Up next in 10
Deadpool, The Merc With a Mouth, Ryan Reynolds, all go hand in hand like ice cream and apple pie. At this point in the cinematic Superhero landscape, it's tough to imagine anyone but Ryan Reynolds playing the iconic Deadpool. The quick wit, charming humor, and stunt focused action was all brought to life because Ryan Reynolds was uncompromising in bring the Merc with a Mouth to the big screen. With the upcoming Deadpool and Wolverine movie, it has cemented even further the legacy of both Ryan Reynolds and Deadpool. Hopefully the MCU doesn't mess with success.
Show More Show Less View Video Transcript
0:00
I see you dance up here
0:03
This is Deadpool. And this is Deadpool. Whose b**** did I have to fondle to get my very own movie
0:10
I can't tell you, but it does rhyme with Pulverine. And technically, this is also Deadpool
0:16
Did you see how angry he was? I mean, I'm sorry, but come on
0:21
I think he's dancing. But honestly, it's really just a dude doing a somewhat passable Ryan Reynolds impersonation
0:27
That's how inextricably linked the Merc with a Mouth and Canada's own Ryan Reynolds are
0:32
You literally can't make anything Deadpool without at least attempting to fool people
0:36
into thinking Mr. Van Wilder is involved. Who, me? No. But there are countless superheroes who are played by multiple actors
0:46
so why is this one so different? Originally from Vancouver, British Columbia
0:50
Ryan Reynolds rose to fame in the late 90s and early 2000s. After his big break in the National Lampoon film Van Wilder
0:57
he had a series of star turns that solidified him as a bankable leading man
1:01
From his role in the Amityville horror remake to Smokin' Aces to definitely maybe, he was a steady working actor
1:07
turning in charming performances that were sculpted by his impeccable comedic timing and razor sharp wit
1:13
I've learned that you can't treat every situation as life and death matter, because you'll die a lot of times
1:19
Write that down. You can't deny it. His first brush with the comic book world happened in 2004
1:24
when he played Hannibal King in the threequel Blade Trinity. The inclusion of his character was intended to spin out into his own franchise
1:30
However, when the film failed to perform at the box office, those plans died a death quicker than Dominic Purcell's leather pants wearing Dracula
1:37
But fear not, true believer, the movie gods of 2009 were listening
1:41
It was announced that X-Men Origins, Wolverine, would see Reynolds taking over the role of Deadpool, a long-called-for fan casting
1:48
However, the previously mentioned movie gods had a cruel sense of humor. We didn get the fast deadly mercenary forged in the fires of Weapon X program like everyone wanted We got this guy Wait you don have to do this All right maybe you do
2:06
Despite a post-credit sequence insisting that Deadpool was still alive, the film's mistreatment
2:11
of Wade Wilson caused an uproar from both fans and critics alike regarding the squandered potential of the character
2:17
This led to the long and laborious process of getting a thematically honest Deadpool movie
2:21
into production, a real Deadpool movie. If you're curious about that, check out
2:25
the video we've already made on the topic, linked in the description below. All you really need to
2:29
know, though, is that this is what people wanted from a Deadpool movie. Maximum effort
2:35
After the roaring success of two Deadpool solo films and a third on the way, Reynolds fully
2:40
cemented himself as being one of the most iconic pairings of superhero and actor ever put to screen
2:46
which tastes all the sweeter considering the lowly and compromised beginnings of the character
2:50
cinematically. There's arguably no worse adaptation of a comic book character than the
2:55
Origins version of Deadpool. Maybe the Halle Berry Catwoman, maybe. But that's just more Halle
3:00
Berry being trapped in a bad movie. If you put Patience Phillips in a better movie, her version
3:04
of Catwoman absolutely would have worked on the big screen. But instead, they opted for the infamous
3:09
basketball scene. Despite what the internet might be trying to make you believe, there's more to
3:13
casting a superhero than just marrying a beefy dude with a spandex-clad character. You can count
3:18
on one hand the pairings of character and actor that are truly iconic. Christopher Reeve and
3:24
Superman, Robert Downey Jr. and Tony Stark, as well as a few others. The difficulty with casting
3:29
these characters is that you need someone who has both an intrinsic quality that is similar to the
3:35
character in question, but also a desire to not be seen as a performer, but to inhabit the character
3:43
Thank you. My job. There's a distinct difference between a movie star and an actor
3:49
Movie stars are people like Tom Cruise, Denzel Washington, or Seth Rogen
3:53
