Summary

• X-Men Origins: Wolverine's portrayal of Deadpool was a low point, but a more pure adaptation like the modern Deadpool wouldn't have worked.
• Studio mandates and interference led to the missteps in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, but it was better suited for a more grounded tone in the 2000s.
• Deadpool & Wolverine showcases how far superhero movies have come, embracing comic book silliness and meta-commentary in a more accepting cinematic landscape.

It is hard to find anyone who doesn't agree with the notion that other mutants including Taylor Kitsch's Gambit, Will-I-Am's John Wraith, and Kevin Durand's Blob. Wade Wilson also played a central role and was portrayed for the first time by Ryan Reynolds.

While X-Men Origins: Wolverine was not devoid of enjoyable moments, such as Wade Wilson's early scenes, this depiction of Deadpool stands out as one of its biggest low points. The creative license that Fox used was gratuitous, turning Deadpool into a mute amalgamation of several mutant powers, inexplicably equipping him with Cyclops' optic blasts and the ability to extend his iconic katanas from within his arms.

Thankfully, 7 years later, Ryan Reynolds and Shawn Levy would redeem the Merc' with a Mouth in Deadpool. Nevertheless, their version of Deadpool would never have worked in X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

Modern Movie Deadpool Would've Been Jarring In X-Men: Origins

Ryan Reynolds recently divulged that the missteps in X-Men Origins: Wolverine were not the fault of the creative team, but "studio mandates." While studio interference tarnishing the final product is nothing new in cinema, there is at least something to be said for Fox's decisions when it came to its Deadpool adaptation. Specifically, a more authentic Deadpool in the context of X-Men Origins: Wolverine would have been completely out of place.

The revised Deadpool would revisit his ill-fated first encounter with Wolverine in the post-credits scene of Deadpool 2.

Despite its sillier moments, X-Men Origins: Wolverine attempted to strike a relatively serious tone befitting its troubled protagonist. Even its moments of levity did not strike the same exuberant tone as Deadpool's future solo movies, and introducing Reynolds' more comic-accurate vision of the character would have been grating. Deadpool & Wolverine demonstrates how a decidedly cantankerous Wolverine works well to counterbalance Deadpool's irreverence, but that is not the kind of character that Wolverine was in the earlier days of superhero movies.

The Superhero Genre Wasn't Ready For Reynolds' Modern Deadpool In The 2000s

While Deadpool & Wolverine, with its vibrancy and excess, may be precisely what comic book movie fans are clamoring for today, the same was not necessarily true in the '00s. The success of X-Men and Spider-Man, two pioneers of the modern superhero genre, hinged on their ability to tread the line between comic book silliness and a more grounded tone. Deadpool was released at a time when superhero movies were a well-established if not dominant cinematic mainstay, helping to make his irreverent take-downs of the genre stick the landing.

Despite the raucous approval of the comic-accurate outfit debuting in Deadpool & Wolverine, a spandex-clad Wolverine in X-Men truthfully would have been too silly.

At a time when the superhero genre was still finding its feet, Deadpool's meta-commentary would have been a bridge too far. This is exemplified by Cyclops' Easter egg comment in X-Men as he asks Wolverine if he'd "prefer yellow spandex" in response to Wolverine's derision of their black leather costumes. Despite the raucous approval of the comic-accurate outfit debuting in Deadpool & Wolverine, a spandex-clad Wolverine in X-Men truthfully would have been too silly.

Deadpool & Wolverine Proves Just How Far Superhero Movies Have Really Come

Fox's X-Men franchise was famously coy about adapting Marvel's mutants with 100% accuracy. Making the leap from fantastical comic book s to live-action was limited by more than tech. X-Men was released just three years after Batman & Robin was lambasted for its excessively campy depiction of superheroes in cinema, putting pressure on Fox to deliver a more muted take on the genre. At that time, winning audiences over to the notion that Superhero movies weren't solely for kids required establishing an element of maturity.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine is a far cry from the groin-stabbing scenes in the Deadpool & Wolverine trailer in a world where comic book silliness is celebrated. Meanwhile, The Batman has embraced one of the grittiest portrayals of a superhero in cinema, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness hired one of the movie industry's foremost horror directors, and WandaVision depicted a superhero story through the lens of a sitcom.

In this context, Deadpool is freer than ever to indulge in the meta-commentary that defines his character and mock the superhero franchises that have become a bona fide cinematic mainstay.