to do that, knowing that if you don't you will run out of gas. And that doesn't help him. And that helps no one that serves no one. There's no Mommy Olympics. There's no award that you're winning at the end of the year.

[Sophia Bush]

Exactly.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Because it's sacrificing. Yeah, exactly. And it's a marathon. It's not a sprint. You need to have endurance in order to be present with him and play with him. And it's okay, you know, it's okay for him to see me pursue my dreams. It's actually a beautiful thing for him to see the sacrifice that I make for my work and how hard I work. It's okay for him to see the image of a woman being the breadwinner. It's okay for him to see me being ambitious and passionate and going, baby, you know what? Right now, Mommy has to go in this room and I have to study this scene. But when I finish, I'm gonna come out and we're gonna play catch. Right? Like, giving him those boundaries and the parameters, I think is healthy. And I've had to process and give and be kind to myself over the past few years because, of course, there's moments where he's like, no, why I want you like kids, you know, of course. And there's sacrifices that my work requires that he make. But there's also a lot of benefits that he gains from what Mommy does and the kind of life I can provide for him. Of course, the travel that he's been able to be a part of. I mean, like, he went to the Steve Irwin Zoo in Australia, got a private tour. That's a pet. A rhino. Dj, the rhino. He got to pet, you know, like, all these experiences. He got to meet Steph Curry last year.

[Sophia Bush]

Hello.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Okay.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And so as he gets older, he's slowly starting to appreciate what I do and actually find respect for it and gratitude. And that is a real muscle that I'm trying to strengthen in him, which is hard in kids, and it's hard in kids who grow up with a lot, you know, to understand that. Yo, to whom much is given, much is expected, right? So, like, we gotta give back. We gotta go and volunteer. We gotta. Yeah, we gotta do all these things because look how blessed we are, man.

[Sophia Bush]

It makes me think about something. What a crazy sentence I'm about to say. I don't know. A month and a half ago, I think we had Michelle Obama on the pod.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Cash my drop.

[Sophia Bush]

I know.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Just showed her off.

[Sophia Bush]

I was literally like, what is happening? And I asked her about Motherhood. And she said that her mother had this phrase that, you know, has echoed for her her whole life. I'm not raising babies. I'm raising adults.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Amen.

[Sophia Bush]

And that thing to. To give your kid evolving agency as they evolve, to show them how you move in the world as an adult, as a responsible parent, as a dedicated worker, as a volunteer, as a human. That for you, your little boy always knows he can come to like, that raises a generation of adults. And I think about, at least for me, you know, my parents didn't know any of the stuff we know now about how to raise babies, how to talk to them, what to do for them.

[Ryan Reynolds]

They didn't have the language or the tools. Yeah.

[Sophia Bush]

And a lot of the research wasn't done yet. You know, all the things and I think about the learning and the unlearning that our generation has had to do.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Unlearning is very key.

[Sophia Bush]

Unlearn a lot.

[Ryan Reynolds]

A whole lot.

[Sophia Bush]

Oh, boy. And I just think about, like, how cool our kids are gonna be when they're our age. Cause they've just had more resources and information and opportunity to imagine themselves in these spaces. They see you or. Or us in evolution. It's cool.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah.

[Sophia Bush]

It's really cool.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah.

[Sophia Bush]

And now for our sponsors. There's nothing more pleasant than the discovery of unexpected beauty in everyday objects. And what's more unexpected than a beautiful toilet? An elegant, sleeked, curved, beautiful toilet. And you see, this toilet is the Kohlervale Smart toilet in honed black. Its unique shape and color are so stunning that they actually inspired fashion designer and creative director Laura Kim to design a couture dress. Beauty inspires beauty. The sleek, curved, honed black veil smart toilet from Kohler and the long, flowing black chiffon dress that Kim designed were born from the belief that design can transform. Transform how we live and feel. The veil Smart toilet, with its bold design, intuitive touchscreen remote control, and customizable cleansing features, creates an experience that is far beyond the expected. It can transform your everyday routine into something that is extraordinary. And don't we all deserve extraordinary like a gorgeous Laura Kim design dress? And if you don't know Laura Kim, you should design changes everything. Val Smart toilet in honed black only from Kohler. Discover the Vailsmart toilet and go behind the scenes of Kohler's partnership with Laura.

