Many fans expected Deadpool & Wolverine to push Marvel’s Multiverse Saga into its next phase. For all its Easter eggs and cameos, though, Marvel’s latest outing was more about closing a bygone chapter than carving out the future. However, the film does tease one minor revelation that could set up a big moment in Avengers: Secret Wars. Spoilers ahead for Deadpool & Wolverine.
Deadpool & Wolverine mostly focuses on the duo’s trip to the Void and back, but before Wade Wilson teams up with Logan, he gets a small peek at his future. At Time Variance Authority HQ he meets Mr. Paradox, a TVA agent with a dubious agenda. He wants to prune Deadpool’s decaying timeline, Earth-10005, and send him to the Sacred Timeline as a consolation prize. He’ll be leaving all his loved ones to perish by pruning, but Paradox tries to sweeten the deal with the best leverage he has: the Avengers.
Paradox shows Wade visions of a possible future in Earth-616, in which he gets his big wish and joins the Avengers. It may not be all sunshine and rainbows, though, as one future vision may show his possible demise. Wade is seen with Thor after a massive battle, suit torn to ribbons. Thor is cradling him, shedding tears for what must have been a noble sacrifice.
“Why is Thor crying?” Wade asks Paradox. That question becomes one of Deadpool & Wolverine’s most consistent running jokes, but we never get a clear answer; it’s just something that happens in the “distant future.” When and where Deadpool will officially meet his end is a mystery for another day, but Reynolds at least is happy to dangle the truth in front of fans.
“I know why Thor was crying,” Reynolds wrote on Twitter, alongside a picture of the scene. “I can’t unknow it.”
Reynolds’ post comes just a week after Deadpool & Wolverine hit theaters, but with so much of the film already spoiled online, he’s clearly got no qualms teasing one of its biggest mysteries. It’s safe to assume Deadpool’s fate will remain a mystery until the Avengers finally re-assemble in a future film. Our mouthy anti-hero could pop up either in Avengers: Doomsday or its follow-up, Secret Wars. But even if he does get the chance to fight alongside the Avengers — and even sacrifice himself for them — will it really be as big a moment as Deadpool & Wolverine is making it out to be?
One of the movie’s bigger issues was its lack of stakes. Wade’s entire world is in jeopardy, but you never doubt that he’ll find a way to save the day. The good guys always win in superhero movies, of course, but they usually take big risks and make huge sacrifices to achieve victory.
Deadpool is not a character that adheres well to that trend. His regenerating powers make any physical sacrifice null and void, as we see at the end of Deadpool & Wolverine. Even his battles against Wolverine, whose powers match his, got old fast. So if this sacrifice with Thor is actually destined to happen, how does Marvel plan to make it meaningful? It’ll be tricky with a character as malleable as Deadpool, and given how much money he makes Marvel, it’s hard to believe the franchise would be prepared to let him go for good. We won’t have our answer for a while, but maybe this scene is better as a throwaway gag than an actual tease for Secret Wars.
