Can Deadpool & Wolverine really save Marvel?
The once invincible superhero universe has seemed increasingly vulnerable recently. Its atypically foul-mouthed and adult new entry is predicted to be huge – even as it mocks its own brand.
Lewd, rude and dangerous to know, Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool is no cog in the Disney machine. That’s what the cast and crew of the first R-rated superhero adventure in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) would have us believe.
It’s a message that may alienate some punters, and be gratefully received by others, but while some of Marvel’s recent big and small screen offerings have flopped, Shawn Levy’s Deadpool & Wolverine – which imports two beloved mutants from the 21st Century Fox X-Men film series – could be the biggest hit of the summer. Current projections suggest it will have a $160m+ opening in the US (ie even bigger than the recent opening for Inside Out 2, which leads 2024 so far).
But could there be hidden costs for Marvel Studios boss, Kevin Feige, in welcoming Reynolds’ anarchic anti-hero into the fold? The movie’s co-writers, Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, worked on the first two Deadpool movies and were responsible for many of the most outrageous gags; initially sidelined by the Disney powers that be, the pair managed to get themselves re-hired, in 2022.
The script they and Reynolds have put together apparently makes Feige part of the story. We already know, from the trailers, that Deadpool will quip that cocaine is “the only thing Feige said was off limits!” Such comments potentially undermine the authority of a hands-on producer who was once seen as untouchable and, for a certain breed of comic-book fan, god-like.
Back when Feige was overseeing the MCU’s hot streak, Fox, Sony and Warner Bros were desperate to ape his success. Now Feige is the one seemingly piggy-backing on other people’s ideas and the butt of wisecracks that mock everything about the family-friendly multiverse he’s created so far.
Meanwhile, there’s a tie-in between the new film and Aviation American gin, which Reynolds used to have a stake in (and still has financial links with). A series of limited-edition bottles for the new film show Deadpool welcoming everyone to the “Ginematic Universe”.
A rep from Disney declared that fans would now have a “chance to engage with the world of Deadpool in a whole new way”. We’re not in the milk and cookies zone, anymore.
What will be ‘the Deadpool effect’?
True, Disney’s MCU has never been 100% squeaky clean. Remember the polyamorous dolphins in Thor: Love and Thunder; the f-bomb in Guardians of the Galaxy 3 and the umpteen dirty jokes in WandaVision? And Deadpool, himself, isn’t 100% naughty. He has a cuddly and responsible side; among other things, he risks his life to save vulnerable kids. Still, the character’s amoral vulgarity will certainly cause some Mouse House loyalists to spit out their popcorn.
DisneyThe marketing campaign has played up a romantic link between Deadpool and Wolverine (Credit: Disney)
That Deadpool & Wolverine is the only MCU offering of the year could be read as proof that Disney has capitulated, entirely, to Deadpool/Reynolds’ louche brand of snark. And, by ridiculing their own brand, Marvel are arguably creating problems for future MCU endeavours.
We get it: adult material and self-mockery are all the rage when it comes to superheroes these days. As proof, see the surprise endurance of Sony’s Venom franchise and the high ratings of Prime Video show The Boys. But where does that leave the rest of Disney’s multiverse?
