TORONTO — Actor Ryan Reynolds shared memories this week of getting his ear pierced in Vancouver as a teen.
In an article for Time, the 38-year-old actor recalled fearing the reaction of his father Jim, a former police officer he described as “the toughest man alive.”
Reynolds said he and his three older brothers were expected to do what their father said — “often before he said it.”
At 13, Reynolds decided to get an earring.
“I was terrified,” he wrote. “Not terrified to have a hole punched through my virginal ear, but terrified about the hole that would be punched through my future, when my father found out.”
He recalled seeking the support of his brothers before going through with it.
“My oldest brother told me I was going to die tonight. Like, DIE. ‘Do NOT do this. If Dad sees that thing in your ear, he’s gonna release your soul to the wind.’ My middle brother bluntly stated that, ‘Bad call. Dad’s going to turn you into a liquid, dumb-ass.’ And my other brother took umbrage in the act itself, ‘Earrings on dude’s are lame. Especially on a dude.’”
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Their reactions were not unsurprising.
“Growing up, all four of us were at war under our roof,” Reynolds explained.
“As the smallest and youngest, they reserved their most unique and unblinking brand of torture for me.”
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Reynolds went ahead with his plan and accompanied his friend Dimitri Barboudis to Sears. Dimitri’s mother Voula signed the consent form and, Reynolds recalled, “shortly before 4pm, on a rainy day in Vancouver, British Columbia, my fate was punctuated by a tiny gold stud fired through my fleshy, pre-pubescent earlobe.”
Reynolds wrote about walking home and staying in his bedroom until his mother Tammy called the family to dinner.
“The little gold earring felt like it was flashing ember-red, as if to say, ‘LOOK AT ME!!! Over here! Your son is a tool! You raised a future Zen-garden salesman who collects artisanal bongs!’”
Reynolds recalled sitting in fear as his father scanned the boys and uttered only one word: “Pussies.”
He wrote: “My head snapped up immediately. I could see he wasn’t just looking at me. His confused eyes darted spastically between all four boys in shock, disbelief and directionless anger. What he was in fact looking at, were four young men, sitting at a dinner table, each, with a freshly pierced ear.”
Reynolds said he is grateful for what his brothers did that day.
“Doing the right thing at the right time speaks volumes about one’s character.”
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