The Big Picture

Deadpool & Wolverine
are teaming up, introducing new characters like Cassandra Nova with ties to the X-Men universe.
The film promises loyalty to the comics with powerful villains and elements that expose vulnerabilities in the heroes.
The cast discusses nervous first days of filming, hints about upcoming projects like
Nosferatu
and
Death By Lightning.

In Deadpool & Wolverine, the superhero duo will officially be making their way into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The new movie, out July 26, will see Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) and Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) teaming up as Deadpool tries to save his family, and Wolverine reckons with his past in his own timeline and across the multiverse. The film is also set to star Matthew Macfayden as Mr. Paradox, who recruits Deadpool to the TVA, and Emma Corrin as iconic X-Men villain Cassandra Nova, who is the antithesis to everything Charles Xavier is.

In a new interview with Collider’s Steve Weintraub, Deadpool & Wolverine stars Emma Corrin and Matthew Macfayden chatted about Corrin’s take on Cassandra Nova and the threat she poses to the heroes. They also talked about which day on set had them the most nervous and speculated what Succession’s Tom would be doing if he had access to the TVA.

Deadpool & Wolverine Wolverine joins the “merc with a mouth” in the third installment of the Deadpool film franchise.Release Date July 26, 2024 Writers Rob Liefeld , Fabian Nicieza , Paul Wernick , Wendy Molyneux , Lizzie Molyneux-Logelin Studio Marvel Studios Expand

COLLIDER: I gotta start with the most important question. It’s an individual for [Matthew] if you don’t mind. What was it like winning the game of Succession, and how are things going at Waystar?

MATTHEW MACFAYDEN: It was good, if you can call it winning because it’s still going to be a nightmare, I think, for Tom. Although I don’t know, maybe he’ll be really good at it. I mean, he’s under Lukas’s thumb, and I don’t know how much leeway he will have.

If Tom could use the TVA to change anything you had to do on the show, what would it be?

MACFAYDEN: I think he probably would not have met Shiv and have gone off to marry his childhood sweetheart and, I don’t know, have a boat company.

EMMA CORRIN: He’d do great with a boat company.

MACFAYDEN: Or go and teach scuba somewhere. Have a nice, happy life.

Cassandra Nova Stays Loyal to Her Comic Book Design in ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’
Image via Marvel Studios

People have been waiting to see Cassandra for so long, and I’m just curious, what are you most excited for fans to get with this character when they see the film?

CORRIN: I think they’ll get the things that really tie the character down in the comics, like the incredible power that she has, being this mega-level supervillain. Also, I think the look. We’ve stayed very loyal to the comics with the baldness and the fingers, and the coat, and that look. We stayed very faithful there. I also think her origin story with her twin, Charles Xavier. And, obviously, Wolverine being in this film and bringing in some elements of the X-Men there, you really see those worlds being explored. It exposes some vulnerability in Cassandra’s armor, which I think people will find really interesting. But also, she’s fun because she’s unpredictable, and she’s so much more powerful than these two guys who come in, and she can treat them however she wants to.

That’s what I actually want to do a follow-up on, if you don’t mind. Her level of power can be massive. How did you guys discuss what her level is? Could she kick Thanos’ ass?

CORRIN: To be honest, I was very much operating as Cassandra in the bounds of what the script gave me. Obviously, as we know from the comics, her power is sort of limitless. For the purposes of this, we assume that, but how she uses her power in the script is very much to do with the relationship she builds with these two guys who she meets.

MACFAYDEN: Otherwise, you would just destroy everything.

CORRIN: Yeah. I think she wants to have fun with them. They’re like little toys that come into her play area. She’s very fascinated by them. They pique her curiosity, and I think she’s otherwise quite bored, so she finds them interesting.

It’s always interesting to find the antagonist. A great antagonist can be tough because if they’re too powerful, then…

CORRIN: It’s no fun.

MACFAYDEN: Nothing matters.

Exactly.

CORRIN: I think that’s why Wolverine helps. She’s really curious about him because of his link to her brother. She also doesn’t want to explode them into smithereens because she’s interested in what he knows and how he knows Charles.

Related The MCU Just Took a Major Step Towards an ‘X-Men’ Movie The long-in-development project has finally found a writer.

So you guys see the shooting schedule in front of you. What’s the day you have circled in terms of, “Oh my god, I cannot wait to film this?”

CORRIN: My first day, to be honest, because I really had no idea what to expect. I was expecting a little green screen. My first day was with Hugh [Jackman], Ryan [Reynolds] and Matthew. I didn’t know what to expect. Actually, I shouldn’t have been that nervous or felt overwhelmed by anything, because it was just really lovely. We had a lovely time.

MACFAYDEN: Same, yeah. It’s always the first day that you’re thinking, “Yeah, I’m gonna just be led off set. ‘Go away. We’re recasting.’”

What is it like the night before the first day of filming on something like this, even though you have the script, even though you know a little bit of what’s coming? How much are you in your head? Are you sleeping, or are you second-guessing everything?

MACFAYDEN: Not brilliantly, for me.

CORRIN: Those early pickups don’t help.

MACFAYDEN: First days are always like you’ve never been on set before. You’ve never acted before. They just are.

CORRIN: You don’t really know what the vibe will be like. The tone on set and how good you’ll be able to do your job is always set by the lead actor, producers, and the director. Luckily on this, we had such a fantastic team who were able to fill us with complete confidence and I felt very able to play with the character and have fun. We ended up actually finding a lot of Cassandra along the way that we didn’t think we would, and that was really fun.

Emma Corrin Teases Robert Eggers Nosferatu
Image via Focus Features

Last question for both of you. I’m really looking forward to Nosferatu, and I’m also looking forward to Death By Lightning. What can you guys tease about these projects?

CORRIN: It’s just probably gonna be the scariest thing you’ve ever seen in your life. So, a great way to spend Christmas Day.

MACFAYDEN: I’ve just started, so I’m really enjoying it. Fingers crossed. It’s a really fascinating story. That’s why I have this [gestures to beard]. This is just half of it. It’s augmented. But it’s good fun with really lovely actors, a great script, a lovely director, and a really interesting time in history, which is echoed by recent events.

Deadpool & Wolverine hits theaters on July 26.

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