'Deadpool' taught Ryan Reynolds to take life 'less seriously'

Los Angeles: Ryan Reynolds lost his father last year and the actor says his "Deadpool"  character helped him overcome the pain.

The 39-year-old actor said he transformed the pain of losing a parent into something constructive, reported People magazine.

"I understand the idea of filtering pain through a prism of comedy. I think this character does that quite well. He obviously takes it too far. He wakes up in the morning exclusively to annoy everyone around him.

But for your average civilian like me, I think there's something really relatable about that idea, that there's something to be learned by taking life a little less seriously," Reynolds said.

The actor, who first played a version of Deadpool in 2009's "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," always wanted to do a standalone movie. "It's something I needed to do. Because I really identified with this character. Laughing can serve you in those dark moments and even help you crawl your way back out.

"In my dad's dying moments, we were making him laugh. We were all in there together, me and my brothers, just joking with him. And of course we end up busting each other's chops."