With the constant stream of superhero movies comes the risk of alienating the loyal fans. Sometimes, the studios nail it, they send the smiling fans home happy, and they reap the major financial rewards. On the flip-side, some films fall at the first hurdle and leave a rotten taste in the mouth of the people who pay to see the heroes they worship. To certain extremes, Deadpool is one of the films that many expected to run this risk, but the star of the show, Ryan Reynolds, has stepped up to quash the fears, and declare that Deadpool will not disappoint.
The fears extend from Deadpool’s previous “outing” in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, a film that saw the merc with a mouth stripped of his dignity and turned into a silent, walking mutant. With his mouth sealed shut and given several powers that no fan would ever associate with the character, many feared events could repeat themselves in the coming movie. Reynolds would contest these worries in an exclusive interview with Total Film.
“There’s something very proprietorial and very personal about it for me. I know what I can put on screen, and I know what I’ve put on screen is something that would make any fanboy proud. All anyone cares about in this process is making Deadpool work as much for the fanboys as it does for the uninitiated. I can’t wait to unleash it. We’re so, so psyched. You’re definitely going to be happy, that much I can promise…”
Ryan Reynolds is in a unique position. Many will remember his ill-fated casting as Hal Jordan in Green Lantern back in 2011, a film that received negative reviews on release. Fans blasted the movie for various reasons and a possible sequel was immediately cancelled. A reboot is planned in due course in order to re-establish the character before the Justice League movies make their debut, but Reynolds obviously has some experience with fan backlash. In a recent interview with Movie Pilot, the actor would discuss his experiences on Green Lantern. He doesn’t regret being involved in the process — he would meet his future wife, Blake Lively, on set — but admits some things could have been done better considering the budget in place. He used these valuable lessons when preparing for Deadpool.
Knowledge and experience speak for themselves, and his comments above hold much more weight since he’s looking to appease the hardest part of playing a superhero — positive fan reception. Reynolds knows how they can react, he’s seen the negative side of it before, and being one of a few actors to have worked for both DC and Marvel entities, he seems positive about his performance. Reynolds has a passion for the character, something that was obvious years ago when he was struggling to find a studio to develop the film, and it clearly shows in the early sneak peeks and trailers.
The biggest factor for Deadpool is its mature rating. Cinema Blend confirmed that the film was rated R earlier this week, for strong violence and language throughout, sexual content and graphic nudity. Now, Marvel has primarily been PG-13 to this point, and although there is a major clamouring for an adult superhero movie, its not tried and tested to the masses in large cinemas. Remember, family fare is money, so for 20th Century Fox to take a gamble was always going to raise an eyebrow.
But what do you expect from Deadpool himself? The comics are hardly family friendly, so the fact that 20th Century Fox have appealed to the loyal fans by adhering to the material should show promise. As Reynolds said himself, he knows what he put on the screen, and it was put there with utmost passion and appreciation for the source material. He also said we won’t be disappointed, and who are we to disbelieve him? After all, it took him years to see Deadpool appear on screen as he intended, he knows the character, and he knows how the fans will react if he portrays Deadpool in any other way than intended. Will he pull it off? We shall see when the film drops next month.
Directed by Tim Miller and starring Reynolds, Morena Baccarin, Ed Skrein, Gina Carano, and Brianna Hildebrand, Deadpool opens worldwide on February 10, 2016.
[Image via 20th Century Fox]