Actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney jokingly expressed their disapproval over a joke in the Apple TV+ comedy Ted Lasso, which poked fun at their ownership of the Welsh football club Wrexham AFC.
The duo purchased the football club last year, and in Ted Lasso’s newest episode “Rainbow,” Higgins, played by Jeremy Swifts, quipped he “can’t tell if them buying the club is a joke or not.”
Reynolds and McElhenney both shared tweets on Saturday with a letter sarcastically threatening legal action against Apple TV+ over the gag.
“It has come to our attention that in a recent episode of Ted Lasso our very real ownership of Wrexham AFC was called into question by an otherwise beloved character named ‘Higgins,’” the actors wrote.
“While we hold the incomparable Jeremy Swift in no ill regard and are honored to be mentioned on the platform that’s brought us high-quality programming ranging from Mythic Quest season one to Mythic Quest season two, we must insist that you cease and desist from the casting of any doubt regarding our commitment to the club, the fans, and the entire Wrexham community.” (McElhenney co-created and stars in Mythic Quest, which also streams on Apple TV+.)
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The actors went on and demanded “2 large boxes of Ted Lasso’s biscuits” to be sent to the club ahead of the season kickoff this weekend “to avoid legal action.”
Earlier this year, FX ordered a new docu-series from the duo titled Welcome To Wrexham, about the actors purchasing the small-market football team. The story goes like this: In 2020, two men teamed up to purchase a football team in hopes of turning the club into a lovable underdog story worth rooting for. The only problem? Reynolds and McElhenney have never played professional football or managed a sports team. The two show their serious intentions to improve the club and do right by its fans.
McElhenney is currently starring in the Apple TV+ series Mythic Quest, while Reynolds’ latest movie, Free Guy, is about an ordinary bank teller who discovers he’s actually a background player in a video game, which he can take control of.
Ted Lasso’s first and second seasons are streaming on Apple TV+, with new episodes dropping on Fridays.