Since Disney acquired 20th Century Fox, almost no character has come with more anticipation than Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool. The anti-hero has seen a spike in popularity due to rumors that he would make his debut in Doctor Strange: In the Multiverse of Madness.
When the Doctor Strange 2 poster was released with the Super Bowl trailer, fans started to believe that it was the poster for the movie. Thanks to the Andrew Garfield incident from Spider-Man: No Way Home, there was no way to tell if Reynolds was lying when he denied that he was in the movie.
When the movie was released, fans saw no sign of the Merc with a Mouth in Doctor Strange 2, leaving his debut for another project down the road. A new report suggests that this may not have always been the case.
Deadpool Almost in Doctor Strange 2?
WARNING: The post contains spoilers ahead!
According to James Clement of The Weekly Planet, the post-credits scene of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was going to include a scene of Ryan Reynolds’ character, Deadpool a.k.a. the Merc with a Mouth.
Clement was told by one of his sources that Baron Mordo’s scenes were cut from the final version of the film. He mentioned a few other characters, including Michael Fassbender’s Magneto, at the end of his remarks:
James Clement: “So somebody sent me a list of five characters that were going to be in this movie that was cut… So apparently, yeah, the Wanda killing MCU Mordo, that was real. That was going to happen. Michael Fassbender was going to turn up as Magneto… I said [to my source], ‘Were any of these filmed?’ And this person said, ‘Filmed but ultimately cut from the theatrical version,’ which is what my source relates… Balder the Brave as mentioned, though not given a name… Ghost Rider, which is very interesting as a member of the Illuminati…”
Nick Mason: “Oh, he was going to be in the Illuminati?”
James Clement: “Yeah, I guess? He was going to fight Wanda and probably die… and Deadpool was going to be in the post-credits scene.”
Doctor Strange 2 was close to having another X-Man.
Doctor Strange 2’s second post-credits scene showed Bruce Campbell’s Pizza Poppa being freed from his spell, but the first one introduced fans to Charlie Theron’s Clea as she and Strange looked ahead to the Dark Dimension. It’s hard to say if these rumors are true, but it’s cool to imagine what could have been.
Maybe Wade Wilson was the one who helped Campbell get out of his shell? He might have been in his own scene, breaking the fourth wall and commenting on the Multiversal madness. It’s possible that 2009’s X-Men Origins: Wolverine Wade was able to kill him again because of the version of Deadpool found in the MCU.
It’s not possible to tell how the post-credits scene would have been introduced, since he’s confirmed to be sticking around the MCU for a while. The anti-hero was in discussions for an appearance in Doctor Strange 2 at one point, giving credence to the report.
Even though he didn’t show up in this movie, his ultimate debut is one that has the entire MCU fandom giddy with excitement.