Ryan Reynolds Unveils Hilarious ‘Deadpool 2’ Image — Did He Just Hint At A Potential Release Date?
No film has surprised the masses more in 2016 than Deadpool. Released to the public via laugh-inducing, cost-effective advertising — most of which was orchestrated by Ryan Reynolds himself on social media — the film exploded at the box office and raked in $781.6 million on a $58 million budget. It became a blockbuster success and introduced the world to a new, unconventional superhero.
When you consider that Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice only made $872.7 million during its cinematic run, the vast success of this small superhero film speaks for itself. Not bad for a movie, or a controversial character, that was deemed unfilmable a few years ago.
The success has come and gone, Deadpool shattered records and expectations, and Fox has now confirmed a sequel is in the works. Deadpool 2 is very much moving forward, and the development of the film is underway. Fans can probably expect more zany shenanigans from Ryan Reynolds and the crew as they start work and promotion on a project that is very dear to their hearts — and that’s just what happened.
This morning, Reynolds set tongues wagging by posting a hilarious piece of Deadpool 2 fan art, one that might just hint at a potential release date.
Reynolds posted the fan poster on his Instagram page. The image, which was created by artist Mutant101, shows Deadpool defacing a men’s bathroom sign by drawing Wolverine hair and claws on one figure, an “X” on the wheelchair of another (thus turning the second figure into Professor X), and renaming the word “Men” to “X-Men.” Where the imagery is typical Deadpool toilet humor (pun intended) and will have people chuckling as the image goes viral, the key information is in the smaller, less obvious details.
The title on the image states Deadpool: Number Two. Where this could be yet another toilet reference, this could also suggest a realistic title at some point in the future and is in keeping with Deadpool’s humor. The poster also states that the film might be ready for release in 2018. Despite being two years away, it’s highly plausible for a potential release date. Ryan Reynolds might only be hinting at this, and nothing is confirmed yet, but it seems like a good use of social media to put the feelers out. People want Deadpool 2 — the box office from the original confirmed that — so might this be the first promotion for the sequel? Only time will tell.
With X-Men: Apocalypse just finishing it cinematic run, Fox now has a clean slate when it comes to X-Men-related movies. Wolverine 3 is currently the only scheduled release on their calendar since Gambit recently vacated its October 2016 release date. The studio also has two Marvel movies scheduled for March 2, 2018, and June 29, 2018, neither of which have been named. Two years can pass in the blink of an eye in Hollywood, and let’s not forget that Captain America: Civil War and Apocalypse were both released two years after their predecessors. With Deadpool garnering the success it had, it makes sense that Fox would utilize one of these dates for the sequel and capitalize on that.
Either date would work, but the March date means Deadpool 2 wouldn’t face much competition from other movies. It’s unlikely, but the head honchos at Fox may still see Deadpool as a one-off, a fluke, and will want to make sure their investment is secure. Fox is likely to release a more accessible, family-friendly blockbuster for the June slot to take advantage of the busy summer season. No films are confirmed yet, but maybe New Mutants, X-Force, or even Gambit could slot in here should the latter not fit into their 2017 plans.
Either way, Deadpool 2 is heading into production, and the fans couldn’t be happier. Aside from the mystery that currently surrounds the project, Deadpool’s on-screen confession during the end credits of the first film all but confirms Cable’s involvement. Cable is a powerful mutant from the future who quickly tires of Deadpool’s foolish shenanigans, which often results in much hilarity. Their interactions eventually form the basis of the love/hate relationship between the two. His appearance could further link the Deadpool franchise to the X-Men franchise too, since he is Cyclops’ future son.
According to Screen Rant, Deadpool 2 could also introduce Domino. This is strictly rumor at present, but some of the finer details of Deadpool’s backstory make this possible. Domino is a member of the X-Force, a faction in the Cable & Deadpool comic book series. The group is led by Wolverine, and Domino is also Cable’s on-again-off-again lover. Possibly the biggest detail is a frankly simple one, though: Domino first appeared in the comic books as a guise of Copycat (AKA Vanessa Geraldine Carlysle), a fellow mutant. While she didn’t take this persona in the first movie, Morena Baccarin portrayed Vanessa in Deadpool. It’ll be interesting to see if the mythology comes into play for the sequel, which would require Vanessa to adopt some superpowers in order to impersonate Domino.
Regardless, Deadpool 2 is already gaining some attention. While it makes sense to expand Deadpool’s world and officially introduce him into the X-Men universe and give Fox the option to feature him in future collaborations, they now have the time and finances to do so at a steady pace. There’s no need to rush. Fox certainly have a successful franchise they didn’t see coming, so let’s hope they can make the most of it.
Deadpool 2 has yet to obtain an official release date, but Deadpool is now available on Blu-ray and DVD.
[Image via 20th Century Fox]
