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A selection of familiar ex-Marvel faces have made an appearance at Comic-Con 2024 in San Diego to celebrate the release of Deadpool & Wolverine.
The film is the third instalment in the Deadpool movie franchise, and sees Ryan Reynolds unite with Hugh Jackman, who is returning as the X-Men character Wolverine alongside a glut of cameos from characters across the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and beyond.
*Spoilers follow – you have been warned*
Captain America star Chris Evans, 43, came out as a surprise guest at the Deadpool & Wolverine panel at the convention on Thursday night (25 July), after it was revealed the star had made a shock cameo as his Fantastic Four character, Johnny Storm, who he last played 17 years ago.
Elektra actor Jennifer Garner, 52, also attended the panel alongside Dafne Keen, Channing Tatum and Wesley Snipes who joined Deadpool & Wolverine stars Jackman, Reynolds and Emma Corrin, director Shawn Levy, and Marvel president Kevin Feige, on stage for the post-screening chat.
Garner stepped out in support of the film as she has also resurrected her Marvel character, who she last played in 2005, for a special appearance in Deadpool & Wolverine.
Elsewhere, Tatum surprised fans by featuring in the film as the X-Men character Gambit, who he was cast as for a solo movie many years ago, which was cancelled before reaching production.
Snipes also stepped back into a familiar role for the film, appearing as his trilogy’s titular character Blade, who he played in Blade, Blade II and Blade: Trinity – released between 1998 and 2004.
Meanwhile, Keen’s appearance came as no surprise to fans after the return of her X-23 character from the 2017 film Logan was revealed in Deadpool & Wolverine’s final trailer a week before its theatrical release.
The myriad of returning ex-Marvel characters in Deadpool & Wolverine comes after the film’s executive producer Wendy Jacobson suggested there “may or may not have been some subterfuge and misdirections on the internet or in-person in order to protect the secrecy” of actors who would be cameoing in Deadpool & Wolverine.
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Speaking to GamesRadar+, she said “I can neither confirm nor deny any cameos in this film but I will say, in terms of characters that may or may not appear, it was always important to us that nothing in this movie feels like a gimmick.”
“Anyone showing up has a crucial story purpose or a beginning, middle, and end as a character arc. It was definitely a collaborative process of seeing who fit in and who didn’t.”
Ahead of its release, a trailer for the movie broke records, racking up 365 million views in 24 hours.
However, The Independent’s Clarisse Loughrey was left unimpressed by the film, calling it a “tedious and annoying corporate merger of a film”, and assigning it a paltry two stars.
“It’s a marvel just how desperate this film is,” quipped The Telegraph, seconding Loughrey, and providing it an even lower and very lonely one star.
Meanwhile,Variety called the bromance an “irreverent send-off to Fox’s X-Men movies”, suggesting that the movie focuses on giving fans closure. Looking backwards, the film “works best as an irreverent homage to what’s come before, as opposed to the prototype for future superhero movies”.
