Skip To...
Deadpool 3 boasts a few selling points, but recent coverage usually tackles its cameos. Marvel and Star Wars earn constant pushback for relying on memorable names and faces over new content. Deadpool‘s constant X-Men references earn a pass by making fun of their ostensible franchise neighbors, but their position in the MCU could change that. We can’t know whether Deadpool 3 will overuse its cameos, but its structure allows for unique complications.
Deadpool’s Cameos Are Uniquely Vulnerable to Spoilers
On December 3rd, a “fan-source for news and updates on Marvel’s upcoming X-Men & Deadpool related films” posted photos from the set of Deadpool 3 on Twitter. This account releases similar information all the time. Their December 3rd Tweet featured a potentially substantial spoiler. I won’t repeat it on the off-chance you aren’t among the 5.8 million who saw it or the hundreds of millions who read articles about it later. They’ve since posted more spoilers. Tons of comments underneath each post bemoan the user for ruining their fun. Some have even argued that these “scoopers” may contribute to Marvel’s overuse of digital backlot techniques to shoot indoors. While the act of publishing Deadpool 3‘s cameos nearly a year before the film debuts is questionable, this news will be forgotten as long as the film has more than character callbacks to offer.
Spoiler culture became a mess thanks to social media sites like Twitter. Fans frequently ruin the fun for everyone they can by blasting their reactions across the internet as soon as they see something. Anyone who dares to wait a week will often lose interest. Outlets measure a film’s second weekend dropoff to determine how word-of-mouth affects box office success. Some probably skipped the week two showings because someone ruined the surprises shortly after opening night. If Deadpool 3 sells itself on cheap pops, all of its worthwhile moments will leak. If it’s a genuinely good movie hiding more than recognizable names, fans will see it either way. The cameos in Deadpool 3 have to be there for a reason or risk the fun being wasted on Twitter.
Every Cameo Is a Waste of Somebody’s Time
Cameos can be a fun way to reward an audience for sticking with the franchise for a long time. When the new outing gives the spotlight to a character from one of the earlier entries, it’s a cheap pop of nostalgia for everyone who gets the reference. But what about the newcomers who haven’t seen the X-Men movies? Every time a Marvel movie throws in an applause break for a character barely involved with the story, a percentage of the crowd isn’t clapping. If you only care about Deadpool, it shouldn’t be too much to ask to be able to understand the new sequel. Deadpool used minor X-Men characters brilliantly in its first two outings. Minor characters, absent or without a significant role in previous films, made great secondary figures in Deadpool. Deadpool 3’s cameos are two numerous to enjoy that level of detail.
Seeing a character you don’t recognize walk in, like Norm from Cheers, does more than waste a few seconds of valuable movie time. It’s also alienating to new viewers. The experience of missing something that made a whole theater applaud feels terrible. You look around like you accidentally walked into the wrong room. It only takes two or three times to start thinking you’re out of touch. Every reference you get is like a reward for sticking around. Each one you miss suggests that you’re not as into the franchise as you thought. That’s part of the reason people leave the MCU. Deadpool 3 could entice viewers who love the first two films, then turn them off Marvel movies by dropping too many names.
Cameos are routine in modern franchise blockbusters. Everyone from Marvel to DC to Star Wars and beyond relies on the occasional appearance of an old icon. They have diminishing returns, but studios love the idea. The IP holders would love to believe they can keep raking in cash for jingling beloved characters around like keys in front of a baby, but they can’t. As superhero movies continue a slow decline, Deadpool 3 might be the final battle for the fate of cameos.
