REVIEW -- Deadpool & Wolverine (2024)

Deadpool & Wolverine is a 2024 American superhero film based on Marvel Comics featuring the characters Deadpool and Wolverine, produced by Marvel Studios, Maximum Effort, and 21 Laps Entertainment, and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. It is the 34th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and the sequel to Deadpool (2016) and Deadpool 2 (2018). The film is directed by Shawn Levy from a screenplay he wrote with Ryan Reynolds, Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick, and Zeb Wells. Reynolds and Hugh Jackman star as Deadpool and Wolverine, respectively, alongside Emma Corrin, Morena Baccarin, Rob Delaney, Leslie Uggams, Aaron Stanford, and Matthew Macfadyen in supporting roles. In the film, Deadpool is pulled from his quiet life by the Time Variance Authority (TVA) and he partners with a reluctant Wolverine on a journey to save his universe.

Development on a third Deadpool film began at 20th Century Fox by November 2016, but was placed on hold after the studio was acquired by Disney in March 2019. Control of the character was transferred to Marvel Studios, which began developing a new film with Reynolds. It integrates Deadpool from Fox's X-Men film series with the MCU and retains the R rating of the previous films, making it the first MCU film to have such a rating. Wendy Molyneux and Lizzie Molyneux-Logelin joined in November 2020 as writers. Reese and Wernick returned from the previous films for rewrites by March 2022, when Levy was hired as director. They, along with Reynolds and Wells, had difficulty figuring out the film's story until Jackman decided to reprise his role as Wolverine from the X-Men films in August 2022, alongside numerous actors from various non-MCU productions. Filming began in May 2023 at Pinewood Studios in England, with additional filming in Norfolk and at Bovingdon Film Studios. Production was suspended in July due to the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, but resumed in November and wrapped in January 2024. The film's title was revealed a month later.

Cast

• Ryan Reynolds as Wade Wilson / Deadpool
  Reynolds also portrays Nicepool, a long-haired, non-scarred variant of Wilson who lacks his healing factor, for which he is credited as "Gordon Reynolds".

• Hugh Jackman as James "Logan" Howlett / Wolverine
  Jackman also portrays numerous variants of Wolverine, including: one with the character's comics-accurate height of 5 feet 3 inches (160 cm); Wolverine's gambling alter-ego Patch, who wears an eyepatch and a white tuxedo; an Old Man Logan variant; a variant being crucified on a giant X, reminiscent of the cover of Uncanny X-Men (1981) #251; a variant wearing the original brown and tan costume from the comics; and an Age of Apocalypse variant with "glam rock-like" hair, one hand, and a black and red costume. For this role, Jackman regained his Guinness World Record for the "longest career as a live action Marvel character", which he first broke in 2019 and had been surpassed by other actors since.

• Emma Corrin as Cassandra Nova

• Matthew Macfadyen as Mr. Paradox

Reprising their roles from the previous Deadpool films are: Morena Baccarin as Vanessa Carlysle, Wilson's former fiancée, whose relationship with Wilson is further reinvented in the film according to Baccarin; Rob Delaney as Peter Wisdom, a car salesman alongside Wilson and a member of Wilson's X-Force team; Leslie Uggams as Blind Al, Wilson's blind elderly roommate; Karan Soni as Dopinder, a taxi driver and admirer of Wilson who serves as his de facto chauffeur; Brianna Hildebrand as Negasonic Teenage Warhead, a teenage member of the X-Men with the mutant power to detonate atomic bursts from her body; Shioli Kutsuna as Yukio, Negasonic Teenage Warhead's girlfriend and fellow X-Men member; Stefan Kapičić as the voice of Colossus; Randal Reeder as Buck; and Lewis Tan as Shatterstar, a mutant member of X-Force.

