Mayday: Reynolds and Branagh on Their Unlikely Cold War Pairing

Ryan Reynolds and Kenneth Branagh are teaming up for 'Mayday', a new Cold War-era buddy comedy now streaming on Apple TV. The film pairs Reynolds as a U.S. Navy pilot, shot down and trapped behind enemy lines, with Branagh as an eccentric former KGB agent who rescues him.

The dynamic between the two characters is central to the film's comedy and heart. Branagh praised the script by Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daly for its confident touch, noting that it avoids sentimentality and instead brings the emotional core into the present while borrowing from the period's look and sound. He drew a parallel to the classic film 'Misery', suggesting the dynamic between his character and Reynolds' mirrors the tense, isolated relationship between Kathy Bates and James Caan.

The actors explained that the comedy stems from the characters' clashing worldviews. Reynolds noted that both men have mythologized each other based on propaganda before their first meeting. However, the reality subverts expectations. Branagh's character, Nikolai, is immediately enamored with the American pilot, viewing him as a gift from above. Reynolds added that Nikolai is disillusioned with his own country, while his character, Troy, initially embodies a jingoistic, 'us versus them' mentality.

For Reynolds, the success of a buddy comedy hinges on genuine chemistry between the leads. He described meeting Branagh as feeling like he had known him for 20 years, which allowed their scenes to feel shared rather than competitive. He contrasted this with the 'cheat' of manufacturing chemistry in the editing room by overlapping lines, emphasizing that the authenticity of their on-screen relationship was vital to the film's success.