Deadpools' X-Men Origins: Wolverine Look Was Apparently Almost 'Even Worse'
Gavin Hood's superhero flick "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," the fourth film in the X-Men series, was roundly derided upon its release in 2009. While it endeavored to fill in the backstory of the most popular X-Men character — played by Hugh Jackman — it was undone by a bad pace, some corny special effects, and broad characterization that was just a little too cartoonish for a PG-13 audience of nitpicking, adolescent comic book nerds.
One of the more vocal complaints about "Origins: Wolverine" was that the (then) relatively obscure comedy character Deadpool had been drastically altered from his on-page iteration. In the comics, Deadpool was a masked, scarred vigilante who was wholly aware of his status as a drawing on a page. He frequently broke the fourth wall, made crass jokes, and murdered without a second thought. In "Origins: Wolverine," Deadpool was a master swordsman who was subjected to bizarre superpower transfer experiments. In the film's climax, Deadpool had been transformed into, essentially, the film's boss monster. Deadpool had laser beam eyes, retractable sword arms, and teleportation powers. His shirtless torso was crisscrossed with weird technical tattoos, presumably as a guide for his experimenters.
Deadpool also had scarred eyes and no mouth. This was galling to fans who knew the character as "the merc with the mouth." Deadpool's redesign was hardly the worst problem with "Origins: Wolverine," but it became notorious. Eventually, when Reynolds made "Deadpool 2" in 2018, the newer, more popular version of the character went back in time to murder the "Origins: Wolverine" version. Actor Scott Adkins played the altered version of Deadpool, and he spoke to ComicBook.com back in May about playing the part and its notoriety. Adkins revealed that the initial designs for the character were so much worse than what audiences eventually saw.
The merc without a mouth
Reynolds appeared in early "Origins: Wolverine" scenes as the assassin Wade Wilson, and he lent the character his flip, smartass qualities. By the time he had been altered into the deadly Deadpool, Reynolds had moved onto another project and Adkins stepped in as the stunt performer. Deadpool's scarred eyes, bald head, and mouthless face assured that Reynolds would not have been recognizable anyway — plus he couldn't deliver lines — so the re-casting wasn't entirely bothersome. Adkins, however, felt he was partly at fault for the much-hated redesign of the character, as he didn't have the wherewithal to give his own input. Adkins said:
"I know that I was part of the problem with the first version of Deadpool. But I was just doing as I was told ... Ryan [Reynolds] wasn't even there by the time we shot the Deadpool stuff; I think he was off doing something else. When he saw what they were gonna do, he must have been really annoyed. Really annoyed. But I was just, like 'Hang on a minute.' Because I went over there thinking I was gonna be the full costume and everything. But there were other versions of that character that I was getting dressed up as. [...] It could have been even worse."
Worse how? What were some of these awful versions of Deadpool that audiences didn't get to see? It seems that there was at least one version wherein Deadpool had been outfitted with some sort of cranial prosthesis. "Imagine Deadpool with a fish bowl on his head," Adkins said. "[T]hey were looking at a few ideas, and luckily they didn't choose that one."
Adkins doesn't say if that meant an astronaut helmet or an exposed brain under a glass skull, but either choice is still the wrong one.
Deadpool, eventually done right
Adkins, luckily, did not experience any career hiccups due to the non-success of "X-Men Origins: Wolverine." He would go on to appear in "The Expendables 2," "Doctor Strange," and dozens of other low-profile action movies. Most recently, one might have seen him as the enormous Russian gangster Killa Harkan in "John Wick: Chapter 4." Adkins will not appear in the upcoming "Deadpool 3," not as far as we know.
Meanwhile, scuttlebutt among fans was that Reynolds was fine casting for the character of Deadpool. It's just that "Origins: Wolverine" did him dirty. Eventually, a meta-textural reboot would come in 2016. Reynolds would produce and star and the character's design was deliberately kept closer to the comic books. Deadpool wore a full-head red mask with black ovals around his eyes; the ovals likely inspired the notorious ocular scars in "Origins: Wolverine." In the 2016 film, Deadpool was seen handling an action figure of the "Origins: Wolverine" version of himself, a cute joke that fans could snicker at.
And, as mentioned, Reynolds would eventually go back in time and murder the Adkins version of himself.
Also throughout the so-called corrected "Deadpool" movies, the merc made constant references to Wolverine, seemingly unable to escape his legacy. He will always be remembered for that one embarrassing time he became a mouthless ghoul. It may be fitting that "Deadpool 3" will feature Hugh Jackman once again, playing an older version of the character. It seems that things have come full circle.