[Tony Robbins]

[e-mail] Every business has an ambition. PayPal Open is the platform designed to help you grow into yours with business loans so you can expand and access to hundreds of millions of PayPal customers. Worldwide and your customers can pay all the ways they want with PayPal, Venmo pay later and all major cards so you can focus on scaling up when it's time to get growing. There's one platform for all business PayPal open grow today at paypalopen.com loans subject to approval in available locations.

[Jurnee Smollett]

Time for a sofa upgrade? Visit washablesofas.com and discover Annabe where designer style meets budget friendly prices. With sofas starting at $699, Anibe brings you the ultimate in furniture innovation with a modular design that allows you to rearrange your space effortlessly. Perfect for both small and large spaces, Anibe is the only machine washable sofa inside and out. Say goodbye to stains and messes with liquid and stain resistant fabrics that make cleaning easy. Liquid simply slides right off. Designed for custom comfort, our high resilience foam lets you choose between a sink and feel or a split supportive memory foam blend. Plus our pet friendly stain resistant fabrics ensure your sofa stays beautiful for years. Don't compromise quality for price. Visit washablesofas.com to upgrade your living space today with no risk returns and a 30 day money back guarantee. Get up to 60% off plus free shipping and free returns. Shop [e-mail] Authors are subject to change and certain restrictions may apply.

[Sophia Bush]

So easy for a year to go by and you're in the same place because there's so much going on in the world today.

[Tony Robbins]

Hey everybody, everybody, it's Tony Robbins. So the real question is how do you really get yourself to be in a place where you truly follow through, where you actually get the results that you really want. Listen, you really need to get yourself a coach. You need a professional who's already got results. You need something outside you, someone that's like what a coach does.

[Unknown]

The most successful people in the world have coaches. If I want to play in that league, I have to model what the successful people do. Vary it. Our company ended on a 69% revenue growth, which is ridiculous because we're talking about millions of dollars.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Tony Robbins Results Coach will get you to where you want to be in health, finances, career and beyond.

[Tony Robbins]

If you'd like to test out one of my top coaches, we will give you a 30 minute free coaching session.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Go to tonyrobbins.com to get started today.

[Rodney Williams]

That's tonyrobbins.com I'm Rodney Williams.

[Travis Holloway]

And I'm Travis Holloway. Welcome to the Wealth Break.

[Rodney Williams]

Let's be honest, building wealth doesn't look the same for everyone. It's not just about saving. It's about investing. It's about navigating systems that weren't built for you, embracing your hustle, and relying on your community to create something bigger.

[Travis Holloway]

And that's exactly why we created the wealthbreak. We made something different, something more human. It's not just another financial podcast. It's a conversation about real life, real struggles, and real wins.

[Rodney Williams]

We're here to talk about the journey. You'll hear from people who've broken barriers, found creative ways to succeed, and learn to build wealth on their terms. Whether it's the first time homeowner, a gig worker, or someone turning a side hustle into a six figure business, we're bringing you their stories.

[Travis Holloway]

And we're not stopping at success stories. We're breaking down the realities, like what it means to take risk, how to navigate failure, and why resilience matters. Because wealth isn't about money. It's about creating a life where you can thrive and help others to do the same.

[Rodney Williams]

So if you're ready for a podcast as much as about people as it is about money, you're in the right place.

[Travis Holloway]

Listen to the Wealth Break podcast on the iHeartRadio app.

[Sophia Bush]

Thinking about family and like, you know, the examples we set. You talk about how your mom was the one behind the camera, you know, and it led into this amazing world for all of your siblings. I mean, six kids and y' all are all in this industry in some facet.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Does that mean not all anymore, but at a point, all have. Yes. Yes.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah. When was that? This amazing thing when you got to do this show together. But then as y' all started growing and going out into the world and working in these different arenas, did it almost mean you got to spend less time together as a family?

