Ryan Reynolds has paid tribute to a colleague with a heartfelt message (Picture: Press Agency/NurPhoto/Shutterstock)
Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds has shared a heartfelt tribute following the death of Deadpool & Wolverine production designer Ray Chan.
Chan first joined Marvel Studios as a supervising art director on Thor: The Dark World starring Chris Hemsworth and Natalie Portman.
He then returned to the same role in Guardians Of The Galaxy, Avengers: Age Of Ultron, Doctor Strange, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame.
Chan also served as art director on Spider-Man: Far From Home with Tom Holland and Zendaya, before moving on to production designer on Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania with Paul Rudd and the upcoming Deadpool & Wolverine film.
‘Words are pretty inadequate in comparison to this loss,’ Deadpool star Reynolds began on his Instagram Story.
‘There’s an incomparable reservoir of skill, tender grit and talent no longer with us. He was as valuable a creative force on Deadpool & Wolverine as the writers, director and stars.
Rayn Chan’s death was confirmed by Marvel this week (Picture: Marvel Studios)
The production designer worked alongside Reynolds, Chris Hemsworth, and more (Picture: Marvel Studios)
‘I don’t pretend to know every chapter of Ray’s heart, but I know it’s unusual to encounter someone with that level of artistry, who simultaneously moved through the world with such an indelible humanity.’
‘He built worlds from scratch – and did so in the most collaborative and inclusive ways.’
Reynolds, 47, who stars as the Deadpool anti-hero alongside Wolverine actor Hugh Jackman in the third film in the franchise, remembered his last conversation with Chan ‘exactly two weeks ago’.
‘One of (the) last things I said to him was that he makes magic and there’s nobody on earth like him. He and I would also give each other a lot of good natured s**t.
‘So…of all the last things you could say to someone you adore, that’s a little scrap of consolation I’ll hang onto forever.’
Reynolds recalled his last conversation in his Instagram Story (Picture: Instagram)
Chan’s death was announced by Marvel Studios on Friday (April 26).
In a statement, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige and executive producer Louis D’Esposito said: ‘Ray was first and foremost a good friend to everyone at Marvel Studios.
‘He was a talented collaborator who brought creativity and attention to detail to every frame of every movie he worked on, and who was able to bring out the best in each department he worked with.
‘He was the nicest human being and was such a pleasure to work with, hugely generous, and the kind of person who could take the seed of an idea and turn it into something beautiful.
‘We are devastated by his passing. He will be missed by everyone at Marvel, and our sincerest condolences go out to his family and friends.’
Ryan Reynolds returns as Deadpool/Wade Wilson and Hugh Jackman as Wolverine/Logan later this year (Picture: AP)
The trailer has promised plenty of action (Picture: Marvel Studios)
Chan is survived by his wife Lindsay and his children Caspar and Sebastian.
Reynolds can next be seen as Deadpool later this year when Deadpool & Wolverine hits cinemas, also starring Hugh Jackman as an almost indestructible Wolverine.
The high-octane trailer for the action flick dropped earlier this month, promising plenty of drama with explosions, intense fight scenes, and car chases.
The Crown actress Emma Corrin can also be seen in her new role while Morena Baccarin will reprise her character Vanessa Carlysle, Leslie Uggams as Blind Al and Karan Soni as Dopinder.
Other cast members include Catastrophe actor Rob Delaney and Succession star Matthew Macfadyen.
Jackman has played Wolverine since the 2000 film X-Men through to 2016’s X-Men: Apocalypse, where he has a brief uncredited scene, and in three spin-off films including Logan.
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There was also a glimpse of Wolverine in 2018’s Deadpool 2 but he will be a much larger character in the sequel, which is being directed by Stranger Things director and producer Shawn Levy.
Reynolds had also appeared in X-Men Origins: Wolverine as a swordfighter named Wade who is disfigured like Deadpool in the movies of the same name but has a different backstory.
Deadpool & Wolverine is set to land in cinemas on July 25.
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