Nearly a week has passed since Marvel’s Deadpool & Wolverine stormed onto the screen, which means we can dive into spoiler territory without pissing off too many people. Seriously, though, if you haven’t seen it, stop reading, go to your local movie theater, and rectify the situation immediately. Love it or hate it, D&W is the must-see movie of the year and the type of pop cultural event people discuss around the water cooler — primarily due to the carefully concealed surprises sprinkled throughout, i.e., the Deadpool & Wolverine cameos.
We’re here to stoke the flames and rank the fun Easter Eggs from D&W from worst to best. Again, if you haven’t seen the blockbuster sequel, for the love of God and all that is holy, stop reading now!
Disclaimer, there are a ton of cameos and Easter eggs in the film. I’m going to hit the big ones and leave the smaller notes for the YouTubers. Let’s do this!
9) Jon Favreau’s Happy Hogan
Right out of the gate, D&W reintroduces Jon Favreau’s Happy Hogan, a character who, in my opinion, has more than worn out his welcome. Here, he takes part in a pointless job interview scene that goes on for way too long and doesn’t propel the plot forward meaningfully. It’s the weakest of the Deadpool & Wolverine cameos.
8) Dafne Keen’s X23
I love Logan. I love Dafne Keen in Logan. I love that the actress reunites with Hugh Jackman in D&W. I hate that she gets almost nothing to do but deliver dry exposition. Why bring X23 back if you’re not going to continue her story? Her presence felt more egregious than necessary. Luckily, she appears in the closing scene, meaning the character will likely appear in future MCU films that take advantage of her acting chops.
7) Channing Tatum’s Gambit
Growing up, Gambit was always my favorite X-Men. Predictably, he’s the one character who never successfully transitioned to the big screen. Save for that silly cameo in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, where he was played by Taylor Kitsch, our card-throwing Cajun warrior always seemed to miss the cut. D&W tries to rectify that problem and mostly succeeds — mostly.
Here, the man appears in full comic book attire. Except, rather than Kitsch, we get Channing Tatum, which doesn’t make much sense. Even worse, he’s mostly played as a joke, with Deadpool poking fun at his thick accent. Gambit gets a few cool moments to demonstrate his explosive powers, but his cheap-looking costume bogs down his long-awaited appearance. I’m all for comic book accuracy; however, in this case, the producer’s costume department on this $100M movie could have tried a little harder.
6) Jennifer Garner’s Elektra
Confession time: I like the Ben Affleck/Jennifer Garner Daredevil pic. Sure, it’s goofy and more than a little campy, but it captures the hero’s essence and at least looks interesting. I never saw Elektra, yet after seeing Garner appear in D&W, I may go back and watch the 2005 box office dud out of pure nostalgia.
Garner looks good and brings the proper amount of stoicism and badassery that made her a star in the early 2000s. D&W doesn’t do much with her character, but the actress slips comfortably back into the role, handles the action sequences well, and takes a few digs at Affleck, her ex-husband. Nice.
5) Deadpool Corps
The best scene in D&W arrives near the end when our boys team up to battle the Deadpool Corps, a group of alternate Deadpools led by Blake Lively’s Lady Deadpool. A long tracking shot ensues with Deadpool & Wolverine taking turns slicing and dicing this ragtag bunch into pieces, turning the locale into a bloody mess littered with body parts.
Visually, it all looks great. The only downside is that the Deadpool Corps has nothing to do with the movie. Are they working for Cassandra Nova? If so, why? There’s a chance I missed some exposition, or the joke is that their appearance is entirely superficial. Either way, the film missed an opportunity to turn them into more than fun fan service.
Again, though, I’m not complaining. Deadpool Corps’ big moment was incredible enough to overcome its narrative shortcomings.
4) Chris Evans’ The Human Torch
Midway through D&W, our heroes bump into a hooded figure adorned in a blue suit. Villains appear, and this mysterious hero removes his shroud and looks directly into the camera. Holy shit, it’s Chris Evans’ Captain America! Deadpool goes bonkers and urges him to say his iconic “Avengers assemble” line.
Instead, Evans exclaims, “Flame on,” before bursting into flames and zipping into the sky as the Human Torch from 2005’s Fantastic Four. Yeah, they did the thing we all expected, even asked for, and somehow, it still caught me by surprise. While his appearance in D&W marks Evans’ latest attempt to transform himself from a macho superhero into a goofy wimp, he delivers a few well-timed zingers and even gets his own post-credit scene to boot.
Still, I miss Cap.
3) Wesley Snipes’ Blade
Wesley Snipes’ cameo is the most shocking in the film. Never in a million years did I think the iconic actor would return to the big screen as the vampire-slaying Blade. Like Garner, the aged actor proves he still has the moxy to hang with the big boys, flashing his moxy during a pivotal action sequence while noting that no actor will ever take his place in the role.
Unsurprisingly, his appearance drew the loudest cheers from my sold-out theater, leaving me wondering why Marvel isn’t green-lighting Blade 4. I, for one, would run to see that film as it was one of the best Deadpool & Wolverine cameos.
2) Henry Cavill’s Wolverine
Another big surprise was the inclusion of Henry Cavill’s Wolverine during an early montage. It’s a fleeting moment that leads to one of the film’s best jokes — “We will treat you so much better than those shit-fucks down the street,” Deadpool exclaims, a hilarious dig at DC. Cavill then reloads his arms as he did in Mission: Impossible – Fallout’s classic bathroom fight sequence, only this time, blades shoot from his knuckles. I must say, the former Superman absolutely fits the bill as Logan, despite his 6-foot-1 frame. Again, if Marvel doesn’t take advantage of this opportunity, they deserve to flame out.
1) Wolverine’s Mask
All right, this might be a bit of a cheat. Wolverine’s mask may not qualify as a living, breathing cameo, but wow, did it look incredible. After more than two decades of waiting, the powers that be finally had the guts to give us a proper-looking Wolverine. Sure, the white eyes had a bit of an uncanny valley effect, and some of the CGI was iffy, but that didn’t matter. Marvel was delivering the goods. I was already sold on D&W, but when Logan put on that mask, the movie instantly kicked into high gear.
And look, from a critical standpoint, I am perfectly aware that a mask reveal doesn’t atone for a clunky script. Still, as a fan, this is my favorite of the Deadpool & Wolverine cameos.
