Ryan Vs. Ryan: The Reynolds Vs. Gosling Movie Career Smack-Down!

The two Ryans: Reynolds and Gosling

How was your summer?

If your name is Ryan, and you were one of a handful of actors that Hollywood was grooming for superstar status, it could've gone either way.

For one Ryan, it went quite well: after a slow steady career rise, appearing in the (incredibly stupid) box office hit The Notebook, Ryan Gosling scored repeated raves and award nominations (including two Best Actor Oscar nods!) for his roles in Half Nelson, Blue Valentine, and Lars and the Real Girl (an amazing film: if you haven't seen it, see it now!).

This summer, Ryan didn't just land a solid hit in the ensemble comedy Crazy, Stupid, Love, he personally got fantastic reviews for a role that made him seem very much like a suave romantic lead, and a scene of Emma Stone drooling over his (admittedly impressive) abs was prominently featured in the trailer.

Gosling's latest film, Drive, which opened last weekend, isn't a massive hit, but it's done respectably, especially for an edgy arthouse-ish film. And the reviews are stellar, especially for Gosling. Later this fall, Gosling will appear in the George Clooney film The Ides of March, which is widely considered to be a potential Oscar nominee (Gosling included).

But another Ryan didn't fare quite so well this summer.

Fairly or not, Ryan Reynolds has never been considered the same acting powerhouse as Gosling, but after a respectable career, he hit the big time in 2009, with the one-two punch of a buzzy supporting turn as Deadpool in X-Men Origins: Wolverine and a romantic lead in the pleasant-enough romantic comedy The Proposal.

His real-life friendship (or is it romance?!) with Sandra Bullock, who in 2009 had the best year of maybe any actress ever, didn't hurt.

In the battle of the abs, it's close, but we're calling it for Reynolds

In 2010, Reynolds appeared in another buzzy film, the arthouse movie Buried, about a man who had been buried alive. It took place entirely within a coffin.

2011 was supposed to be Reynolds' summer. DC Comics, owner of the rights to Batman and Superman, was envious of rival comic publisher Marvel's success at spinning off previously lesser-known superheroes like The X-Men and The Fantastic Four. They launched an expensive new franchise with Green Lantern, starring Reynolds, but it turned out to be a major critical and box office disappointment. The chances of a sequel ever happening are dimming by the week.

A second movie, the comedy The Change-Up, was an even bigger flop.

Both Gosling and Reynolds are gay favorites (for obvious reasons): Gosling came in at number 70 in the last AfterElton.com Hot 100, and Reynolds landed at number 13 (although I suspect those numbers may well be reversed by 2012).

This summer and fall, one Ryan, Gosling, successfully made the jump into lightspeed. The other Ryan, Reynolds, didn't.

So it is over for Reynolds while Gosling will reign forever supreme?

Not necessarily. Reynolds has a number of films currently in the works. One of those films is the long-rumored Deadpool movie adaptation. Deadpool is a decidedly different kind of superhero – a droll, ironic one who famously breaks the "fourth wall" in his comic books (and will reportedly do the same in the movie). Because he's such a different kind of superhero, I've long thought Deadpool had the potential to finally shake up the moribund superhero movie genre.

Then again, like Watchmen and Kick-Ass, Deadpool might turn out to be a very acquired taste, especially if it's poorly adapted.

If any one of Reynolds' upcoming films hits it big, he could be back on top (at least if he's the perceived "draw" of the movie).

Reynolds and Gosling, together at the Teen Choice Awards

That said, in the eyes of Hollywood, Reynolds had his shot and blew it. It's hard to build that kind of "leading man" career momentum a second time around.

Why does this matter? Mostly because it's easier to stay a superstar than it is to become one. Why did Tom Cruise rule for so long? Because despite middling acting talent (IMHO), he had first choice of the world's best projects, scripts, writers, directors, and co-stars. And while it's true that no one can predict what movies are going to be hits, working with George Clooney, David Fincher, J.J. Abrams, Steven Spielberg, and Martin Scorsese (and being the subject of lavish publicity campaigns for all your projects) can only up the odds.

On the other hand, absent a clear break-out smash, at this point Reynolds will probably be offered mostly second leads in romantic comedies – a dying genre that has nonetheless swallowed the once-burgeoning careers of actors such as Dermot Mulroney and Matthew McConaughey.

For what it's worth, I don't think Gosling's "victory" over Reynolds is completely random. Reynolds may yet show unrevealed acting talents, but it's beyond doubt that Gosling is a pretty rare bird: a genuine acting chameleon like Edward Norton or Gary Oldman, but one who also has leading man looks and who, like Leonardo DiCaprio or George Clooney, can also turn on leading man charisma when need be.

That said, it's not that Gosling's movies are so much better than Reynold's: I hated Green Lantern, but I also thought Crazy, Stupid, Love was wildly overrated. To some degree, Gosling was simply luckier than Reynolds this year.

What do you think the career trajectories of each actor might be?