For a while, it seemed like literally every actor in Hollywood was all set to play Cable in the upcoming Deadpool 2. First we heard it might be Stephen Lang, then perhaps Kyle Chandler. Michael Shannon also looked like a lock for a bit and then, in an unlikely twist, Brad Pitt became the frontrunner to play the grizzled half-machine time traveller. When Josh Brolin was finally confirmed in the role then, it almost seemed like an anticlimax.
But 90s comic wunderkind and Cable/Deadpool creator Rob Liefeld couldn’t be happier with the choice. In an interview with ComicBook.com, he sang Brolin’s praises:
“It’s continuing the tradition, in the film, of really great actors. If you only see No Country for Old Men and Sicario, you’ve seen two great, totally separate, Josh Brolin performances. You’ve got Llewelyn, who’s sullen but determined, and he doesn’t speak much, but you follow him the whole time in No Country. And then, Sicario, he’s this wild, shoot ’em up, C.I.A. guy. The guy is a tremendous actor.”
Liefeld went on to specifically talk about how impressed he was with Brolin’s new superheroic physique:
“The way we’ve watched his transformation – I mean, I immediately started following his trainer. Eventually, when I get the guts up, I’m gonna ask, ‘I’d like to have that training regimen please.”
The actor might have thought he’d dodge the need for a superhero level personal trainer, given that his Thanos is going to be entirely computer generated in Avengers: Infinity War, but Cable is a character that definitely requires a certain amount of physical heft. Then again, given Liefeld’s famously elastic sense of anatomy, his praise might not be the compliment it first seems.
Liefeld concluded the interview by claiming that Deadpool 2 is going to be the comic book equivalent of Rush Hour, adding “I don’t know if fans are ready for it.” Say what you like about Liefeld’s art (and as a 90s kid, I have affection for his loopy poses and implausible amount of pouches), but he’s a damn good hype man.
Deadpool 2 is due for release on June 1st, 2018.
