In some ways, Ryan Reynolds was always destined to play Deadpool. The Canadian actor reportedly first became interested in the role after he learnt that in the comics' version of the Marvel character, he at some point refers to himself as 'Ryan Reynolds crossed with a Shar-Pei.'
Reynolds still had to go through the wringer in order to become Deadpool, with up to eight hours spent on the makeup chair at a time. This hassle would prove to be worth it in the end, though, as the 2016 film became a resounding success with audiences and critics, even earning the right for a sequel in 2018. A third follow-up is also currently in development.
While Reynolds was already a star before Deadpool, his life has changed immeasurably since he played the role, considering the fact that he was also a producer on the project. In deed, the Two Guys and a Girl star had been pushing for years for the film to be green-lit before 20th Century Fox finally bit and came on board to produce it.
Even then, the budget that the studio offered suggested that the concept was not being taken too seriously in Hollywood circles.
What Happened With Ryan Reynolds And 'Deadpool'?
Deadpool is in fact a spin-off of the X-Men movie series. On Rotten Tomatoes, the plot summary for the film reads, 'Wade Wilson is a former Special Forces operative who now works as a mercenary. His world comes crashing down when evil scientist Ajax (Ed Skrein) tortures, disfigures and transforms him into Deadpool.'
'The rogue experiment leaves Deadpool with accelerated healing powers and a twisted sense of humor. With help from mutant allies Colossus and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand), Deadpool uses his new skills to hunt down the man who nearly destroyed his life.'
The Deadpool project was in development as early back as 2000, when Marvel Enterprises struck a deal to work on translating multiple comics onto the big screen. Within the few years that followed, Reynolds became attached to the concept development process, alongside writer and director David S. Goyer (Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D).
The pair had worked together on Goyer's 2004 superhero horror film Blade: Trinity, where Reynolds portrayed the character Hannibal King. By the time the pair saw their Deadpool dream come to pass, it would be almost a decade later.
Reynolds And Goyer Received Constant Rejections Before Getting The Approval
Within the period of time when Goyer and Reynolds were hawking their passion project out to various studios, the actor actually got the chance to step into the Deadpool for the first time. The character had been written into Hugh Jackman's X-Men: Wolverine in 2009.
While this opportunity would have played an important role for Reynold's preparation process of eventually having his own movie as Deadpool, it originally proved to be a hurdle of some kind as well. In Wolverine, the character had had his mouth sewn shut, and therefore been rendered mute.
This particular quirk did not resonate very well with fans, and this reportedly made studios even less enthused about the prospect of making the movie. By the time 20th Century Fox eventually green-lit the project, the actor and his creative collaborator had gone through 11 years - and up to 47 rejection letters from various studios.
In a conversation with SCMP Magazine in 2017, Reynolds opened up about this journey. "We got 47 separate rejection letters before the film got made," he recounted.
Reynolds Says 'Deadpool' Is A Lesson In 'Perseverance And The Long Gain'
The Vancouver-born star was nonetheless able to find a silver lining from this cycle of rejection. "I think there’s something to be said about perseverance and the long gain," he continued, in the SCMP interview.
"I felt like that’s something I really want to challenge with respect to Deadpool, so I just never gave up on it. One way or the other, we ended up making that dream come true." The film was also Reynold's first experience as a producer, something which he took time to adapt to as well.
Part of this challenge was having to turn a relatively limited budget into a film that could move audiences around the world. "We had to turn every dollar into what felt like a hundred dollars," he said in a separate, more recent interview with CBC News.
This kind of innovation helped to transform an idea into a franchise, with fans now speculating on who Deadpool will partner up with next in the upcoming third film of the series.
