It’s been ten years since Deadpool officially joined the Marvel Universe! Back in 2016, Deadpool, starring Ryan Reynolds, broke lots of barriers by being Marvel Studios first R-rated movie. It’s actually because of the movie’s R-rating that it took so long for Deadpool to be green-lighted by it’s production company. For nearly 12 years, Ryan Reynolds had been working to made his Wade Wilson dreams come true with reluctance from 20th Century Fox because of the violence, swearing, and raunchy tone that Deadpool brings to the table.

The first iteration of Wade Wilson was seen in X-Men Origins: Wolverine in a post-credits scene. While we do get to see Ryan Reynolds as Wade in that scene, Deadpool’s appearance didn’t go over well with fans and audiences. This then delayed shooting even further for a solo Deadpool movie because of the poor appeal of Wade’s first cameo in the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe). It was finally in the early 2010s, after nonstop pitching from Reynolds and leaked CGI test footage of Deadpool that went incredibly viral, that 20th Century was forced to accept the popularity of an R-rated superhero movie. That leaves us to the making of 2016’s Deadpool, and the rest is history!

After all the work that went into making Deadpool a successful reality, it’s time to celebrate the anniversary of a movie and character that every Marvel fan likes!

“LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, I GIVE YOU . . . ME! DEADPOOL”

Deadpool tells the film origins of Wade Wilson, and how he becomes a mercenary killer with powers. Wade is a for-hire thug, taking jobs in seedy places and following his clients needs. That is until he meets sex worker Vanessa, and his goals in life change. The two develop and fast romance in a year, and believing that he has finally found a spot of happiness in his life, Wade proposes. Vanessa happily accepts, and of course, this is when tragedy strikes. Wade is diagnosed with terminal cancer that is spreading fast throughout his body.

While Vanessa tries to find solutions to save him, Wade accepts his fate. At least he does, until, he is approached by a mysterious government recruiter/agent who offers Wade a way to cure his cancer. Wade, who is desperate to stay with Vanessa, takes this enigmatic offer, and then in doing so, also leaves Vanessa in the middle of the night. Taken to a hidden laboratory, Wade meets Ajax and Angel, other mutants who run the joint and senselessly torture Wade after giving him a serum.

Wade suffers a weekend of asphyxiation before the serum activates, giving Wade the powers of extreme regenerative healing, leaving him cancer free but covered in tumors all over his body. As Wade’s body is constantly healing itself because of his terminal cancer, there is no way to get rid of the tumors surrounding his new body. Feeling ashamed of himself and the way he looks, Wade chooses not to return to Vanessa and instead sets his sights on finding Ajax and killing him.

IT’S NOT A SUPERHERO MOVIE, IT’S A LOVE STORY

Covering up what he looks like and his identity, Wade creates Deadpool, an unhinged, un-killable, Merc with a mouth character. He spends the rest of the movie looking for the untraceable Ajax, who decides to kidnapp Vanessa, knowing that Deadpool is after him. The movie shines a light on some X-Men characters we haven’t seen on the screen before, like Colossus and Negasonic Teenage Warhead. Following the trend of the anti-hero, Deadpool showcases a different kind of mouthy character. Ryan Reynolds was right—to make this movie a success, it needed that extra R-rating. Deadpool wouldn’t be Deadpool without his swears, his innuendos, and brutal methods of killing.

In the timespan of Deadpool‘s 10th anniversary, two movies have already been made since the first film came out. Deadpool 2, was released in 2018, and shows progression of Wade become an actual superhero. We love character development! Finally, Deadpool & Wolverine was released in 2024, bringing back a character from the dead because the fans wanted it so badly.

This year, give Deadpool another re-watch and celebrate 10 years of action scenes, mouthiness, and ass jokes with Wade Wilson.

Deadpool is currently streaming on Disney +