They basically play themselves in every film they appear. Then there actors people who want to inhabit a character and disappear into them Daniel Day Robert De Niro or Heath Ledger people who are invested in the craft of filmmaking and want to be
4:07
observed, not seen. Most superhero movies require movie stars, not actors, unfortunately. These films
4:13
are $200 million blockbusters. They have certain financial demands that come with the spectacle
4:18
they're selling. And one of those demands is that we need to be lured into the theaters
4:22
by a very famous movie star. For every superhero film that features a movie star
4:27
at the center of its constellation, there are films that stars relative unknowns
4:31
who are bolstered by more famous actors and supporting roles. Casting a superhero is hard work
4:37
It's a thankless job to be a superhero, and it's also something that's incredibly physically demanding
4:42
And yet, being a superhero is also a way to have your career break out to the next level
4:46
Before Superman, Thor, and Wolverine, Reeve, Hemsworth, and Jackman were relative unknowns
4:51
Robert Downey Jr. was practically on Skid Row prior to Iron Man, but it was the right place, right role of it all that propelled all of them to superstardom
4:59
When casting a superhero, you want to find the best person for the part, not the biggest star
5:04
Burt Reynolds and Al Pacino were both supposedly lobbied for by the studio for Superman
5:09
Drew Gray Scott was literally cast as Wolverine, but had to drop out due to scheduling complex
5:14
Depending on the character, you want someone who embodies the essence of the character
5:18
but isn't going to overshadow them. Warren Beatty as Dick Tracy? He's just Warren Beatty. That movie is fantastic, but he's not a
5:25
very strong version of the beloved yellow-jacketed gumshoe. This is a more nebulous point, but
5:29
something that separates the less successful performances from good ones is that it's
5:33
important that you don't have an actor that is looking down on the source material. Case in point
5:39
Willem Dafoe. Every second he's on screen, it's apparent that he's reveling in Green Goblin
5:44
Val Kilmer in Batman Forever? Or George Clooney in Batman and Robin? Not so much. Clooney has even
5:49
and gone in record saying, I always apologize for that. Ryan Reynolds perfectly captures the dry and sardonic sense
5:55
of humor that Deadpool has in the comics. But that just the first layer of the onion of why he so perfect for the character He humble enough to know that he should wear a costume that covers him from head to toe in skin tight red leather He smart enough to understand why the fans were lobbying for him to take over the role
6:10
for the better part of a decade. And then he was committed enough to not second guess it when he was at the 10 yard line
6:17
It's so apparent that every second of Gavin Hood's time directing X-Men Origins Wolverine
6:22
involved him not understanding why the X-Men were great. You have Deadpool, Gambit, Wolverine, Maverick, Blob
6:28
and Sabretooth in your movie, and everyone is just wearing jeans and button-ups
6:32
Something is wrong from the start. You just inherently don't get why people are here
6:36
to see these characters if you're ashamed of a core foundational component of them
6:40
The success of Deadpool as a character and Ryan Reynolds' career since playing him
6:44
is directly related to the fact that he did the thing exactly as fans wanted it
6:48
I've got a timeout, timeout. Cut. I've got that blood right in my open eye
6:53
This might sound like an oversimplification, but it's actually harder than it sounds to get right
6:58
So often, when making the leap to the big screen, everyone is asking, how do we reinvent this
7:04
And sometimes you don't need to reinvent the thing everyone loves. You just need to adapt it
7:09
When they finally succeeded in making the film, Deadpool was funny. He wore the suit, he broke the fourth wall, and Reynolds committed himself to being the character, not being a movie star
7:18
which, in an ironic twist, poured jet fuel on his movie star career and made him 10 times more famous
7:24
But Reynolds' success with the character is more than just an exercise in pursuit of fame
7:28
He's deeply involved in the depiction and portrayal of the character. He works on the scripts, produces the movies, and even is redubbing dialogue all throughout post-production
7:38
At this point, everyone involved in these films knows enough to stay out of the man's way
7:41
He gets the character pure and simple. Why mess with success? In many ways, the Deadpool movies work because Reynolds took off his movie star hat and decided
7:50
to pull on his actor mask. But then, when that proved to fit very well, he evolved into something
7:55
more akin to a producer and a writer. Ryan Reynolds is Deadpool, both the character and
8:00
the franchise. It's over. Go home
#Movies
#Comedy Films