Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney love that Wrexham moved up. They love that town more
Are Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds the greatest owners of all time? Or perhaps a fitting superlative: GOOAT? For Wrexham soccer fans, that answer would be a resounding yes. In only their second year as club owners, the Hollywood stars shepherded a men’s team championship, earning a promotion to the English Football League for the 2023-2024 season — the club’s first time in 15 years.
But it wasn’t only the men’s squad who celebrated a title win. The women’s and both boy’s and girl’s youth teams won their respective divisions too. The quadruple success story began in 2020 when the duo purchased Wrexham AFC, and like any good tale out of Tinseltown, they rolled cameras during their first year as owners, shining a spotlight on a small, profoundly fervent Welsh community in an 18 episode docuseries aptly named “Welcome to Wrexham.”
Even with their popularity, McElhenney and Reynolds took a backseat when it came to appearing on camera, letting the people of the town be the focus. “It was part of our mission statement that we wanted to become part of their story. We didn’t want to drag them into ours,” McElhenney says. “Every conversation we had about the approach of the documentary focused on that. Our field producer Milos [Balac] embedded himself in Wrexham for two years. He would ask the town over and over again who is interesting and who should we be talking to next.”
In “Welcome to Wrexham,” Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney try to revive Wrexham’s soccer club — and the struggling Welsh town that depends on it.
The emotional weight of “Welcome to Wrexham” is guided by the stories of the community and their love for the club. We’re introduced to Kerry Evans, a disabled volunteer who is placed in charge of making the stadium and facilities fully accessible. Shaun Winter, a team supporter and third-generation house painter, opens up about his separation, the love for his children and his passion for the team. Arthur Massey, a 91-year-old supporter, shares what the club means to the community.
“We were looking for the truth,” says McElhenney about filming the series. “We wanted something that was authentic to the experience and we were looking for stories of anybody who felt like an underdog, or marginalized or overlooked.” In doing so, an earnest group of people find their way on screen who are undeniably relatable to anyone watching at home. “We approached it with such respect and admiration,” Reynolds adds. “Once we did a little investigating and snooping around, we realized it was a special town. But I don’t think we quite recognized how special it was and how much it would grow into our hearts and souls as this journey progressed.”
The connection McElhenney and Reynolds have with the Wrexham community is palpable. We see firsthand how it affects them as owners. “We’re not operating from a platform of experience,” says Reynolds. “I don’t know what an owner is supposed to do at a stadium on game day. I know you want to make sure you create an optimal environment for the players, staff and everyone else, including the grounds people who keep the stadium running. Other than that, I’m mostly wandering around like a lost uncle.”
What McElhenney and Reynolds do excel at is building team awareness. Whether it’s shooting a hilarious commercial that has Reynolds going nose to nose with star player Paul Mullin for calling him an idiot or the two actors taking to social media to cleverly announce team apparel and sponsorship deals, the city of Wrexham and the success of the club is being noticed.
“We consider ourselves stewards of the club. Any lower-tiered club that is inextricably linked to the community the way Wrexham is, they will tell you the owners live in the city and are supporters of the club,” Reynolds says. “The reason Wrexham has been successful, at least on the pitch, is because Rob and I generally don’t meddle. We’ve hired people with vast landscapes of football knowledge.”
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Another north star of the series is the bonds created through sports — a theme that culminates in an episode called “Wromance.” “Bonding over sports is a really important aspect to male relationships,” McElhenney notes. “So many of the relationships I forged over the years, a foundation of that has been in support of a sports team.”
Before ownership, McElhenney and Reynolds barely knew each other. It’s a budding friendship that blooms in the series. “Rob and I genuinely love each other,” says Reynolds. “We had spoken and talked before this but we never spent significant time together. We are different enough that we help grow each other and we are similar enough that we attack things with real alignment and the same work ethic. That’s something I will always respect with Rob, he is utterly tireless about something he’s passionate about.”
Fans will have to wait until Season 2 (scheduled to air later this year) to watch the team hoist its championship trophy — a moment McElhenney and Reynolds say was the greatest accomplishment in their lives outside their immediate families. “That’s the beauty of this entire endeavor,” McElhenney says. “The end goal is not to get up to League One or Championship League or even the Premier League, it’s to continue to explore the story that is Wrexham. And there are just endless stories.”
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