Some of you may not realise this, but in the comics, Deadpool is pansexual. Essentially, that means he makes no distinction between genders or gender identity while choosing romantic partners.
This isn't something the Merc with the Mouth's movies have made too obvious (primarily because his relationship with Vanessa has been front and centre), though some fans are eager to see possible romantic tension between Wade Wilson and Logan explored in Deadpool & Wolverine.
Variety recently caught up with Ryan Reynolds and asked him whether there's any "sexual chemistry or tension" between the movie's title characters.
"I can’t speak for Wolverine, but I feel like Deadpool has sexual tension with everything and everyone," Reynolds responded before Jackman chimed in to say, "Don’t deny this is special."
To that, the Deadpool actor said, "There is a...you’re right. I feel it right now. My God, like two magnets facing the wrong direction." Director Shawn Levy, however, quickly clarified, "Wade is a fan of the Wolverine. He drives [Wolverine] crazy off-screen and on. But there’s a reverence. There’s a fanboy love."
Elsewhere in the conversation, both Reynolds and Jackman were asked for their thoughts on how much the theatrical landscape has changed since the first X-Men and Deadpool movies were released.
"Well, come on. OK, there was this thing called streaming," the former joked. "No, it’s changed a lot. But people are craving connection. Even last year, 'Barbenheimer' were huge event movies that people felt compelled to experience together. You need to have a movie that has a heightened-spectacle element to draw people, more so than those mid-budget films that packed them in in the early aughts."
"I agree," Jackman concurred. "This is not my theory, but a guy who runs a studio was telling me that in 2000, people were going to the movies every weekend. He said, 'Our job was just to tell them...this is a rom-com, this is a horror movie, and they chose off the menu.' It’s different now; there has to be a reason to go."
Both of them hope that reason will be Deadpool & Wolverine. In 2023, moviegoers largely rejected comic book adaptations, refusing to show up for the likes of The Flash, Blue Beetle, and The Marvels.
"There’s always pressure, isn’t there?" Jackman said of knowing the threequel needs to deliver later this month. "It doesn’t matter what movie you’re doing. In 1999, everyone was like, 'You are doing a comic movie?' I had people say to me, 'Make sure you booked another film before this thing comes out.' A good movie, whatever the genre, will rise to the surface."
Fortunately, early box office projections suggest Deadpool & Wolverine will be a record-breaking hit. As for whether Marvel Studios will explore any romantic tension between the two heroes...perhaps with a couple of their Variants!
Deadpool & Wolverine arrives in theaters on July 26.