[Ryan Reynolds]

Oh, no, honestly, we were like. We were like a pack, a herd. Everyone went together. You know, like my mom, if one of us got a gig, right, like a movie or a TV show, instead of her flying there, it got to a point where she would ask the studio for the money that they were gonna spend on the flights, give her the cash, and she would drive us all there in the suburban. I mean, she was gangster, you know, she was very strategic, she was very smart. But also, she had no one to watch us. It's not like we had a lot of friends or extended family. She didn't have people she could leave us with. And my parents separated when I was 12. And so I have to say, I think that's one of the reasons why we. I'm so close with my siblings. There's six of us, and I have five best friends in them. I mean, it's. When I tell you I can show you my text threads of, like, the sibling text chain. It's just. It just. Girl just comes in. We all. Everyone's always talking. Like, the conversation's always, you know, we're just so close. But we were all we had, you know, and if I had an audition, then Jazz was doing my hair, and Jake was maybe making the omelet, you know, and Jussie was doing. Running my lines with me. Like, it was. It really was this. This beautiful microcosm of everyone supporting everyone. There was no jealousy. There was no competition. It just was not allowed. And everyone was expected to serve the cause, the mission. And it really was, I think, about survival, because when you think about it, this became the family business. This became the income. It became the way we were able to take care of each other. My father, mom separated, like I said, when I was 12. He worked for Pacific Bell AT&T. He was a blue collar worker. He didn't. He didn't make enough to support us and certainly didn't, you know, give enough child support to support us. It became something where it was us kids going out and working and my mom finding us gigs and us living paycheck to paycheck, in a sense, until my brothers got older and they started working regular jobs to contribute. But, you know, it was. I don't even remember what your original question was. I feel like I'm going on a tangent, but.

[Sophia Bush]

Oh, I love it.

[Ryan Reynolds]

I think that's one of the beautiful things about very unconventional childhood. Yes, she was behind the camera, but I learned so much about the industry from her. You know, she. She just was so unwilling to sacrifice certain things and unwilling to sell integrity, Unwilling to just take things because they were paying really good. You know, I was offered a number of jobs that she said no to, that it was either with someone who was a really awful person and it would have put me in a very compromising situation or getting me out of a very awful and toxic work environment. And. Yes, but like I said before, she was behind the camera, you know?

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah. I mean, it's such a lesson in, you know, business and remembering, like, no matter how cool the set is or the job is or whatever, like, it's business. And I love that, you know, y' all have been able to stay so close. I ask because I think about how much I love what we do, but how often it takes me away from the people I want to be close to.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Oh, no, it's so true. It's like yesterday, my TV show Smoke premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival, which is very exciting. Awesome. It played so well. But it was also the same day of my niece's fifth grade graduation. You know, and so everyone's sending me pictures of her. And, you know, I tried to FaceTime and. But yes, that for sure is part of the sacrifices is missing out on how many birthdays or primary moments are you. Are you missing?

[Sophia Bush]

How did it feel to premiere the show here?

[Ryan Reynolds]

It was a full circle moment. Yeah, yeah, yeah. In a number of ways. You know when you work on something for so long and then it's like your little secret, it's your little baby that you've birthed, and then you get to share it with the world. So it was awesome. It was awesome to watch it in front of an audience and get the feedback, and it played incredibly well, you know, it was quite thrilling. Yeah.

[Sophia Bush]

Okay. Will you tell our friends at home what Smoke is?

[Ryan Reynolds]

So Smoke is a crime thriller for Apple TV that premieres June 27, created by Dennis Lehane, one of our premier writers. I mean, I don't know that you can write crime thriller better than Dennis, and I've been a fan of his since mystic river and, you know, Gone Baby Gone and Shutter island and so many Blackbird, which was on Apple as well. But anyway, it's based on true events in which an arson investigator, played by Taron Egerton, is paired with a troubled detective played by myself, and they are assigned to investigate two serial arsonists, and through this investigation, begin to suspect that each other are not who they claim to be.

[Sophia Bush]

Mm, that's so juicy. Also crazy fun fact, because when I was reading up on the show, it centers around John Orr. And back in the day, I played his daughter in a movie with Ray Liotta.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Wait, what? Yes.

[Sophia Bush]

So of all the, like, things we could be talking about today. Oh, my God. It was like. I think it was maybe my second job. I was at usc, and it filmed in la, and I would drive from class, and I would go to shoot this movie, and I was on set with Ray Liotta and John Leguizamo, who I just.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Who's in our show.

