The Drum: Could Deadpool save the MCU?

When Disney bought Fox in 2019, it not only absorbed a variety of beloved television mainstays (The Simpsons, Family Guy, Modern Family), boxset behemoths (Homeland, Atlanta, American Horror Story) and multimillion-dollar film franchises (Alien, Avatar, Home Alone), but the $70bn deal also saw a number of key Marvel properties return to the House of Mouse.

And now, amid the multiversal missteps of the MCU’s Phases four and five (including Majors issues with Kang), these one-time Fox-owned rights have found themselves lynchpins in Marvel Studios’ path back to profitability.

Indeed, the biggest news coming out of San Diego Comic-Con 2024 in the past week revolved around two former Fox properties. First came the subtitle for 2025’s The Fantastic Four movie (‘First Steps’) and then, the high-profile pivot of the Avengers’ fifth installment from The Kang Dynasty to Doomsday, with the head-spinning (and doubtless money-spinning) reveal that Robert Downey Jr would be playing arch villain Dr Doom. Oh, and the Russo brothers are back to direct.

But, more important still was the fact that Deadpool & Wolverine - Ryan Reynolds’ latest outing as the ‘Merc with a Mouth’ - topped the global box office on its opening weekend.

How was that bigger news than the prodigal son’s improbable return? Well, maybe it’s because of what this film represents for the stuttering MCU. Namely, a chance at redemption - thanks to one of its most irredeemable characters.

At a time when The Boys has seamlessly (though definitely not bloodlessly) satirized the state of politics and media in the US, Deadpool & Wolverine matters because it’s unafraid to acknowledge the MCU’s recent failures. In doing so, it reminds us of the importance of honesty–a superpower in today’s post-truth world, if ever there was one.

Therein lies the lesson for us all: don’t sweep it under the carpet - own your shit.

The honesty of Deadpool & Wolverine is refreshing because it’s not afraid to look back in order to move forward. In a nod to the old adage that those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it, the latest movie stuffed to the gills with characters, cameos and Easter Eggs, highlighting and heroing the good, the bad and the pretty damned ugly from across Marvel’s cinematic back catalog with love and affection. Part fan service, part guilty confession.

It’s not just the fact that it tells the truth; it’s how it does it.

Just because you messed up, you don’t have to grovel. Deadpool is more piss-taking than hand-wringing, and that’s an important nuance when it comes to how you accept your mistakes. Sure, it helps to have actors with the charisma of Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman steering the ship, but the gusto with which Deadpool wields the hatchet on the Marvel deadwood is unrelenting. What’s more, the freedom they’ve been given to poke fun at their own paymasters demonstrates an acceptance of culpability from those at the very top.

And yes, the marketing around the movie gives us more of the same - albeit with a slightly softer, more commercial edge. Whether remaining in character or appearing as themselves, the two stars’ chemistry and honesty have helped make this another winning campaign. First up is Ryan Reynolds’ Fathers’ Day content for Aviation Gin (Deadpool Edition), where Reynolds makes a gin-based cocktail known as ‘The Vasectomy’ - gently ribbing both the absurdly graphic nature of the movie’s fight injuries and the two 40-something dads that star in it. Spotify kept them both in costume to promote the Official Deadpool Playlist, with Deadpool’s plucky attempts at podcasting ruined by Wolverine’s trademark tetchiness - a reminder of how ill-equipped such a comic character would be for the real world.

Finally, you’ve got the sanctity of the movie theatre experience itself, where the boys went to town. Whether it’s the ‘innovative’ Wolverine popcorn bucket - designed by Deadpool in a nod towards the character’s canonical pansexuality - or the ‘Please turn off your phone’ pre-roll plea/threat, where the two openly flaunt Marvel’s ‘loose lips sink ships’ approach to spoilers. They know it’s silly, we know it’s silly - but it works.