Ryan Reynolds and Matt Damon’s Must-Watch Fantasy Comedy Just Hit Netflix Today

If you’re browsing Netflix this week and wonder why Ryan Reynolds and Matt Damon are suddenly hanging out in your recommendations, here’s the deal. Paramount’s big-budget fantasy comedy from earlier this year, 'IF,' just hit streaming. It’s a star-studded affair—and no, I’m not exaggerating—pretty much Hollywood’s entire speed dial is in this thing.

What’s 'IF' All About?

'IF' is John Krasinski’s brainchild (yep, Jim from 'The Office', but now he does dramatic speeches and directs). Here, he writes, directs, produces, and even acts, so we’re talking personal project status. The story? It’s about a young girl—played by Cailey Fleming—who discovers she can see other people’s imaginary friends (called 'IFs'), which for some reason means she’s tasked with saving these forgotten creatures before they…well, vanish. It’s the kind of setup where you either get sentimental or start wondering if you left the kettle on, but apparently a lot of families went with the former.

The film’s own promo puts it like this, and honestly, it sums it up:

'IF is a heartwarming and hilarious tale about a girl who discovers that she can see everyone’s imaginary friends, known as IFs. She embarks on a magical journey to reconnect forgotten IFs with their kids, before they disappear. An adventure you’ll need to believe to see, IF is perfect for the whole family.'

The Ridiculously Packed Cast

If you’re making a movie about imaginary friends, why not cast half of Hollywood? Here’s a taste of the talent parade Krasinski lined up (brace yourself):

• Ryan Reynolds
• John Krasinski
• Steve Carell
• Phoebe Waller-Bridge
• Cailey Fleming
• Matthew Rhys
• Louis Gossett Jr.
• Matt Damon
• Jon Stewart
• Emily Blunt
• Sam Rockwell
• Richard Jenkins
• Maya Rudolph
• Awkwafina
• Christopher Meloni
• Blake Lively
• Keegan-Michael Key
• Bradley Cooper
• George Clooney
• Amy Schumer
• Sebastian Maniscalco

Seriously. There are entire Oscars shows with fewer celebs than this voice cast.

Behind The Scenes & Box Office Stats

Behind the camera, Krasinski didn’t just hog all the credits—he teamed up with producers Allyson Seeger and Andrew Form under their Sunday Night banner. Reynolds took on producing duties too, via his Maximum Effort label. Maximum Effort co-founder George Dewey called the shots as executive producer.

So how’d it do in theaters? Well, despite critics being kind of split on it, regular folks actually liked it—a classic family movie move. On Rotten Tomatoes, audiences gave it an 85% Popcorn-meter score. Financially, the movie pulled in over $190 million worldwide on a reported $110 million budget. Not bad for a story about the creatures you invented after eating too much sugar as a kid.

Reynolds & Damon: Not Their First Rodeo

Fun bit of trivia: Reynolds and Damon technically shared screen time before—all the way back in 'Deadpool 2' (Damon was under mountains of prosthetics because why not). This time, both get beefier roles alongside a who’s-who of comedy, drama, and…well, everyone.

Bottom line: if you’re looking for a family-friendly comfort watch that doubles as a Hollywood scavenger hunt, 'IF' is now an easy stream on Netflix.