Rick Moranis Is Back, Though Not How You Might Expect

Actor Ryan Reynolds is continuing to lean into his entrepreneurial side. Following his move in August to launch Mint Mobile+, a streaming service for one movie (Reynold's 2003 film Foolproof), he today has announced that parent company Mint Mobile will be rolling out an unlimited plan--which might be exciting for people currently shopping for such a solution, but what's more exciting is the feel-good way he's made the announcement.

"It's hard to believe that Mint Mobile has gone so long without an unlimited plan, so to introduce it, we brought in an actor we've all gone too long without: Rick Moranis," says Reynolds in a video tweeted Wednesday morning.

Reynolds speaks the truth: Moranis has largely shied away from the limelight since the late '90s, when he took a break from acting to raise his children as a widower. Moranis came to prominence as a truly brilliant comic performer able to embody everyman vibes to high tilt--often playing characters so "normal" they are downright strange, or bursting at the seams with restrained quirks. See: His roles in the first two Ghostbusters movies, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, Spaceballs, Strange Brew, etc.

Moranis emerges in the spot--his first acting gig in ages--bemused at Reynolds, who admits he doesn't want Moranis to hawk for or even speak about Mint. He just really wanted to see him. Moranis mentions that he "really gotta get a phone," looks confused into the camera, and then walks away. Knowing the joke before clicking "play" on the video doesn't rob it of its humor--it's funny after multiple viewings.

Reynolds has been steadily engaging in internet pranks and general tomfoolery over the summer--he also recently semi-tweaked the Snyder cut of Justice League by releasing a 27-second Reynolds Cut of Green Lantern on Twitter.