Inhabitants of the Void who form the resistance and are nicknamed the "Others" include: Dafne Keen as Laura / X-23 from Logan (2017); Jennifer Garner as Elektra Natchios from Daredevil (2003) and Elektra (2005); Wesley Snipes as Eric Brooks / Blade from the Blade film trilogy (1998–2004); Channing Tatum as Remy LeBeau / Gambit, who had been attached to star as the character in an unproduced Gambit film; and Chris Evans (who previously portrayed Steve Rogers / Captain America in the MCU) as Johnny Storm / Human Torch from Fantastic Four (2005) and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007). 

Jon Favreau reprises his MCU role of Harold "Happy" Hogan, along with Wunmi Mosaku as Hunter B-15 from the MCU television series Loki (2021–2023). Characters in the Void working for Nova include Aaron Stanford as John Allerdyce / Pyro, a mutant with the ability to manipulate fire, having a more comics-accurate costume over the ones he had worn in X2 (2003) and X-Men: The Last Stand (2006); Tyler Mane as Victor Creed / Sabretooth from X-Men (2000); Aaron W. Reed as Cain Marko / Juggernaut, resembling his appearance in X-Men: The Last Stand where he was portrayed by Vinnie Jones; Mike Waters as Frederick Dukes / Blob; and Billy Clements as the Russian. Characters portrayed by undisclosed actors include Mortimer Toynbee / Toad, Yuriko Oyama / Lady Deathstrike, Callisto, Azazel, Bullseye, and Betsy Braddock / Psylocke.

The film features several variants of Deadpool, including: dog actor Peggy as Mary Puppins / Dogpool; Reynolds' wife Blake Lively as the voice of Ladypool, with an uncredited stuntwoman physically portraying the character; Reynolds and Lively's children Inez and Olin Reynolds as Kidpool and Babypool, respectively; Nathan Fillion as the voice of Headpool; Matthew McConaughey as the voice of Cowboypool; Wrexham A.F.C. player Paul Mullin as Welshpool; and Reynolds' stunt double Alex Kyshkovych as Canadapool. Deadpool variants played by undisclosed actors include Watari / The Fool, Deadpool 2099, Golden Age Deadpool, Zenpool, Piratepool, and a Welsh Knightpool. Reynolds' dance double Nick Pauley performs a dance number as the Deadpool of Earth-10005 in the film's opening credits, and is billed as "Dancepool".

Chris Hemsworth appears as Thor through repurposed archival footage from Thor: The Dark World (2013), while a version of the Hulk appears fighting a variant of Wolverine. Cameo appearances include Henry Cavill as a Wolverine variant dubbed "Cavillrine", Wrexham A.F.C. player Ollie Palmer as a bar attendee, and Greg Hemphill as a bartender. Rob McElhenney filmed scenes as a TVA soldier, but his role was cut.

Plot

** SPOILER WARNING **

In 2018, Wade Wilson uses Cable's time-traveling device to travel from his timeline, Earth-10005, to Earth-616, the "Sacred Timeline", where he meets Happy Hogan and requests to join the Avengers, but he is rejected.

Six years later, Wade has retired from being the masked mercenary known as Deadpool and is working as a used-car salesman after breaking up with his girlfriend Vanessa Carlysle. During his birthday party, the Time Variance Authority (TVA) captures Wade and brings him to Mr. Paradox, who offers him a place on Earth-616. However, Paradox also reveals that Wade's timeline is deteriorating as a result of the death it's stabilizing "anchor being", James "Logan" Howlett. Paradox details his plans to use the "Time Ripper", a device he developed to mercy kill timelines, to prematurely destroy Wade's timeline. Convinced that his universe’s Logan could still be alive, Wade steals Paradox's TemPad and travels to Logan’s gravesite, only to discover his rotting corpse. Using Logan’s Adamantium skeleton, Wade kills the TVA agents pursuing him before travelling the multiverse to find a variant of Logan to save his timeline.

After encountering various Logan variants, Wade takes one back to the TVA, where he learns that this particular Logan is considered the worst Wolverine in the multiverse. After an argument, during which Wade learns that Paradox is acting without the knowledge of his superiors, Paradox prunes Wade and Logan into the Void. There, Wade and Logan fight before they and Johnny Storm are captured and taken to Cassandra Nova, the twin sister of X-Men leader Charles Xavier. Cassandra, who was pruned as an infant but made a deal with the TVA to stay willingly in the Void, kills Johnny and leaves Wade and Logan to be consumed by Alioth, although they manage to escape.

