Fans breathed a sigh of relief when Kevin Feige confirmed that the in-development Deadpool 3 will be the first Marvel Cinematic Universe blockbuster to come slapped with an R-rating, putting an end to the rampant speculation that Disney might try to impose their will on the Merc with a Mouth and water him down to suit their family-friendly remit.
Not every adult orientated comic book adaptation manages to justify the reasons why it felt the need to alienate a huge part of its potential audience for the sake of increased violence and some profanity, with Birds of Prey a notable example that may well have earned a lot more money as a PG-13 effort, but Wade Wilson’s irreverent asides and penchant for slicing and dicing his opponents are integral to the character.
However, Deadpool director Tim Miller doesn’t necessarily agree, after he admitted in a new interview that he was of the opinion that star Ryan Reynolds could make it work with a PG-13 nature given his experience headlining broad studio efforts and how close his real-life personality is to that of the red-suited assassin.
“I think Ryan Reynolds’ take on the character and the way he embraces the particular kind of insanity, even if you said he’s not gonna use four-letter words, would still be there. He still is that character. You can take the R-rated parts out of it if you wanted and it would still be Deadpool if Ryan was doing it.”
Luckily, it’s not something we’ll need to find out, at least not until Reynolds starts making his requisite cameos across the length and breadth of the MCU once he’s fully established as part of the shared mythology. Some characters don’t need an R-rating, but Deadpool almost certainly does to maximize the potential of bringing such a unique superhero to life on the big screen, so it’s a huge win for all involved to have Feige sign off on deviating from the formula that turned his brainchild into the most successful franchise in the history of cinema.