LOS ANGELES ? Ryan Reynolds likes the trajectory of his career, that he can go from ?Buried,? where he?s inside a coffin throughout the movie (no costars except the occasional slithering snake) to ?Green Lantern,? whose estimated $150 million budget makes the former film?s $3 million cost seem like loose change.

What makes Ryan smile is that the flick with him in a box has been getting good buzz since it premiered in last January?s Sundance Film Festival, where we first saw the Rodrigo Cortes-directed thriller. ?I thought to myself that no one?s going to see this movie,? Ryan told us in a recent interview. He plays Paul, a US contractor in Iraq who wakes up to find himself buried six feet under, with a cell phone, a lighter and nothing else. He races against time to avoid being buried permanently.

Wire work and gymnastics

The actor, noted for his bemused stance, who seems always on the verge of cracking a joke, was especially tickled that the grueling contortions he underwent inside the coffin turned out to be worth it. ?What the hell am I doing?? he remembered asking himself during a particularly challenging day in Barcelona, Spain, where the film was shot. ?I?m shocked that the movie gained footing and people are seeing and embracing it.?

??Green Lantern? posed different challenges, obviously,? Ryan said about his other much buzzed about role based on DC Comics? superhero/space cop. ?It involved a lot of wire work and gymnastics. As soon as I wrapped ?Buried,? I went into a gymnastics program in New York for six months.? In his typical understated wit, Ryan quipped, ?A six foot, two inches tall person has no business tumbling, I realized that early on. But they did teach me a lot. I was able to do some interesting things.?

Asked if playing a comic book hero was a boyhood dream of his, Ryan concurred, saying, ?When you get a chance to do something like that, you reach a bit of that dream you had when you were a kid, when anything was possible. To see yourself standing up there on the big screen, and they?ve got the best camera in the world, the best stunt guys, the best talents, and you get to be that guy is an amazing feeling.?

?But where it really hits home is with the nieces and nephews,? Ryan said, typically shifting the conversation to a more down-to-earth and humorous level. ?I have five of them. This is the only movie I?ve ever done that they are excited to see. That?s all they talk about. I am not even Uncle Ryan anymore; I am Green Lantern. Like, ?When is Green Lantern coming over?? I told them that I?m going to take them to the premiere but they have to sit through ?Buried? first. Without blinking.?

Dick Van Dyke bod

While there is literally no green costume (it?s all CGI so he wears a full-body motion-capture suit during filming), Ryan, already buff to begin with, kept himself in even better shape. ?You work out for these movies,? he said matter-of-factly. ?I finished ?Green Lantern? about a month ago.? Breaking into a smile, he of course had to quip, ?So I?m slowly marching my way back to my Dick Van Dyke body.?

Does his wife Scarlett Johansson prefer his physique a la Dick Van Dyke or Green Lantern? He replied, eyes smiling, ?I think both ways. Both are pretty good. I think she prefers it if I could fit through a keyhole.? As for being named as one of People magazine?s sexiest, the Canadian native remarked, ?As an actor working in Hollywood, it doesn?t hurt, that?s for sure. It?s more for your mom. That?s all for Tammy Reynolds (his mother).?

On life with Scarlett, he said, ?There are distinct differences that attract us to one another. There are some healthy debates, if you know what I mean. It?s great.?

Scarlett?s humor

He gets to see a side of Scarlett that?s not well known. ?She might be the funniest person I know,? he revealed. ?Humor is something that we definitely have in common. She?s hell of a lot funnier than I am on my best day.?

In ?Buried,? his character?s cell phone?s battery is running out so he had to make crucial decisions on who to call. Who would Ryan call in a real-life crisis scenario? ?Regis Philbin,? he cracked. ?I think you?ve got to go to the top, where the resources are. So I?d be like Paul and I would try to get a hold of the State Department. For an emotional crisis, I?d call my wife.?

The son of a retired Royal Canadian Mounted Policeman, Ryan worked odd jobs, from waiting tables to washing dishes, before the acting breaks started trickling in. ?The greatest thing I?ve learned from all that is the value of good work,? said the 33-year-old. ?If I am not the perfect person for any given role or moment, I usually feel like I can out-discipline anyone else. I know how fortunate I am to be in this position. But at the same time, this requires a lot of hard work. That?s something I?ve never really shied away from. My dad taught me that early on. He raised four kids on a salary like his. That was no small feat.?

Smart dad

Of his dad, who is suffering from Parkinson?s disease, Ryan said, ?I really look up to him even though throughout our life, we?ve been at odds about most things. But he is a great guy. He?s got a great work ethic. I also look up to my older brother who is one of my best friends. He?s a Royal Canadian Mounted Policeman up in British Columbia. That?s what he does. I?m kind of taken with his story and how he operates his life. He?s really an interesting guy and a smart fellow as well.?

Looking past ?Green Lantern,? which opens next year, Ryan revealed, ?The next one I have is a comedy, ?The Change-Up? (with Jason Bateman). The one after that is ?Safe House,? which is like a CIA two-hander with Denzel Washington. It?s going to be a lot of fun. I?ve been lucky to do something different each time.?

How about ?Deadpool,? the ?X-Men? spin-off? ?Hopefully, down the road, yes,? he said. And will he reunite with Sandra Bullock to follow-up their smash ?The Proposal?? He confirmed it but the new movie ?will be a totally different idea. It?s a little bit something in the realm of ?Midnight Run.??

A slow but steady career rise is just fine with the actor whose jeep was stripped on his first night ever in LA. The cash-strapped actor drove the jeep without doors for months. ?This worked out in the best possible way for me,? he said. ?I?m really fortunate that I didn?t have that meteoric success when I was younger because if I did, I don?t think I?d be sitting in front of you. It?s great to go nice and slow, to have that opportunity to adjust. Because of that, I have not been stuck in one genre. I?ve been able to navigate my way through.?

E-mail the columnist at rvnepales_5585@yahoo.com.