Logan and Wade meet a variant of Wade called "Nicepool", who gives them a car and points them to the Void's borderlands, where the resistance against Cassandra is located. However, Logan chastises Wade for hiding the fact that he is unable to fix Logan's timeline, leading to a fight that leaves them both unconscious. Laura drives them to the borderlands, where they meet resistance members Elektra Natchios, Blade, and Gambit. Wade proposes an alliance with resistance, dubbed the "Others" by Wade, to fight Cassandra. Logan refuses to cooperate, but eventually relents after a conversation with Laura about his inability to save the X-Men in his universe. Wade, Logan, and the Others go to confront Cassandra, and manage to block her powers by placing Juggernaut's helmet on her head. However, Cassandra is betrayed and injured by her henchman Pyro on behalf of Paradox. Logan convinces Wade to remove the helmet, allowing Cassandra to heal and open a portal back to Wade's timeline.

Arriving on Earth-10005, Wade and Logan find that Paradox has begun to use the Time Ripper. Cassandra–learning Paradox's plan from Pyro before executing him–arrives through another portal and kidnaps Paradox. She plans to take control of the Time Ripper to destroy all timelines, leaving only the Void, as revenge for Paradox's betrayal. Cassandra summons an army of Deadpool variants that battle Wade and Logan, but Wade's friend Peter Wisdom arrives and convinces them all to retreat. Paradox tells Wade and Logan that one can disrupt the power flow of the Time Ripper. Using their bodies as conductors, Wade and Logan destroy the Time Ripper, killing Cassandra. Paradox is then arrested by Hunter B-15, who heads the TVA.

B-15 reveals that Wade and Logan's actions have stopped Wade's timeline from deteriorating. Wade requests B-15 free the Others from the Void, before asking if it is possible to rewrite the history of Logan's timeline. B-15 replies that it was his history that made Logan the hero needed to stop Cassandra and there is nothing to fix. Logan, who wishes to retire and live a peaceful life, is taken by Wade to meet his friends, along with Laura. On Logan's encouragement, Wade reconciles with Vanessa.

The Verdict: 

Starting out, there would be many viewers who will be relieved to know that this film does NOT tarnish the demise of James "Logan" Howlett at the end of Logan, which is regarded by many filmgoers as the "greatest ending in history". That was something even Kevin Feige was hesitant to undo and advised Hugh Jackman to reconsider his return to reprise the character until Ryan Reynolds and Jackman assured him that the Wolverine appearing this film was different than that one. That's one instance where the current ongoing Multiverse Saga proved to be highly beneficial in terms of timing. 

Meanwhile, on the other hand, I could see others being disappointed after finding out that this film isn't the formal introduction of the X-Men into the Marvel Cinematic Universe properly following their tease during the mid-credits of The Marvels. I feel that was a wise decision as you don't want to introduce the X-Men into a film like this where they would play mostly second fiddle to the comedy and Deadpool's various antics, along with continuing the trend of Wolverine hogging the spotlight from the rest of the X-Men. That was something that most fans look back onto the Fox X-Men films with currently with contempt and disdain, despite the fact that Wolverine was the one who got a lot of them interested and engaged into those films in the first place, but I digress... 

I thought the TVA (Time Variance Authority) came across a lot more interesting in this film than in both seasons of Loki combined if I were to be perfectly honest. For clarification, this film is clearly set AFTER the events of Loki Season Two, given the fact that Hunter B-15 is in charge of the TVA following the departures of both Ravonna Renslayer and Mobius M. Mobius. 

