It looks as though Deadpool has made his debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe in a low-key, unexpected place! Ryan Reynolds suited up in his famous red and black uniform for a promo to support his upcoming comedy film Free Guy. His co-star in that movie is Taika Waititi and the famous New Zealand actor/director also appears in the promo in the form of Korg, his CGI/motion-capture character from Thor: Ragnarok and Avengers: Endgame. So… it looks as though Deadpool is firmly established as existing in the same universe as Korg, and thus the larger MCU. Right?
Check out the video, “Deadpool’s Maximum Reactions” below:
As you can see, Reynolds pokes fun at the fact that Free Guy has been delayed multiple times thanks to COVID-19. He also states that he hopes Jodie Comer, his co-star, doesn’t get “fridged,” an accusation made against Deadpool 2 in which the female lead, in that case, Vanessa, played by Morena Baccarin, is killed off to further motivate the male character.
He refers to himself as “Canadian Cumberbatch” and mentions the fact that Deadpool 3 was indefinitely delayed due to Disney’s acquisition of Fox and all its brands. (This is all way too meta. My head is spinning.)
In fact, Free Guy was a 20th Century Fox (now known as 20th Century Studios) movie that was in active development when Disney bought out Fox. It was far enough along that Disney decided to keep it on track, while it was scrapping other existing Fox movies that were planned but not shot. Plus… I mean, it looks pretty funny!
Free Guy was directed by Shawn Levy (Stranger Things). It focuses on “Guy” played by Reynolds, an NPC from a free-for-all shoot-’em-up video game who gains sentience and changes the game. Comer plays Milly a.k.a. Molotov Girl. Waititi is clearly the villain, Antoine. The cast also includes Lil Rel Howery as Buddy, Utkarsh Ambudkar as Mouser, Joe Keery as Keys, and Camille Kostek as Bombshell.
At this point, it appears that Free Guy will be released only in theaters, with no streaming option. It is slated to open on August 13, 2021.
As for Deadpool in the MCU… well, it’s established now, isn’t it?
