Kevin Feige and co. have yet to outline exactly how Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool is going to be integrated into the Marvel Cinematic Universe now that Disney has acquired the rights to the character, but the general consensus is that if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
Reynolds’ R-rated take on the character is working spectacularly, and audiences really respond to his solo outings, so the Mouse House will likely keep making them, despite the fact that Deadpool doesn’t adhere to their family-friendly brand. This presents opportunities for R-rated takes on a variety of MCU characters in team-ups with ‘Pool. So, here are 10 MCU Characters We’d Love To See In An R-Rated Movie.
Star-Lord
During his hysterical tenure on Parks and Recreation, Chris Pratt proved that he’s a master of improvisational comedy. Many of Andy Dwyer’s funniest lines — including the “network connectivity problems” gag — were ad-libbed on the spot by Pratt. But the boundaries of television prevented some of his more explicit improvisations from being used.
And apart from the occasional nod to adult moviegoers like the Jackson Pollock reference, the PG-13 ratings of the Guardians of the Galaxy movies can be similarly limiting. Star-Lord would be a great fit for a Deadpool movie.
Doctor Strange
Although becoming a Master of the Mystic Arts softened his edges a little, Stephen Strange still has much contempt for people who are less intelligent than him. Wade Wilson could make a hysterical match.
Based on his comedic work in movies like Four Lions and, to a lesser extent, Penguins of Madagascar — not to mention the glee with which he played Smaug’s motion-capture scenes in The Hobbit trilogy — Benedict Cumberbatch would feel right at home in a Deadpool movie.
Captain Marvel
If there’s one character in the MCU who would wholeheartedly refuse to put up with Deadpool’s antics, it’s Carol Danvers. Ergo, the two need to share the screen.
Brie Larson has proven her comedic chops in R-rated comedies like 21 Jump Street and Trainwreck — she also shined in Edgar Wright’s Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, which was rated PG-13 — so seeing her by-the-book, take-no-prisoners Carol Danvers acting as a comic foil to Deadpool would be a treat.
Korg
Korg is so sweet and mild-mannered that putting him in an R-rated movie alongside the abrasive demeanor of Wade Wilson would make his sweetness and mild-mannered demeanor even funnier. After all, Taika Waititi was among the writers, directors, and stars of What We Do in the Shadows, one of the greatest R-rated comedies of the 2010s.
Like ‘Pool, Korg is an overtly comedic character, introduced as a non-stop joke machine in Thor: Ragnarok and given nothing but hilarious lines in Avengers: Endgame. With all of these things in mind, it would be a joy to see Waititi play Korg alongside Deadpool in an R-rated MCU entry.
Black Panther
T’Challa has the distinction of being one of the only MCU characters to never quip. Unlike his counterparts — the carbon copies of Tony Stark — he doesn’t constantly spout one-liners. As a proud monarch, T’Challa would not take kindly to Deadpool’s reckless antics and blatant disregard for rules.
Deadpool and Black Panther have made for a terrific pairing in comics and animation; Ryan Reynolds and Chadwick Boseman could bring that to the silver screen in a really fun way.
Nick Fury
It’s about time Samuel L. Jackson called someone a “motherfcker” as Nick Fury. He got halfway through the word as an exasperated exclamation when Thanos’ finger-snap turned him to dust, but that doesn’t have the same ring as angrily yelling, “English, motherfcker! Do you speak it!?,” in Pulp Fiction, or “I have had it with these motherfckin’ snakes on this motherfckin’ plane!” in Snakes on a Plane.
Fury doesn’t have a lot of patience, so teaming him up with Deadpool, the ultimate anti-authority figure, would go hand-in-hand with vamping up his language.
Valkyrie
With her heavy drinking and nihilistic attitude, Valkyrie already skirts along the boundaries of an R rating. A team-up with Deadpool seems like a no-brainer. They’re both practically invincible, they both use swords, and after they’ve taken care of bad guys for the night, they both like to go get drunk.
For all intents and purposes, they should be the best of friends. And it would be great to see Tessa Thompson be allowed more freedom with the character’s language, and the writers be allowed more freedom with her violence and sexuality.
Thor
With Thor: Ragnarok, Taika Waititi took one of the MCU’s most boring characters and turned him into one of the franchise’s funniest. Since then, Thor’s interactions with other hilarious characters, like the Guardians of the Galaxy, have been among the franchise’s highlights.
As the God of Thunder will be passing on his mantle to Jane Foster in Thor: Love and Thunder, it seems as though Odinson will take a backseat in the MCU, hanging around with other heroes. A team-up with Deadpool could be a fun, zany, action-packed side adventure for the character to take.
Rocket
In interviews leading up to Guardians of the Galaxy’s release, Bradley Cooper compared Rocket to Tommy DeVito, Joe Pesci’s character from Goodfellas, and that’s an apt analogy. Aside from his loud-mouthed attitude and irrepressible temper, that character was known for uttering the lion’s share of f-bombs in a movie with one of the highest F-bomb counts in film history.
Instead of “Guardians of the frickin’ Galaxy,” it would be fun to hear Rocket say, “Guardians of the f*ckin’ Galaxy” for once. Seeing the gory aftermath of Rocket’s sociopathic violence might make the gags work even better.
Spider-Man
Peter Parker — and particularly Tom Holland’s incarnation of the character — is one of the sweetest and most innocent figures in the Marvel Comics universe. Part of the fun of his interactions with Tony Stark was seeing that innocence clash with Tony’s brash, devil-may-care persona.
A team-up with Wade Wilson in a hard-R cinematic outing would take this even further. The fragile deal between Sony and Disney might prevent this, but Marvel fans would go wild for Reynolds’ Deadpool and Holland’s Spidey appearing on-screen together.