This film finds Deadpool in a bit of a slump following his time travel hijinks at the end of Deadpool 2 where he reversed his girlfriend Vanessa's death and the deaths of all of his friends thanks to Cable's device that he stole. He even went as far as hoping to be recruited for the Avengers, but he was rejected by Happy Hogan (with Jon Faverau reprising that role in the first of many cameos in this film) to his dismay. The TVA's Mr. Paradox offers Deadpool a place on Earth-616, only to find out that his timeline is deteriorating due to the death of its stabilizing "anchor"  - Wolverine. 

Deadpool goes off to Logan's gravesite to prove that Wolverine isn't dead and digs up his corpse to find out that he is in fact actually still dead, decomposing corpse and all. He opens this film in a hilarious fashion using Logan's corpse as a weapon to slaughter the TVA's goons that are on his tail now that we've caught up to where the film began. 

After they are all dead, Wade goes off to multiple timelines and universes in search for a replacement Wolverine for his own dying timeline. This is fun for multiple reasons as we get a few amusing variants of Wolverine that have appeared in Marvel Comics throughout his assorted comic book history: 

• Short King (obviously making fun of the critiques against Hugh Jackman's heigh being roughly 6'2" when Wolverine is depicted in comics typically as 5'3" height)

• Weapon Omega (Age of Apocalypse timeline)

• Patch (possibly in Madripoor as well)

• Old Man Logan (odd given Logan was heavily influenced by this one)

• Crucified Logan (Marc Silvestri's cover art on Uncanny X-Men #251)

• Hulk vs. Wolverine (The Incredible Hulk #180) with Hulk reflected in claws like Todd McFarlane's cover of The Incredible Hulk #340

• The Cavillrine (a hilarious fan casting of Henry Cavill as Logan)

Wade settles for a seemingly "normal" Logan who is drinking himself into a stupor in a shady bar and takes him back to the TVA, only to find out that this particular Wolverine is the worst one out of entirety of the Multiverse for reason. Mr. Paradox is quickly revealed to be another rogue agent on his own in the TVA with his plans to use his "Time Ripper" device to mercy kill timelines. He "prunes" Deadpool and Wolverine before they could attack him, thus sending them to the Void. 

For those who didn't watch Loki Seasons One and Two, the TVA have the ability to "prune" individuals to the Void, which was originally understood to be erasing anyone and anything who came into contact into the TVA's unique cattle prod weapons from the Sacred Timeline when it was proved that fact to be false. Deadpool specifically cites Loki Season One, Episode Five to directly call back to this and the Alioth, AKA the entity that roams throughout the Void to consume the variants that are sent there. I thought it was a little confusing that the Void is now composed of other variants and individuals that aren't entirely Loki variants like we were made to believe from Loki Season One. Instead, this film paints the picture with all of those Loki variants that we were introduced to that were nowhere to be found. 

There were some TOTALLY INSANE cameos in terms of the heroes that Deadpool and Wolverine align themselves with in this film. I tip my hat to both Ryan Reynolds and Marvel Studios being able to make these happen:

• Chris Evans as NOT Captain America/Steve Rogers, but as Johnny Storm/Human Torch

• Wesley Snipes as Blade (He makes several mentions that he's the only and best one)

• Jennifer Garner as Elektra (She mentions Daredevil died off-screen in the Void)

• Channing Tatum as Gambit (Yes, really. Tatum FINALLY got to play this character after begging and pleading for the opportunity since X-Men: The Last Stand along with his repeated failed attempts to make a Gambit spin-off film which died once Disney bought Fox)

• - Dafne Keen as X-23/Laura Kinney (Obviously grown up. Laura and this film's Logan share a scene together but I was left wishing that we got more her in this film.

As per request by Deadpool, the "Others" (the name of the team that Wade coined for them) here were released from the Void by Hunter B-15 after Nova was defeated. 

Speaking of those variants, the viewers are treated to multiple former X-Men and other Fox Marvel-oriented film villains showing up in the Void: 

• Toad (X-Men)

• Sabretooth (X-Men; X-Men Origins: Wolverine)

• Lady Deathstrike (X2 - X-Men United)

• Pyro (X2 - X-Men United & X-Men: The Last Stand)

• Azazel (X-Men: First Class)

• Juggernaut (X-Men: The Last Stand & Deadpool 2; Different actor than his X-Men: The Last Stand appearance when he was voiced by Reynolds in Deadpool 2)

• Blob (X-Men: Origins Wolverine)

• The Russian (The Punisher)

• Psylocke (X-Men: Apocalypse; Interesting note that she's not portrayed by Olivia Munn this time around)

All of them are soldiers recruited to work under the employ of this film's big bad, Cassandra Nova. 

