Based on the fact both installments became the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all-time, it’s utterly insane to think that 20th Century Fox spent a decade trying their hardest to ensure that Deadpool never made it out of development hell.
Having been forced to stand idly by and watch the character get butchered beyond recognition in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, a role he admitted he only took so that nobody else played it, Ryan Reynolds seized the fourth wall-breaking bull by its self-aware horns and opted to try and navigate the choppy waters of studio politics himself.
It was the famously leaked test footage that served as the catalyst for Deadpool to even exist, and now the staunchly adult-orientated superhero is the property of Disney, which would have sounded nuts just a couple of years ago. Reynolds is partnering up with Hugh Jackman for his third solo outing, but it’s the original that’s been slicing and dicing its way to success on the red-suited assassin’s home platform.
As per FlixPatrol, Deadpool has exploded in popularity on Disney Plus – with Jackman’s return as Wolverine no doubt encouraging subscribers to give it another whirl. It’s even got eyes on the streaming service’s global Top 10 list, which would be one hell of an achievement when you consider that family-friendly offerings and PG-13 rated Marvel projects have historically proven very difficult to dislodge.
The sequel is also on the up and up, too, so the recent news that Deadpool 3 has been hit with another delay hasn’t prevented fans from revisiting the first two chapters.