It’s a great year for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, all things considered. While we’ve grown accustomed to seeing about three films per year in this franchise, 2024 will see just one in the form of “Deadpool and Wolverine.” But this one film will count as the first R-rated movie in MCU history, and it will bring us a long-awaited team-up. We’re also getting a new villain in the form of Cassandra Nova, played by “The Crown” star Emma Corrin. However, the filmmakers considered at least one other villain before settling on that. Namely, Mephisto.
In an interview ColliderDirector Shawn Levy and star Ryan Reynolds talked about the long process of trial and error they went through to finalize the story of “Deadpool and Wolverine.” This included entertaining multiple villains. “What was the name of the villain we flirted with? Was it Mephisto?” Levy asked, trying to remember the multiple versions of the story before Hugh Jackman called and saved the film by offering to return as Wolverine. Reynolds then confirmed that yes, Mephisto was indeed considered. Elaborating further, Levy explained:
“We went through several ‘almost’ versions of this story before we came to this conclusion… First came Hugh’s infamous call, but then came the idea of Cassandra Nova being Charles’ sister. That happened very soon after that, because Cassandra’s connection to Professor X creates an interesting dynamic and attraction to you in Cassandra. [points to Jackman],
Reynolds explained why he considered her the greatest villain, “It was the panels with Cassandra’s hand in someone’s skull, and it was very disgusting and fun. And we were thinking that was our villain.” To that end, Cassandra Nova has a strange backstory in the pages of Marvel Comics, with the connection to Professor X serving as just the tip of the iceberg.
Mephisto’s debut in the MCU has been a long time coming – sort of
For those who may not be familiar, Mephisto has long been an evil presence in the Marvel Comics universe, starting with his creation in the ’60s. The character first appeared in “Silver Surfer” #3 in December 1968, created by the legendary Stan Lee and artist John Buscema. Not to put too much emphasis on it, but Mephisto is basically Satan in the Marvel universe. He’s been associated with other characters like Doctor Strange and Ghost Rider. He’s also someone that MCU fans have been speculating wildly about for years.
It all really started when “WandaVision” was airing in early 2021, with fans speculating that Mephisto was going to be behind everything that was going on. That turned out not to be true, and show creator Jac Schaeffer didn’t even know who Mephisto was until the speculation began. “There was never any conscious intent on my part to create any confusion about who Mephisto was, because I didn’t know who Mephisto was until I started doing press,” Schaeffer said at the time. As it is, Mephisto has become almost a meme and a constant point of speculation for any MCU project over the past few years. It’s just a little odd that the powers that be actually considered him for “Deadpool and Wolverine” before that changed
We may see Mephisto in the near future, although it will be on the small screen. There have been reports since late 2022 that Sacha Baron Cohen (“Borat”) will appear as the villain in the upcoming “Ironheart” series. The show is set to arrive in 2025, which means all this endless speculation in the rumor mill could finally come to a conclusion in a year or so.
“Deadpool & Wolverine” will hit theaters July 26, 2024.
