Deadpool & Wolverine Missed The Biggest MCU Cameo Possible
Deadpool & Wolverine is a hit movie because it gave fans what they wanted, including plenty of fan-favorite cameos. Without a doubt, the biggest cameo was Chris Evans returning to the MCU. In a hilarious twist, he was reprising his old Fantastic Four role rather than returning as Captain America. However, the movie almost had an even bigger cameo: Robert Downey Jr. was offered a role in Deadpool & Wolverine but turned down the opportunity after reading the scene.
Before The Sacrifice
Considering that Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man character had previously died in Avengers: Endgame, it would have theoretically been very difficult to bring him back for Deadpool & Wolverine. But the movie’s co-writer Paul Wernick recently revealed how they would have pulled it off.
In short, the early scene where Deadpool requests membership from Happy Hogan was originally going to include Tony Stark, a plot point that would have made sense because Deadpool was pitching himself before Iron Man heroically sacrificed himself.
Interestingly, nobody wanted Robert Downey Jr. to appear in Deadpool & Wolverine more than franchise star Ryan Reynolds. He helped write the film and penned this particular scene to include both Happy Hogan and Tony Stark. Like most of the audience, Reynolds is a big MCU fanboy, and he wanted both of those characters in this scene because they bounce so well off each other.
No One Else Said No
Collectively, Ryan Reynolds and fellow writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick were optimistic about Robert Downey Jr. joining the film for a simple reason: their insane success rate. Reese says that this refusal “was the only ‘no’ we’ve ever gotten, I think, in terms of people just saying, ‘Hey, I don’t want to do it.’” Wernick was similarly optimistic about getting a positive reason because when it came to fun cameos in Deadpool & Wolverine, “No one says no to Ryan Reynolds.”
It Made Sense Why Downey Turned Them Down
Despite Reynolds giving Robert Downey Jr “the hard press” (as Wernick put it), he refused the offer. Now, though, neither Reynolds nor the other Deadpool & Wolverine writers hold it against the guy. After they found out, along with the rest of us, that the actor would be returning to the MCU as Doctor Doom, they fully understood why neither he nor Marvel would want to undermine that reveal with a much smaller cameo in a completely unrelated film.
Peter Is Worthy
Of course, the planned Robert Downey Jr. cameo paled in comparison to another version of this scene that the Deadpool & Wolverine writers wanted to bring to life. At one point, they played with the idea of Iron Man and the other Avengers all being in the room while Deadpool dressed them down after getting refused membership to the team, complete with the Merc With the Mouth trying to convince Captain America to curse.
This scene would have had a fun background detail of Deadpool’s friend Peter effortlessly lifting Thor’s hammer if filmed.
The Arrival Of Doctor Doom
Sadly, Robert Downey Jr. never made it into Deadpool & Wolverine, but he will soon be suiting up and wearing a very different mask for Avengers: Doomsday. Only time will tell if this Hail Mary casting decision will put Marvel back on the map or go down as their costliest mistake. If that should happen, then the only real winner will be Downey–the man behind two masks–who will be laughing his way to the bank yet again.
Source: IndieWire