[Sophia Bush]

Like, come on. Like, this is so. It's crazy. So I'm so excited to see it, you know, because as a young actor, to think about, like, you know, how do you imagine what this sort of story would do to a kid when this happens in your family?

[Ryan Reynolds]

Wow.

[Sophia Bush]

And now I get to watch my friend be on the adult side.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Oh, my God.

[Sophia Bush]

Investigating it.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And I'm just so pumped. Oh, I know. That's crazy.

[Sophia Bush]

I know. It's so fun.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Wow. Full circle. Come on.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah. It's really, really. It's so cool.

[Ryan Reynolds]

He was an interesting person.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

The podcast Firebug that this is loosely inspired by is wild. If anyone wants to listen to it.

[Sophia Bush]

I'm like, wait, I want to listen to that.

[Ryan Reynolds]

You should listen to it. He was writing a book, you know, about an arson investigator who's secretly an arsonist. And so that element is in our show as well. But it's. Dennis really has created a heightened and fictionalized version of that. And my character is really the birth child of Dennis Mind. You know, when I met with him, one of the first things he said, one of the earlier things he said to me was, you know, we all say we want to be happy, and yet why are we consumed by the very things that want to destroy us? That's my character in a nutshell. She is metaphorically playing with fire. I mean, there are these elements in her life that are just dangerous that she's drawn to. And it's interesting because I know. I don't know that it's unique to me, but I definitely can see myself and those struggles in the past. Right. Totally where you are going. I know this is not healthy for me, but I'm choosing it anyway.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And I'm hoping that it doesn't turn out how I'm afraid it will.

[Sophia Bush]

Right.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And it does.

[Sophia Bush]

It's like when your blind faith or your desire to see the good just bites you in the ass. Yes.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yes. And that manifests in so many different ways. It could be a toxic relationship. It could be our toxic level of ambition, being a workaholic. It could be the childhood trauma that we still haven't processed and the way that manifests. And so Dennis has woven all these very complex layers into my character. Michelle, who's a detective, former Marine, who finds herself in a relationship with her boss, who's the captain of the precinct, who's married.

[Sophia Bush]

Oh, boy.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Who leaves his wife for her, only for Michelle to then say she no longer wants to be with him. Now. Oh, and going back to attachment theory, you know, I spoke to a therapist just specifically about Michelle, and she's very much so an avoidant, which I am not. You know, I've. Historically, I've been attracted to avoidance. Guilty as charged.

[Sophia Bush]

Had a couple of those myself.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And so it was so fun to weave Those elements into Michelle. Someone who has, she has real childhood trauma. She has a mother wound, a deep betrayal that happened when she was young with her mother. And it was beautiful to be able to weave that in to the way she sees the world, the way she attaches and detaches in those patterns.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah. How do you begin to build a world for a character? And I want to ask you this question that I like to ask because I know you're a research nerd and so am I. So I'm like, girl, tell me about your process. Like, where do you start? You know, when you make, when you get this information. Former Marine, now a detective, making bad choices, probably a little addicted to the chase. You get this nugget, I would imagine, because Dennis is brilliant about her childhood. Like, how do you begin to build her house?

[Ryan Reynolds]

I begin answering all the whys and the who, what, where, why, when. So that's really where I start. You know, what do I know about her environment? What does the text tell me? I fill that in in her biography. And any holes that the text doesn't tell me, I go to the source. Screenwriter Dennis Lehane, in this case, ask him questions, pick his brain of, okay, so what happened to her? What is this? Why does she do this? And all the questions he gives me. Any holes left, I fill in myself through research, through either speaking through experts. In this case, I spoke to not just therapists, but I spoke to former marines. I trained with former. A veteran who served in the military just had to be an expert in weaponry, honestly, because she deals with guns a lot. I interviewed firefighters and arson investigators. I read the Firebug podcast, you know, watch documentaries, which then leads you to other films of this topic. And so honestly, it's really about filling, filling up the well. And then I also just have several coaches that I work with. I have a physicality coach, I have, you know, my acting coach, I have my fitness trainer. And for this I'm normally journey, I can my weight, I can tend to be a little bit on the leaner side. And so because she's a former Marine who is working in a very male dominated field, who has a little bit of body dysmorphia, who dealt with insecurity from her weight when she was a child, it manifests through her during these crazy intense workouts. So I went to my trainer, Jeanette Jenkins and was like, I gotta put on muscle. I got to put on weight. And so I put on 15 pounds of muscle before we started shooting. By the end of shooting, I had put on 20 pounds.