For the record, Cassandra Nova is an EXTREMELY powerful character in Marvel Comics. My only gripe with her in this film is the inconsistent nature of how powerful this portrayal was at times. It felt like this film wanted to keep her just powerful enough not to completely dominate this film, when it would have been very easy to paint her as an Avengers-level threat like her comic book counterpart. It felt like the writing here was gun shy in terms of portraying her too powerful for this narrative. I already see people comparing her to Scarlet Witch in Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness and that's a fair assessment.

I wouldn't be surprised if the writers quickly realized that she should be able to effortlessly overpower Deadpool and Wolverine with ease, so that's why they opted for the minor subplot/strategy to obtain Juggernaut's helmet to block/neutralize her powers. Her role reversal doesn't really add up when she shifts into being this film's "final boss" after she turned her attention on Mr. Paradox (and Pyro's) betrayal. This saw Nova take Mr. Paradox's Time Ripper as her own. Instead of setting her sights on taking over the TVA, Cassandra Nova opts to destroy ALL timelines, leaving only the Void were she already reigns supreme. Why settle for a barren wasteland like the Void, when she could control every and any timeline/universe? It felt like Cassandra Nova was thinking far too small with her Saturday morning cartoon supervillain plans that she didn't even consider using this access to the Multiverse to kill and torture any and all variants of Charles Xavier to her hearts' content. Once again, that was a very minor gripe with her character direction in this film.

So I bet you're wondering why is "this" Wolverine is regarded as the worst across the Multiverse? It is revealed after Cassandra Nova dives into his mind that he abandoned the X-Men and left them to die in his universe. By the time he got back, the mutant hating humans had already slaughtered them all by some unknown means, but Wolverine retaliated by killing them all. I felt that it was implied between the lines that he went into some sort of a berserker rage on their killers and didn't stop there. He confesses to Deadpool later in the film that he continues wearing the costume to honor the fallen X-Men that he abandoned. 

If I were to nit-pick Cassandra Nova's plans even more, it would have child's play for her to turn Wolverine lose onto Deadpool and the Others, especially after triggering his berserker rage. That could have made for an interesting skirmish, especially if it came down to X-23 and Deadpool having to put him down. I could understand why that possibly was cut out of this film's script though as it would have required that this Wolverine was the same one that Laura/X-23 had a previous connection to and we would be spitting on the memory of that character's perfect demise. 

As much as the long sleeves annoyed the hell out of me on this version of Wolverine's costume, I won't deny that I geeked the hell out seeing him pull down the cowl to complete the look in the third act. I love that they worked out removing the sleeves to match too. It's a shame that it took 20+ years to see that in live-action though, but at least Hugh Jackman was able to do it as the icing on the cake to his lengthy tenure as the character. 

Much like the two previous Deadpool movies and the X-Men universe as a whole under the 20th Century Fox banner, this film is honestly a mess, but it's a beautiful disaster for all intents and purposes. What makes these Deadpool movies fun and exciting to watch is all of the chaos. Deadpool isn't one of those heroes who has all of his shit together and by no means the audiences are supposed to be able to grasp all of this either. That's another reason why I was so relieved when it was apparent that this film wasn't going to burdened with the responsibility of having to setup the next big event/conflict for this Multiverse Saga going forward. I think skeptics and critics should be happy that this film goes at length to make fun of how the Multiverse Saga isn't working, thus providing viewers with another example of their own self-awareness and to show that the MCU isn't afraid of making fun of itself (something we saw back in She-Hulk: Attorney At Law's highly criticized finale for being too on the nose with its 4th wall breaking).

