Ryan Reynolds Reacts to Betty White’s Joke About His Longstanding Crush on Her

Ryan Reynolds playfully called out the media for exploiting the details of his romantic life—specifically his “past relationship” with Betty White.

The 45-year-old shared his feelings via Twitter on Friday, shortly after White jokingly referenced Reynold’s unrequited love for her.

“I’ve heard Ryan can’t get over his thing for me,” she quipped to People magazine, “but Robert Redford is The One.”

Reynolds caught wind of White’s comments and, to no one’s surprise, decided to keep the joke running.

“I’m absolutely sick of the media exploiting past relationships just to drive clicks,” he quote-tweeted the People article.

Fans of Reynolds and White are well aware that the two have exchanged amusing banter over the years. Since co-starring in 2009’s The Proposal alongside Sandra Bullock, the actors have joked about their previous romance. Back in 2019, Reynolds shared a birthday post for the Golden Girl’s actress, whom he referred to as one of his exes.

“I don’t usually post about ex-girlfriends. But Betty’s special,” he captioned a photo of him sitting alongside White. “Happy Birthday to the one and only, @bettymwhite.”

In this week’s People magazine issue, which comes as White prepares to celebrate her 100th birthday, Reynolds shared some kind words about the legendary actress, saying he’s been one of her fans “for as long as I can remember.”

“I heard that scripts for Golden Girls were only 35 pages, which makes sense because so many of the laughs come from Betty simply looking at her castmates,” he said, before squeezing in some jokes. “[White is] a typical Capricorn. Sleeps all day. Out all night boozing and snacking on men.”

In honor of White’s 100th birthday, which will go down on Jan. 17, Fathom Theaters will present Betty White: 100 Years Young – A Birthday Celebration—a documentary film that will explore her decades-long career and provide a glimpse into her everyday life. The one-day-only event will also include interviews with some of Hollywood’s biggest names, including Jimmy Kimmel, Tina Fey, Clint Eastwood, Morgan Freeman, Jay Leno, Carol Burnett, and, of course, Reynolds.