[Sophia Bush]

Wow.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Crazy way of eating. Of like eating five meals a day.

[Sophia Bush]

I was going to say. Were you just like taking hard boiled eggs to the face?

[Ryan Reynolds]

Like oh my gosh. And like these protein powders and like the weight gainer shakes and yeah. Just eating in between takes and snacking all the time and trying to have a calorie surplus but doing it in the right way and the healthy way. As much as I could. I wasn't eating donuts and doing it like that, you know, which I would have loved. But I also break out so I had to like watch the skin, you know. And yeah, it was, it was, it was awesome to be able to just physically transform and feel stronger. Cause that was the goal is okay.

[Sophia Bush]

Because then you feel like this person.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yes. There's a dominant presence that she needed to have when she walks in a room.

[Sophia Bush]

Yes.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And you know, how does she, what's her posture? How does she walk? Like, what's her gait? All those things are affected, you know, when you feel stronger. And man, Jeanette, she got me, she got me up to I could do a hack squat of lifting £260 by the time we were done and she got me feeling incredibly strong.

[Sophia Bush]

So that's so cool.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah.

[Sophia Bush]

We'll be back in just a minute after a few words from our favorite sponsors. There's nothing more pleasant than the discovery of unexpected beauty in everyday objects. And what's more unexpected than a beautiful toilet? An elegant, sleek to curved beautiful toilet. And you see this toilet is the Kohler veil Smart toilet in honed black. Its unique shape and color are so stunning that they actually inspired fashion designer and creative director Laura Kim to design a couture dress. Beauty inspires beauty. The sleek curved honed black veil smart toilet from Kohler and the long flowing black chiffon dress that Kim designed were born from from the belief that design can transform how we live and feel. The veil Smart toilet with its bold design, intuitive touchscreen remote control and customizable cleansing features creates an experience that is far beyond the expected. It can transform your everyday routine into something that is extraordinary. And don't we all deserve extraordinary like a gorgeous Laura Kim design dress. And if you don't know Laura Kim, you should design changes everything. Valsmart toilet in honed black only from Kohler. Discover the Vailsmart toilet and go behind the scenes of Kohler's partnership with laura [e-mail].

[Tony Robbins]

Every business has an ambition. PayPal Open is the platform designed to help you grow into yours with business loans so you can expand and access to hundreds of millions of PayPal customers worldwide. And your customers can pay all the ways they want with PayPal, Venmo, pay later and all major cards so you can focus on scaling up when it's time to get growing. There's one platform for all business PayPal open grow today at paypalopen.com loans subject to approval in available locations.

[Jurnee Smollett]

Time for a sofa upgrade? Visit washablesofas.com and discover Annabe where designer style meets budget friendly prices with sofas starting at $699, Anabe brings you the ultimate in furniture innovation with a modular design that allows you to rearrange your space effortlessly. Perfect for both small and large spaces, Anabe is the only machine washable sofa inside and out. Say goodbye to stains and messes with liquid and stain resistant fabrics that make cleaning easy. Liquid simply slides right off. Designed for custom comfort, our high resilience foam lets you choose between a sink and feel or a sink supportive memory foam blend. Plus our pet friendly stain resistant fabrics ensure your sofa stays beautiful for years. Don't compromise quality for price. Visit washablesofas.com to upgrade your living space today with no risk returns and a 30 day money back guarantee. Get up to 60% off plus free shipping and free returns. Shop [e-mail] Authors are subject to change and certain restrictions may apply.

[Sophia Bush]

So easy for a year to go by and you're in the same place because there's so much going on in the world today.

[Tony Robbins]

Hey everybody. Hey, it's Tony Robbins. So the real question is, how do you really get yourself to be in a place where you truly follow through, where you actually get the results that you really want. Listen, you really need to get yourself a coach. You need a professional who's already got results. You need something outside you, someone that's like what a coach does.

