Ryan Reynolds has marked Mayday’s record-setting Apple TV debut with a poetic nod to Kenneth Branagh, giving the action comedy’s latest milestone a distinctly Shakespearean flourish. The film has been one of Apple’s bigger original-film swings this year, pairing Reynolds’ comic timing with Branagh’s more classically theatrical screen presence. Now, Reynolds has added another chapter to their unlikely Cold War pairing.

The numbers may belong to Apple TV, but Reynolds is giving the victory lap to his co-star.

Ryan Reynolds took to X to thank viewers for making Mayday the biggest Apple TV movie debut of all time. He followed the announcement with a playful reference to William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18.

“Thank you for making Mayday the biggest AppleTV movie debut of all time. Sonnet 18 for everyone but especially the amazing Kenneth Branagh!”, he wrote. 

The Shakespeare reference is particularly fitting for Kenneth Branagh, whose career has long been intertwined with the Bard’s work as both an actor and filmmaker. Reynolds’ post turns what could have been a standard streaming-success message into a very Reynolds-style co-sign for his co-star. His tweet also puts Branagh directly in the spotlight as the film celebrates its early Apple TV performance.

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That Reynolds is already moving on to his next public appearance makes the Mayday milestone even more timely. Just as the actor is celebrating the film’s record-setting Apple TV launch, he is also taking his familiar mix of entertainment and entrepreneurship to an international stage. 

The Apple TV milestone lands during a particularly busy stretch for Ryan Reynolds, who has also been juggling his entertainment and business interests. On September 29, the Deadpool star appeared in Abu Dhabi for LIVEX 2026, joining more than 100 international speakers at the three-day event focused on livability, investment and the future of cities.

That makes the Mayday update another notable beat in a packed month for the actor. The film itself arrived globally on Apple TV on September 4, with Apple positioning the Reynolds-Branagh pairing as the center of its genre-bending action comedy. Mayday brings Reynolds and Branagh together for a genre mash-up that starts with the mechanics of a Cold War spy thriller before steering into buddy-comedy territory. 

For now, Reynolds is letting the streaming record do the talking while saving the most theatrical flourish for Branagh. With Mayday officially setting a new Apple TV movie debut mark, his Shakespearean shout-out gives the victory lap an appropriately dramatic final act.

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