Deadpool & Wolverine was one of the most highly anticipated films of 2024 — and boy, did it deliver. In an interesting move, it’s a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which will officially bring both 21st Century Fox characters into the MCU. Deadpool & Wolverine has grossed a whopping $1.26 billion worldwide. It now holds the title as the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time, beating out 2019’s Joker, and is the second-highest-grossing movie of 2024, making this a much-needed win for Marvel Studios. And the success is deserved.
Deadpool & Wolverine brought back Ryan Reynolds as the fast-talking, wise-cracking Deadpool, and, more famously, it brought Hugh Jackman back for his tenth performance as Wolverine — and in the character’s iconic yellow suit and mask, making fanboys everywhere jump out of their seats. There’s action, there’s nostalgia, there’s crude language and graphic violence.
And there are also cameos. Like, a lot of cameos. Some of them we saw coming, like Blake Lively as Lady Deadpool (fans have been speculating that this character would either be voiced by Lively or Taylor Swift for months). But for the casual comic book fan, these 8 cameos in Deadpool & Wolverine were unexpected — and totally kicked butt.
8 Matthew McConaughey
Cowboypool
This one is so quick and subtle that you’d completely miss it if you weren’t paying attention, especially since it’s a voice cameo. Toward the end of the film, an army of Deadpool variants travel into the main Deadpool’s world. Among them is a Wild West variant known as Cowboypool, who’s voiced by none other than Matthew McConaughey. Listen closely, and you’ll hear the actor’s unmistakable Southern drawl.
7 Aaron Stanford
Pyro
Pyro is a supporting antagonist from the original X-Men trilogy, a mutant with the power to manipulate fire, though he’s incapable of creating his own. Although Alexander Burton played the character in 2000’s X-Men, it’s Aaron Stanford’s portrayal as Pyro in X2 and X-Men: The Last Stand that fans remember most. Stanford reprised the villainous role in Deadpool & Wolverine.
Deadpool encounters him in the Void, a place of existence at the end of time where problematic characters and 21st Century Fox franchises go to die. But both Pyro and Stanford get one last showing in Deadpool & Wolverine, making this an unexpected but nostalgic cameo for middle-aged fans of the original X-Men trilogy.
6 Jon Favreau
Happy Hogan
Happy Hogan is a beloved recurring character in the MCU. Even Jon Favreau himself, who portrays the character, has become a beloved recurring partner for Disney, from officially kicking off the MCU with 2008’s box office smash, Iron Man, to creating the hit Star Wars series on Disney+, The Mandalorian.
Happy is the Head of Security at Stark Industries and was one of Tony Stark’s best friends. He’s appeared in many movies over the years, including every Iron Man and Spider-Man film in the MCU. And now, he’s just added Deadpool & Wolverine to his resume.
Happy comically meets with Deadpool in the beginning of the film to discuss his prospects of joining the Avengers — which, at the time, were zero. Will we one day see Deadpool team up with the Avengers now that he’s a part of the MCU and is a proven box office success? Only time will tell.
5 Henry Cavill
The Cavillrine
Henry Cavill is known for starring in that other comic book cinematic universe, which Deadpool humorously refers to as “those sh****cks down the street.” Cavill rose to fame playing Superman in the DC Extended Universe but was recently axed, along with the rest of the DCEU, when James Gunn took the reins. Now we’re getting a new DC universe, kicking off with a brand new Superman, some time in 2025.
Rumors have been circulating that Marvel would pick up Cavill, who also just tragically lost his role as Geralt of Rivia on Netflix’s The Witcher, to play Wolverine. But that gossip was silenced when it was announced that Jackman would be reprising the role. No one was expecting Cavill to appear in the film as a Wolverine variant. Deadpool’s reaction to this cameo perfectly summarizes many fans’ reactions:
“Oh my f**k! The Cavilerine. The legends are true. And may I say sir, on behalf of all humanity, this just feels
right.
”
And it really did. His hair, his build, his edginess — it was all so perfectly Wolverine. Will we one day see Cavill return as this badass hero? Fingers crossed that we’ll get to see more of this version of the character somewhere down the line.
4 Jennifer Garner
Elektra
One of Jennifer Garner’s most famous roles is that of the blade-wielding assassin Elektra, who she played in 2003’s critically panned Daredevil and its commercially unsuccessful spin-off, Elektra. Audiences didn’t think they’d ever see this character again (and probably didn’t care to, given how bad those movies were). But Garner makes an epic, slow-motion entrance in Deadpool & Wolverine, accompanied by some other unexpected faces on our list.
Like Pyro, Elektra has been living in the Void and is given one last hurrah in Deadpool & Wolverine. We assume Ben Affleck’s Daredevil is also wandering the Void somewhere, but he never pops up in the movie.
3 Wesley Snipes
Blade
Long before the MCU, before we even had Hugh Jackman as Wolverine or Tobey Maguire as Spider-Man, we had Wesley Snipes as Blade. Beginning in 1998, Snipes has starred as the vampire-hunting character in three Blade films. Many people forget that Blade is actually a Marvel Comics character.
Ryan Reynolds himself said, “There is no Fox Marvel Universe or MCU without Blade first creating a market. He’s Marvel Daddy,” and called for a Logan-like sendoff for the character. This, however, is doubtful as Marvel Studios announced a Blade reboot featuring Mahershala Ali as Blade, set in the MCU. It’s more likely that Blade/Snipes’ unexpected cameo in Deadpool & Wolverine will be the Logan-like sendoff that Reynolds wanted.
2 Channing Tatum
Gambit
Aside from Cowboypool, all the cameos on this list came from characters who’ve appeared in previous Marvel-related films. This one, however, is original. Well, sort of. Gambit, the card-throwing mutant and a fan-favorite member of the X-Men, has been notoriously absent from many of the X-Men movies. He finally made his debut in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, where he was played by Taylor Kitsch. But Gambit’s inclusion was overshadowed by the negative reactions to the film.
21st Century Fox promised to bring justice to this superhero by developing a solo Gambit movie, where he was meant to be played by — yep, you guessed it — Channing Tatum. The film was slated for a 2009 release. But it got stuck in developmental hell and was canceled after Disney acquired 21st Century Fox.
Fifteen years later, Tatum finally got his chance to play Gambit in Deadpool & Wolverine, where the character was appropriately wandering the Void. The actor gave a killer performance while playing up the character’s Cajun accent for comedic effect. A deleted scene shows that Gambit survived the events of Deadpool & Wolverine, leaving his fate open in the MCU.
1 Chris Evans
The Human Torch
Chris Evans is one of the biggest stars in the MCU, known for playing the iconic Captain America. When he surfaced in the Void during Deadpool & Wolverine, everyone, even Deadpool, assumed that he was playing Captain America. But the film subverted our expectations with a clever twist. Evans wasn’t playing Captain America. He was playing his first Marvel superhero, the Human Torch from the original Fantastic Four movies. And let’s just say, things don’t end well for him.