[Unknown]

The most successful people in the world have coaches. If I want to play in that league, I have to model what the successful people will do.

[Sophia Bush]

Period.

[Unknown]

Our company ended on a 69% revenue growth, which is ridiculous because we're talking about millions of dollars.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Tony Robbins Results Coach will get you to where you want to be in health, finances, career and beyond.

[Tony Robbins]

If you'd like to test out one of my top coaches, we will give you a 30 minute free coaching session.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Go to tonyrobbins.com to get started today.

[Rodney Williams]

That's tonyrobbins.com I'm Rodney Williams.

[Travis Holloway]

And I'm Travis Holloway. Welcome to the wealthbreak Podcast A real conversation.

[Rodney Williams]

Let's be honest, building Weft doesn't look the same for everyone.

[Sophia Bush]

I feel like sometimes being broke is a cycle and that we might have.

[Travis Holloway]

To revisit that and we're not stopping at success stories.

[Jurnee Smollett]

What happens when it doesn't go right? How do you cope with it?

[Rodney Williams]

Because wealth isn't just about money. It's about creating a life where you thrive and help others do the same.

[Travis Holloway]

Listen to the Wealth Break podcast on the iHeartRadio app.

[Sophia Bush]

When you think about that, you know, love for research. One of the things I love about the way you speak about your work is that you're never afraid to shy away from real themes that are in it. Especially when you're doing a lot of these historical projects. You know, whether it's the Order or Lovecraft, country like offers, I think, the opportunity to share history and even things that are loosely based on history, to invite an audience in and to encourage them not to shy away from who we are from, you know, and how we got here. Yes, you can uncover the things that as a society we often want to tuck away, like in the corner, keep in the dark. And how do you kind of layer the historically relevant jobs with your love of process? Like, do you ask, you know, a director to put you in touch with a historian or is it. Is it very much the similar thing where everything you find in the research leads you to another thing and you're just trying to get as much of it in your brain and body as you can by the time the camera rolls?

[Ryan Reynolds]

When I did the order, I did ask them to put me in touch with a few former special agents, which they did. It depends on the project. And yeah, who can help me and who's a resource? Production is typically very beneficial in that way and have a lot of resources at their disposal and encourage that sort of research for you. But a lot of it is self motivated and you're right, it is okay. It could be a YouTube clip that takes you down a path and then that leads you to something else. And it really comes down to the level of curiosity the individual has. And I have an immense amount of curiosity about humanity and what drives us and what motivates us. It just helps me understand my own life more. And I do think that is part of the reason that I do what I do. Storytelling, to me and art is essential because it helps us understand humanity. If we understood patterns in history more, I think we wouldn't be where we are today.

[Sophia Bush]

I agree with you.

[Ryan Reynolds]

You know, if more of US Knew about, unfortunately, Nazi Germany. Right. Like, we would be able to recognize real rhetoric and real talk of a dictator currently. Right.

[Sophia Bush]

We wouldn't be saying, oh, no, it's not that, because it is. And literally the quotes match.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Literally match. Okay.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And so I do feel like it's the job of the artist to just tell the truth. And how do you tell the truth? You just do the research. Right. You dig deeper, you ask the questions.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah. And you know what you're carrying into the room with you.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yes, exactly. It gives you more confidence. I find in the times when. Like, when I was younger and I don't know that I had as much technique as I do now.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Those moments, I think I can watch the work and go, oh, I see why. Why I was there, because I didn't know you had to do this and this and this, you know? But I also have to say, I. I give so much credit to a lot of the individuals I've actually worked with along my career that I just kind of stole their. Their technique. Really? Like, yeah. You know, asking them questions, okay, well, how do you do this? Well, why do you do this? And then going, all right, I'm gonna try that out.

