MOVIE NEWS – As Deadpool & Wolverine goes strong, Kevin Feige talked about the future of mutants in the MCU, and Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds about which Marvel superhero they would most like to “abuse” in their movie…

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has a big weekend behind it: their latest film brought in more than 200 million dollars in the US alone! Deadpool & Wolverine jumped to number one at the box office worldwide. Not only does it have the best opening weekend of 2024 at the box office, but Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman’s highly-anticipated buddy movie is ranked No. 8 of all time in the film’s preview numbers released on Thursday, July 25. Internationally, the film grossed an additional $233.3 million. This brought its worldwide total to a staggering $438.3 million. And that means Disney is flirting with a half-billion-dollar opening weekend…

Has the “mutant era” of the MCU arrived?!

It looks like Marvel’s latest movie, Deadpool & Wolverine, has finally officially kicked off the “mutant era” in the MCU. In an interview with Marvel Live via ComicBook, Feige promised fans that their patience would soon pay off.

“It’s just the beginning. I’ve said that mutants are coming, and it all starts with this movie. I can’t wait for people to see what [Deadpool & Wolverine] has in store and know that this is the beginning of mutants finally, finally arriving into the MCU.”

Over the past few years, the MCU has been on a tear following the events of Avengers: Endgame. The loss of some of its biggest and most marketable characters, coupled with both the quality degradation associated with the performance boost demanded by Bob Chapek, the former CEO of Walt Disney Pictures, and the global pandemic that has shaken the film industry to its foundations, has led some to say that the heyday of the MCU is already in the past. The mutants’ entrance, especially the X-Men, could not have come at a better time.

Getting Hugh Jackman to reprise his role as Wolverine alongside Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool was a masterstroke.

Especially after he was believed to be retiring from the role for good after 2018’s critically acclaimed Logan.

The two actors and the characters they played, highlights of the Fox era of the X-Men franchise, are popular. By bringing them into the MCU via the multiverse, Marvel can sidestep the unenviable task of having to reboot them entirely. Now, their origin story has been placed within the MCU, allowing Marvel Studios to simply continue their story without the burden of a complete re-introduction.

Could Spider-Man be the next for Deadpool and Wolverine?

Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman are ready for Deadpool & Wolverine & Spider-Man. In a recent Marvel Thailand interview, the main characters were asked which of their fellow superheroes they would like to team up with in a future film.

“If I could pick one, I’d love to play with Spider-Man,” Reynolds replied. “Tom Holland is amazing.”

Jackman added: “I agree. He’s so cool. That would be great. And he’s young. We could pile on him and abuse him. You know, just yell at him.” Reynolds seemed to value Spider-Man’s ability to regenerate just as much. “You can’t hurt him!” he proclaimed. “You can hit him as hard as you want. He gets right back up.”

A crossover between Spider-Man, Deadpool and Wolverine is not entirely unthinkable. After all, Spider-Man has already joined forces with both characters in the comics. He first hung out with Logan in 2011’s Astonishing Spider-Man & Wolverine limited series and later developed a funny friendship with the mouthy superhero in the long-running Spider-Man/Deadpool series.

Source: The Numbers, ComicBook.com, YouTube