Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds’ faux feud-slash-bromance remains one of Hollywood’s most reliable bits, and apparently, it is now heading out onto the water. After Deadpool & Wolverine turned their long-running public friendship into a box-office hit, the two stars are re-teaming for a very different kind of project coming to the streaming schedule for folks with a Disney+ subscription.
Jackman shared the update on Instagram (see below), posting photos of himself with the BONDS Flying Roos, the Australian SailGP team that the two actors co-own. The post teases a behind-the-scenes series with Jackman joking that one of them is “sure to end up in the water.” Disney+ has also announced the untitled docuseries, which will follow the Flying Roos through a global SailGP season.
Hugh Jackman’s caption is exactly the kind of fun tease that makes me sit up. Jackman and Reynolds learning high-speed sailing sounds like the spiritual cousin of the hit FX series Welcome to Wrexham, except instead of soccer heartbreak in Wales, we’re getting expensive boats, Australian pride and the very real possibility of Ryan Reynolds bobbing in the water.
According to Deadline, the untitled docuseries will follow the BONDS Flying Roos as Australia’s fastest sailors travel the globe to compete against elite rivals. The team is led on the water by driver and CEO Tom Slingsby, who is an Olympic gold medalist, America’s Cup winner and a three-time SailGP champion.
The series also has a real sports hook. SailGP is a stadium-style championship featuring identical 50-foot catamarans racing close to shore at speeds of up to 100 km/h, which sounds less like a relaxing day on the water and more like Formula 1 on the high seas.
The project will come from Reynolds’ Maximum Effort and Eureka Productions in partnership with SailGP and the BONDS Flying Roos. Brent Hodge is serving as director and showrunner, while Rob Mac, Reynolds’ Welcome to Wrexham partner and executive producer, will also executive produce through More Better Productions. The series will stream on Disney+ internationally and on Disney+ and in the U.S. for viewers with a Hulu subscription.
That Welcome to Wrexham connection, the series is now in its fifth season, is probably the most interesting piece here. Reynolds has already shown he knows how to turn a sports ownership story into something accessible, funny and genuinely emotional. That show works because it is not just about celebrity owners, but focuses on community, pressure, history and people who care deeply about the sport.
This new sailing series has a chance to do something similar, especially with Jackman involved. He brings the Australian connection, Reynolds brings the documentary-sports-business track record, and together they bring the exact level of affectionate nonsense that makes their partnership weirdly durable.
Jackman and Reynolds joked in a joint statement that this is their first collaboration since Deadpool & Wolverine and that they expect “action, comedy, heart” with “a lot more water.” They also said they hope there are pirates in SailGP, because of course they did.
There is no Disney+ premiere date yet, but I’m already in. Give me elite athletes, fast boats, actual stakes and Jackman and Reynolds trying not to look completely out of their depth. And yes, I absolutely want to know which one ends up in the water first.
