With his impressive investment portfolio, Ryan Reynolds has established himself as a savvy entrepreneur besides being a successful actor. Wednesday, March 15, T-Mobile announced that it had acquired Mint Mobile, one of the several companies in which Reynolds has invested, for $1.35 billion.
Although the exact size of Reynold’s stake is unknown, it is believed to be substantial, possibly up to 25%, according to Variety. In a statement released by T-Mobile on Wednesday, Reynolds remarked, “Mint Mobile is the best deal in wireless and today’s news only enhances our ability to deliver for our customers.”
The actor-turned-entrepreneur joked that T-Mobile’s excellence in 5G technology made them a better strategic fit than his mother Tammy Reynolds’ “slightly-above-average mahjong skills,” claiming that the company successfully outbid her in the final moments.
Reynolds expressed his pride in the entire Mint team and excitement for what’s to come following the acquisition, which will see T-Mobile pay $1.35 billion for Mint using a combination of 39% cash and 61% stock. As part of the deal, Reynolds will continue in his creative role for the company.
Alongside T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert, Reynolds also released a short video announcing the acquisition. Produced by Maximum Effort Advertising, another of Reynolds’ ventures, the video featured Sievert discussing the merger while Reynolds delivered humorous one-liners, such as “Nice to have a new dad!” before embracing his new partner.
However, this is not Ryan Reynolds’ first rodeo in business deals. He has a track record of striking major deals, with his most recent being the sale of Aviation American Gin to Diageo, a European beverage company, in 2020, which was worth an estimated $610 million. In response to the news of the acquisition, the Deadpool star set up an amusing out-of-office message on his email account for the alcohol brand. The message included an apology to a list of individuals, including his wife, Blake Lively, for telling them to “go f––k themselves in the last 24 hours” after learning about the amount of money he would earn from the sale.
Reynolds will retain an ongoing ownership interest in Aviation Gin, where he held a co-owner and creative director position alongside majority owner Davos Brands. Additionally, Reynolds co-owns the Welsh soccer team Wrexham with fellow actor Rob McElhenney.