Deadpool and Wolverine's skirmishes and brawls throughout this film were fun to watch, but by the second time, I was wondering what was the point where they weren't targeting vitals and they both know that the other has a healing factor. I didn't get why Logan didn't just lob off Deadpool's head off like he did to Sabretooth or at least cut off his wrists so he couldn't use his adamantium swords. It just felt like fighting for nothing once that realization kicked in.

Cassandra Nova sends an army of Deadpool variants (AKA the Deadpool Corps) to keep Wade and Logan preoccupied but this ends up being more hilarious from the cameos and gags among the Deadpool variants (Lady Deadpool, Kid Pool, Baby Pool, Head Pool, and others making appearances), including Wade using Nicepool (another Deadpool variant who is extremely nice, kind, and handsome since he resembles Reynolds' normal appearance, but lacks a healing factor) as a human shield to protect himself against the incoming gunfire. This proves to be an intentional means to throw Nicepool into harm's way by getting him killed for he could inherit Nicepool's pet, Dogpool, into his care. Wade and Logan slaughter all of the Deadpool Corps, only for them to regenerate (since they all have one, unlike Nicepool) to their dismay. That's when Deadpool's best friend, Peter Wisdom, shows up and convinces the Deadpool Corps to stand down. If it were that easy, then I don't get how and why Cassandra Nova was able to convince them to work together against "Deadpool Prime" in the first place. 

I personally found the ending to be rather predicable (and a tad lazy), especially given the setup for either Deadpool or Wolverine to sacrifice themselves to interrupt the flow of the Time Ripper to destroy it. It was essentially the same concept as the first Guardians of the Galaxy film where all of the Guardians worked together to harness and wield the power of the Power Stone against Ronan the Accuser. In either case, the interruption of the flow was enough to kill Cassandra Nova who was still hooked up to it in the process. 

After the TVA arrives to detain Mr. Paradox for his rogue exploits in this film, Deadpool asks Hunter B-15 to fix Logan's timeline but she deems that there's nothing to fix as his history made him into the hero he is currently. The film ends like how it started with a party at Deadpool's house among his friends and family, but he's joined with Laura and Wolverine, who urges Wade to make amends with Vanessa about their relationship. 

I thought that was a little messed up that Blade, Gambit, nor Elektra were invited to the party at the end, but it was a miracle that their short cameos happened in this film in the first place, so I can give that minor gripe a pass to be quite honest. By that point in this film, I got the vibe of this film was going, "Okay, okay. You've seen enough. Let's send y'all home now." I can't give this film a pass in the regard that this film really doesn't resolve anything in terms of wrapping up the Fox X-Men universe in any capacity. It just leaves the door wide open for more and that decision could come back to haunt them in the long haul. 

Things that I'm GLAD this film didn't do:

Revive James "Logan" Howlette from Logan. If anything, I think Marvel Studios should be applauded for not doing like how comic books typically do and immediately undo character deaths and instantly revive characters whenever convenient or when a new creative team takes over a book or a continuity is reset/relaunched. It's beyond meme-worthy at this point as comic books are the only medium where death isn't permanent. 

To add to that point, I'm glad that they didn't attempt to adapt the Return of Wolverine 2018 storyline, where Logan was resurrected with the ability to superheat his claws that severely drain his stamina in the process. (Laughs) I was honestly concerned that previously mentioned storyline would be relevant when I saw Target retail stores restocking tons of those figures from the Bonebreaker (Build-a-Figure) Marvel Legends wave that was deeply discounted during the holidays at the tail end of 2023. I am relieved that proved to be a false assumption. 

There are NO mid nor post-credits teasers for any future MCU releases. The video shown during the credits was merely a blooper reel from across the 20th Century Fox era of superhero films that was a touching tribute to that era of superhero films. Meanwhile, the post credits scene was merely a follow-up to an earlier gag in the film, where Deadpool provides proof that he wasn't responsible for getting Johnny Storm killed as Johnny actually said all of those unsavory things about Cassandra Nova and Deadpool wasn't just putting words in his mouth.