Warning: this article contains spoilers for Deadpool 2! Read ahead at your own risk!
David Leitch's Deadpool 2 is jam-packed with some absolutely fantastic, fourth-wall-breaking hilarity, and one of the most hilarious moments in the entire film is the post-credits sequence in which Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds) uses the time travel technology introduced by Cable (Josh Brolin) to clean up the timeline. Some of the best clips from the montage involve Wade going after Ryan Reynolds and Weapon XI for Green Lantern and X-Men Origins: Wolverine, respectively, and it turns out that this creative move was all Reynolds. Screenwriter Rhett Reese explained:
When Ryan hooked into it, he just thought, 'Well I have to go change some personal events from my life.' Meaning Wolverine and Green Lantern.
True to his well-established reputation as a snarky smartass, Ryan Reynolds has seldom shied away from poking fun at his career misfires. The original Deadpool similarly featured nods to his less-than-beloved films like X-Men Origins: Wolverine and Green Lantern, and with Deadpool 2, Reynolds opted to up the ante and embrace the inclusion of time travel to fix some moments from his career. The result? Some of the best comedy in the sequel, as Wade puts several bullets in Weapon XI before the battle with Wolverine in Origins, and one in his real-life counterpart before his ill-fated foray into the DC Comics' world.
Of course, Ryan Reynolds dying at the hands of Wade Wilson raises questions about how Wade can still exist if Reynolds plays Wilson. That said, Rhett Reese continued in his recent interview with THR and pointed out that the Deadpool 2 opted not to overthink the "logic" of the science. Reese said:
I don't think we've had a joke more meta than Ryan Reynolds killing Ryan Reynolds. I guess you could have said when Deadpool shot Ryan Reynolds, he himself should have disappeared. But that said, we're not paying too close attention to time travel logic, because we don't do that here.
Then again, it's worth noting that the X-Men franchise has placed a line of demarcation between Ryan Reynolds and Wade Wilson. In the first movie, Wade specifically calls out the Canadian actor by noting that he's only successful because of his good looks, so the series has definitely made a point to acknowledge that they are different people. With a movie such as this, it might not be a good idea to wade (pun intended) too far into the science and logic behind the plot.
Deadpool 2 is currently in theaters. Make sure to check the box office hit out on the big screen, and head over to our movie premiere guide to see all of 2018's most prominent and highly-anticipated release dates!
