Ryan Reynold’s Deadpool has always been Marvel’s black sheep. As the fourth-wall-breaking Merc with a Mouth, the character exists on the fringes of Marvel storytelling. He’s just self-aware enough to poke fun at the absurdity of his world, and he puts his own spin on the tropes that define superhero cinema. That’s part of what makes his films so entertaining, and as Deadpool officially makes his way into the true MCU, it’s safe to expect a few surprises.
Deadpool & Wolverine might be Marvel’s most anticipated project in years. It’s also one of the most important, as it’s embracing and possibly fixing the multiverse. Reynolds will team up with X-Men star Hugh Jackman on a romp through Marvel’s multiverse, and fans are already expecting a few cameos from other members of defunct Marvel franchises. Many also expect Deadpool & Wolverine to deliver a satisfying set-up for Secret Wars, the upcoming crossover event that could reset the MCU for good.
Reynolds, however, is doing what he can to manage expectations. He’s even hidden a secret message (via QR code) in the film’s latest promo. The new clip is effectively a disclaimer that reveals just how far Deadpool & Wolverine will diverge from one of the MCU’s most infamous trends.
Deadpool & Wolverine, Reynolds joked, is “as paper-thin as a sequel to Battlefield Earth.” Unlike most MCU entries, the film doesn’t have much of an agenda — save to “make enemies with Disney” and “completely sidestep Marvel’s mandated after-credits sequence, which if you haven’t figured it out yet, is always just a commercial for another movie which will invariably end with a commercial for another movie.”
Deadpool 3 wouldn’t be the first MCU project without an end credits stinger. While Black Panther: Wakanda Forever completed its epilogue in a sweet mid-credits moment, it chose not to set the stage for the next Marvel project with a post-credits scene. There’s also Avengers: Endgame, which went without any after-credits set-up. Those films represented the end of Marvel eras, so it made sense to keep their stories contained. Deadpool 3 could follow a similar blueprint. Given audience expectations for the film, though, is a self-contained story even possible? Or will Deadpool 3 rewrite the multiverse so much that it will be the end of an era too?
There’s every chance Reynolds’ disclaimer isn’t genuine, but what if it is? It’s true that Marvel’s credit sequences have become synonymous with the MCU itself, but the tradition isn’t without its flaws. Few of Marvel’s latest stingers have actually paid off in a satisfying way, and a bevy of future heroes and villains are still waiting in the wings after being introduced at the tail end of a random film. There’s enough for Marvel to worry about without Deadpool & Wolverine adding to its plate, so maybe a self-contained story is the best bet for this stage of the MCU.
