Ryan Reynolds and John Krasinski are teaming up for the new Krasinski-directed flick, IF, which is one of the most anticipated films on the 2024 movie schedule. It’s an exciting venture, featuring the minds of two of our most charismatic and likable movie stars. Reynolds just made this collaboration even better, with a little bit of friendly competition between the two actors, as he challenged the Jack Ryan actor to a fun March Madness bet. The actors are squaring off with their brackets, but the real winner will be the movie fans with this challenge.

The Deadpool star recently posted his March Madness bracket on his Instagram story. For those unaware, brackets are made with predictions for the results of the titular college basketball tournament. It’s common for groups to get together for a pool where the individual with the most accurate predictions gets a prize. This is exactly the kind of competition Reynolds ignited when he shared his own bracket, however he was challenging Krasinski specifically. Whoever has the best tournament predictions will buy out a theater in the winning basketball team’s city to watch IF on opening night. You can see Reynolds’ post below:

(Image credit: Ryan Reynold’s Instagram Story)
John Krasinki accepted his collaborator’s challenge and responded on his own Instagram story, sharing his March Madness bracket. You can see his post below:

(Image credit: John Krasinski Instagram Story)
March Madness brackets are always a fun way to spark a little competition during basketball season. Several stars share their own brackets to participate in the fun, like former President Barack Obama and Jimmy Fallon. This competition not only is fun for Reynolds and Krasinski, but also a great way to promote their film. There is definitely already enough motivation for a basketball team to win the March Madness tournament, but having a movie star rent out a theater in your college town is an added bonus.

There’s nothing like sports that brings together movie stars. Chris Pratt revealed he is in a Fantasy Football League for charity with Chris Hemsworth and Chris Evans. Additionally, Hugh Jackman has started attending Wrexham football games with Ryan Reynolds, maybe finally ending their hilarious “feud” once and for all. Most notably, Taylor Swift got some of her famous friends into sports when she started bringing them along to watch her boyfriend Travis Kelce play football for Kansas City. I don’t know which side to take in this March Madness bet, but I’m looking forward to this friendly competition playing out in real time.

Even though Krasinski and Reynolds have always seemed like the perfect pair of stars to work together, IF will be the first time the two have collaborated. IF is a fantastical comedy about imaginary friends reuniting with their kids who have grown up. This is a big departure from Krasinki’s previous directorial feats, A Quiet Place and A Quiet Place Part II. In addition to Reynolds, Steve Carrell, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, and Matt Damon are also a part of the IF cast. March Madness will end on April 8th, but the winning team will still have to wait until May 17th for the wager to be paid, as that is when IF is set to hit theaters.

You can follow the status of this bet between John Krasinski and Ryan Reynolds by tuning into the March Madness College Basketball Tournament. Make sure to check your local listings to learn when each game will be airing. In anticipation for IF, make sure to check out Krasinki’s previous directorial projects, A Quiet Place and A Quiet Place Part II which are both streaming now for Paramount+ subscribers.