[Sophia Bush]

What's one of the best answers you've gotten to that question? Like, from someone you have worked with, who you admire? What was a. Oh, that's really good. I'm gonna.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Denzel Washington. Great debaters. He directed the film that I was in, and it was like taking a master class. And he. A lot of the tools. I mean, I literally. You know, when you working with someone like Denzel, you better keep a notebook. And literally taking notes every single day of what he says or how he directs me or little nuggets he gives me. And it was, you know, him who first told me about this idea of writing a biography for your character. Knowing everything about your character, even down to the kind of sheets they sleep on. What do they eat for breakfast? It helps you think, like the character, so that on the day, whether you're improving or not, having no dialogue, there's something going on in your head.

[Sophia Bush]

Yes.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Because if you're thinking about the boom operator whose shirt is, like, rising up as they're holding the boom, or you're.

[Sophia Bush]

Like, jerry, you gotta pull that tee down.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Or if you're thinking about the fact that the director's eating the donut that you wish you could eat right now, but you not gonna do it. You know, if your head is not thinking the thoughts of the character, the camera will see it. You can just get lost. And it's. And it's. It's like a bliss or euphoria.

[Sophia Bush]

Yes.

[Ryan Reynolds]

That you're able to feel.

[Sophia Bush]

Absolutely. It's. It's like a feeling of weightlessness.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah. When you're in the flow. Yeah.

[Sophia Bush]

It's beautiful. When you think about that, like, the joy of what we do, being in that flow. You can obviously reflect on the people you've worked with and the sets you've worked on that have continued to build your toolkit.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah.

[Sophia Bush]

Do you feel like looking back, there is a role you've played that, in hindsight, you realize changed you in a way that you didn't expect?

[Ryan Reynolds]

I really. I really have developed a very spiritual relationship to my instrument. And I really feel that all of them come to me in a moment that I need them the most. In a moment when there's something in myself I have to exercise through them, there's something that I'm struggling with. There's a pattern I'm in, or there's a block, you know, in the pipes. And so I wouldn't pick one. I think they're all in evolution. And if you pull out one of them, I wouldn't be who I am or where I am today.

[Sophia Bush]

Right.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Even the bad ones, you know, you learn a lot from the bad ones.

[Sophia Bush]

Totally.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And even the toxic environments, dare I say I learned at a very early age how to recognize toxicity, how to recognize how adults enable toxicity. Being in environments where it's like, you know, when you're a child in the industry, unfortunately, any child is going to be exposed to certain adult behavior that they shouldn't be. And I learned a way of protecting myself and recognizing it. And. And so I am honestly grateful for it all.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And that might, for some people, strike, you know, a chord as, like, odd. But I truly am grateful for it all. It has created me and it has given me tools in my craft, in my character and my characters. But like my actual character, it is built my own character, you know?

[Sophia Bush]

Yes. I feel that, too. And, you know. Yes. Working with wonderful people teaches you where to set the bar. But the toxic experiences, I do think are invaluable. Would I wish them on anyone?

[Ryan Reynolds]

No.

[Sophia Bush]

But what it teaches you, you know, I know I know what to look out for in a way I could not had I not seen the bad side.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah.

[Sophia Bush]

I am a better co star and producer.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yes.

[Sophia Bush]

Because I know what bad ones look like.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yes. Yes.

[Sophia Bush]

And I do think if you choose to take what you wouldn't wish on someone else, and what maybe you wish you didn't have to experience, but turn it into a learning.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Exactly.

[Sophia Bush]

Fuel you. And it can actually support people around you in an even better way.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yes.

[Sophia Bush]

And that, I just think, is how we figure out how to make lemonade out of lemons. Right?

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yes. And I. I really. I. I feel it's so important for us to lift up the ones who are not that way. I remember I was doing the Burial with Jamie Foxx. He is.

[Sophia Bush]

Who's lovelier than him?

[Ryan Reynolds]

I mean, come on. Come on. The loveliest man, the loveliest generous, I mean, pours into everyone. He produced it, along with his producing partner, Dutari Turner, and Foxhole, their company produced it. They made sure that the majority, if not all of the department heads were women. It was a woman director and writer. Woman. Dp, Like, I mean, unbelievable set. Right. But there was a moment we were doing a scene and there was someone on set who disrespected a crew member, and Jamie stopped the take, and he gave a long speech about how we will not tolerate anyone disrespecting anyone. There is no rank. We are all linked. He said it was so beautiful to see this man who's. I mean, this man is so talented. He's a freaking alien. He's so talented. But to see him hold everyone accountable in such a gracious and beautiful way, I mean, it was a moment I'll never forget. Like, as great as his performance is in that movie, and it is phenomenal. And I loved, you know, it was a joy to work alongside him. It was that one moment that I will remember the most.

