Ryan Reynolds’ Mayday War Movie Is His Best-Reviewed Feature Film in Over 10 Years

Ryan Reynolds just scored his best reviews in over a decade. His latest action comedy, Mayday, is earning raves unlike anything he’s had in years. Early critic reviews are officially in, and their response has been largely positive.

At the time of writing, Mayday holds an 86% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes based on 44 critic reviews. This comes after 2015’s Mississippi Grind as his last highest-rated film, which critics rated at 91%. The comparison excludes last year’s John Candy documentary, keeping the distinction specific to his feature-film work.

Mayday puts Reynolds with Kenneth Branagh as unlikely allies caught in a dangerous Russian territory.

What is Ryan Reynolds’ Mayday movie about?

The PG-13-rated movie follows U.S. Air Force pilot Troy “Assassin” Kelly, played by Reynolds. During a covert mission, he flies a Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird over Soviet Russia. After his plane collides with a MiG-29 while in the air, Kelly is forced to eject from his aircraft.

Upon landing, Troy finds himself stranded deep in enemy territory. He eventually meets Nikolai Ustinov, played by Kenneth Branagh, a former KGB operative working as a carpenter in the woods who agrees to help the American pilot escape Russia.

According to critics, the film combines its war setting with an action-comedy approach. Reynolds brings his familiar comedic charm, while Branagh takes a more impassive approach to their friendship.

Alongside Reynolds and Branagh, the film also stars Maria Bakalova as Anna Ustinov, Marcin Dorociński as Alexander Volkov, and David Morse as Harold Kelly. Other supporting roles include Lovell Adams-Gray, Clark Johnson, Alex Mallari Jr., Louis Cancelmi, and Alex Ozerov.

Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley serve as directors, writers, and producers. They are joined by other producers including David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, Don Granger, Ryan Reynolds, Ashley Fox, Johnny Pariseau, and Patrick Gooing.

Mayday has a 114-minute runtime and premieres exclusively on September 4, 2026, on Apple TV.

Source: Comingsoon.net