Warning: This article contains spoilers for Deadpool & Wolverine.
Summary
Deadpool & Wolverinefeatured a number of surprising cameos, including Henry Cavill as Wolverine, allowing for Wade Wilson to make a hilarious joke at the expense ofMarvel’srival studio.Deadpool & Wolverinehas seen massive success since its recent release and has helped to get the MCU back on track following a shaky few years afterAvengers: Endgame. FollowingDeadpool & Wolverine’sending, its unclear when Wade Wilson or Logan will return to the MCU, but the film’s success makes that happening essentially guaranteed.
Deadpool & Wolverineincludes a huge number of Easter eggs, making it somewhat hard to keep track of all of them. However, Henry Cavill appearing as Wolverine was a particularly memorable moment, even compared to the high bar set by otherDeadpool & Wolverinecameos, setting up a great joke for viewers that know Cavill’s history of playing a different superhero for a different movie studio. The joke also works by not dragging Zack Snyder into things, instead opting to highlight the failings of Warner Bros. and how they handled Henry Cavill as Superman and the face of the DCEU.
Deadpool & Wolverine’s Henry Cavill Superman Joke Doesn’t Target Zack Snyder
It’s easy to point fingers at Zack Snyder’s depiction of the Man of Steel, and his vision for the DCEU, as one of the reasons that the universe failed, but Warner Brothers is also to blame, and could be argued even more so.
InDeadpool & Wolverine, there is a montage of Wade Wilson going through the multiverse in search of a new Wolverine to replace the one who died in his universe. One of the universes he stumbles upon plays on thecasting rumors of Henry Cavill being the MCU Wolverinethat have existed for years, making the fan hope a reality in the movie.In classic Deadpool fashion, the antihero is very excited about Henry Cavill being Wolverine, and takes shots at Warner Brothers and their treatment of him as Superman for the DCEU, saying they could treat him better"than the studio down the street."
Henry Cavill had a turbulent history as Superman for the DCEU, never properly getting a sequel film and being relegated to the background following the failure ofJustice Leaguein 2017. It’s easy to point fingers at Zack Snyder’s depiction of the Man of Steel, and his vision for the DCEU, as one of the reasons that the universe failed - but focusing on him alone instead of Warner Bros avoids looking at the bigger picture. Focusing the joke on the studio instead of Snyder evades this, and highlights how Warner Bros. wasted such a good casting in Cavill.
Deadpool & Wolverine Is Right, Zack Snyder Did His Best By Henry Cavill’s Superman
Zack Snyder’s take on Superman and other iconic DC characters was definitely divisive, but he always seemed to want to do right by the actors who played them, showing them the upmost respect. This approach doesn’t mirror Warner Bros' own, especially when looking at Cavill and his version of Superman.Never giving Cavill a proper follow-up toJustice Leagueand having the character become a parade of faceless cameos did Superman more disservice than Snyder ever did.By the time Henry Cavill returned as Superman in aBlack Adamcameo, it felt like it was a little too late.
DCEU’s Superman had a faceless cameo in Shazam!, another in Peacemaker season 1’s ending, and then a final cameo obscuring his face in The Flash.
Despite not everyone being on board with his vision for certain characters, Zack Snyder fought hard for his version ofJustice Leagueto come out. It did a much better job of fleshing out character arcs specifically for Superman and Cyborg, and showed that Snyder did care about these characters and wanted to do right by them. Ultimately, it was Warner Bros who put Superman on the back burner and never showed Cyborg again after actor Ray Fisher’s issues over his alleged treatment on set by Joss Whedon, who was brought in to replace Snyder for 2017’sJustice League.
Why Deadpool & Wolverine’s Henry Cavill Superman Joke Is Perfect
Zack Snyder gets a lot of flack for the DCEU in general and its failure as a universe that was set to rival the MCU. Some of this is warranted, but the DCEU finally fell apart long after Snyder stepped away. Warner Bros. experienced so much leadership change, ownership change and clashing vision that it was arguably only a matter of time before the universe ended. As such,Deadpool & Wolverinewas right to point to them as the real culprit for Henry Cavill’s divisive time as Superman, rather than continue to focus on Snyder as a scapegoatof sorts.
Another reason that targeting the joke towards Warner Bros. instead of Snyder works so well is that it hints at the “rivalry” between the MCU and the DCEU over the years. Over the decades, Marvel and DC fans have been in a constant battle over which comic book company is better. This, of course, has carried over into films and television, and Wade Wilson telling Henry Cavill that the MCU would treat him better plays right into that rivalry as well.
Seeing Henry Cavill briefly portray Wolverine was a lot of fun, and something that only a movie likeDeadpool & Wolverinecan really pull off. Joking that the MCU would treat Cavill better than Warner Bros. ever could is a perfect way to portray Deadpool’s meta awareness of the situation. Even better, the joke didn’t come at the expense of Zack Snyder, who has long been the one to essentially get fully blamed for the overall failure that was the DCEU.
Deadpool & Wolverine
Cast
A follow-up to the highly successful Deadpool and Deadpool 2 films starring Ryan Reynolds as the Merc with a Mouth. The third film will be the first in the franchise to be developed under the Marvel Studios banner following Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox.