[Sophia Bush]

That's what makes you love him forever, right?

[Ryan Reynolds]

Right. Yeah, absolutely.

[Sophia Bush]

And I just think beauty of what he does, it's the beauty of who he is.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Amen. And it's why he can have longevity. It's why he can have. You know, he's at the top of his. Top of the game still. Right. And having done it for decades.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And so, yeah, I think all of the experiences I welcome because it has taught me and it has made me grow.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah. Oh, I love it. Well, when you think about what's next, I mean, like you said, the show premieres. It's like your baby goes out into the world, but also it's done, you know, it's finished. And then you're on to the next. Whether it's a personal thing or a professional thing, like as you look out at what's coming, what feels like your.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Work in progress, that's really good. I really am on the Vision board. It is about becoming very intentional with stepping behind the camera, producing, directing, ushering forward stories. Whether I'm in them or not. I don't need to be in them, but like helping to expand the gaze of who gets to tell our stories.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Who gets to define who we are as women, who we are as others. Right. Like I am not interested in continuing to complain about the problem if I'm not going to help solve it.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

And. And I see that we have come so far in the industry, you know, I don't know that decades ago I would have been able to even have the opportunity to play a role like Michelle in Smoke, who is so layered and complex and flawed. It would have been.

[Sophia Bush]

Oh, you mean she wasn't described as likable girl. Burn the word to the ground.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Right, right. And that she can be many things and she can make really good. Questionably ambiguous. She can make morally ambiguous choices.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Right. And she doesn't have to be all knowing or all strong.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

I mean the strong, strong women. Come on. I'm over it.

[Sophia Bush]

God forbid. Strong black woman.

[Ryan Reynolds]

I'm so bored with it. Just give me flaws.

[Sophia Bush]

Yes.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Because flaws are truthful.

[Sophia Bush]

Let us be messy.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Let us be messy. Let us break the law. Let us, you know, run away from the person we should actually be with. Let us do all the self sabotage of the world. Because I want to see myself up there.

[Sophia Bush]

Yes.

[Ryan Reynolds]

I want my niece to see herself up there. I want my friends to see themselves up there. Like I'm not interested in the girlfriend who has to be the ear for the man's plot being pushed forward. Right, Right. But I'm also not interested in the robot who's all powerful and all good.

[Sophia Bush]

Yeah.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Because none of us are, you know. So that is my intention is to work with filmmakers and collaborators who push me, who help me grow. I just, I just want to continue to grow and be better. Growing up, my mom always had me reading these biographies of the greats like Katharine Hepburn, me, you know, her autobiography and studying their patterns and you're not going to have longevity if you stay stuck and rigid and doing the same thing. How are you evolving and changing? And that's when I'm interested in being a work in progress.

[Sophia Bush]

I love it. Well, congrats on the show and all the things. Really happy for you.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Oh, thank you. I'm very, very proud of you. This is a beautiful platform you have.

[Sophia Bush]

Thanks.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Yeah, it really is.

[Sophia Bush]

We enjoy it. We got good people over here. Come back anytime.

[Ryan Reynolds]

I will be back.

[Sophia Bush]

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[Ryan Reynolds]

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[Rodney Williams]

See details@t mobile.com I'm Rodney Williams.

[Travis Holloway]

And I'm Travis Holloway. Welcome to the wealthbreak Podcast, a real conversation about finance.

[Rodney Williams]

Let's be honest, building wealth doesn't look the same for everyone.

[Sophia Bush]

I feel like sometimes being broke is a cycle and that we might have.

[Travis Holloway]

To revisit that and we're not stopping at success stories.

[Jurnee Smollett]

What happens when it doesn't go right? How do you cope with it?

[Rodney Williams]

Because wealth isn't just about money, it's about creating a life where you thrive and help others do the same.

[Travis Holloway]

Listen to the Wealth Break podcast on the iHeartradio app.

[Ryan Reynolds]

This is an iHeart podcast.