The Marvel Cinematic Universe boasts an impressively deep roster of heroes, and there are plenty more still to come throughout the rest of Phase Four with over 20 movies and Disney Plus exclusives in the works, but one thing the franchise has never done is paint any of its major figures with shades of gray.
There are good guys and there are bad guys, and apart from some inner turmoil or internal conflict among the various ensemble casts, it’s been pretty straightforward storytelling. Unless of course you count the interesting fan theory that Tony Stark was the villain of the Infinity Saga all along, with all of the tragedy that befell the Avengers tracing directly back to the genius billionaire playboy philanthropist in some way.
However, things could be about to change when Deadpool joins the fray, because a foul-mouthed assassin who makes his money killing whoever his paymasters tell him to is hardly squeaky clean. With that in mind, we’ve now heard from our sources – the same ones who told us Hayden Christensen was returning for Obi-Wan Kenobi long before he was announced for the cast – that Ryan Reynolds reportedly wants Wade Wilson to straddle both sides of the hero/villain divide in the MCU.
While he’s hardly going to jump around the Marvel Cinematic Universe cleaving the Avengers in half with his katana, Deadpool has always been positioned as more of an antihero in the comic books, something that carried on through his two solo movies at Fox. The very fact that his next effort is R-rated indicates that Marvel Studios are already prepared to break the mold when it comes to the fan favorite, too, so having him play both sides of the divide and become a thorn in the side of the heroes and villains is perfectly in keeping with the character.
