Deadpool 2’s REAL X-Force Explained

It's long been an open secret that Deadpool 2 will be the setup for Fox's X-Force movie. Taking interviews as part of the build-up to the first film's release, Ryan Reynolds insisted that X-Force was a "priority" for the studio, but at the same time it was cautioned there wouldn't be excessive setup.

All that changed when Fox began to release trailers for Deadpool 2. Every TV clip and trailer seemed to stress the importance of X-Force, with Deadpool putting together a "super-duper ******* group." Some viewers actually began to worry that the film would focus too much on X-Force, to the detriment of Deadpool himself.

In the end, though, Fox pulled a bait and switch. Deadpool 2 had teased the X-Force, but the team we saw in the trailers barely made an appearance. Far from getting their chance to shine on the big screen, the likes of Bedlam and Shatterstar were killed with ease.

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Deadpool 2 Was Mocking X-Force (And Its Creator)

There's a sense in which the marketing for Deadpool 2 was the ultimate gag, setting up one film just so the studio could deliver something completely different. The first incarnation of X-Force was a version of the team from the '90s, a blend of X-Force stalwarts like Domino and Shatterstar with lesser-known members like Bedlam and Vanisher. It showed promise, but frankly, it seemed more than a little random. In the end, though, this X-Force team didn't even make it past a parachute jump. Far from cutting a bloody swathe through their enemies, they were shredded by helicopter blades or electrocuted when they collided with electricity wires. Deadpool 2 treated X-Force in just the same way the Merc With A Mouth treats everything else - with subversive wit and humor.

This was underscored by the movie's dialogue that circled around this era of comics. When Domino discusses her super-powers, she's roundly mocked by Wade, who insists luck isn't a power; it's certainly not very cinematic. All that leads to a brilliant gag in which Wade speculates that she was probably created by somebody "who can't draw feet." It's an obvious reference to Rob Liefeld, Domino's creator, who's well known for finding feet difficult to draw - he tends to obscure them behind smoke and dust! There was also a running gag about Cable's bag, with Deadpool describing it as a "fanny pack," another searing critique on the fashion choices Liefeld's characters tend to make. Deadpool 2 further treated X-Force like a joke.

Rob Liefeld, for his part, loved it. He may be well-known for creating some of the most macho, testosterone-driven characters in Marvel Comics, but Liefeld wasn't ashamed to admit he cried after watching Deadpool 2. "Part was the nostalgia of the particular track blasting," he explained, "but mostly the emotion that they had landed the plane in such spectacular fashion." The film may have poked fun at Liefeld, but he clearly thought it was great.

X-Force is Still Coming

Deadpool 2 may have had a laugh at X-Force's expense, but the team movie is still on its way. Drew Goddard already has his own story, and Deadpool 2 writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick are frankly glad to take a break from the Deadpool franchise. As Wernick noted, they've "written a draft of Deadpool every consecutive year since 2009."

All that means this film is a crucial step along the journey to X-Force. There have been reports that X-Force will start filming this Fall, although that depends on the status of Goddard's many in-gestation projects. It's true that Fox's long-term plans are in doubt, given Disney's proposed purchase of the bulk of Fox's movie empire, but Reynolds remains confident an X-Force movie is on its way. As he explained:

"It really is at the moment—and maybe it’s an illusion, and maybe I’m naïve—but it’s business as usual at Fox," claims Reynolds. "I’m not an executive over there ... but I like to think that whoever buys Fox is buying it to keep intact, and to allow it to be its own entity."

X-Force is still on the way, then. So just how did Deadpool 2 set it up?

Page 2 of 2: Meet Deadpool 2's REAL X-Force

Deadpool's "Family" Could Be The Real X-Force

Deadpool's first X-Force team are slaughtered unceremoniously, but that's only so he can build a new team around himself - a group who Wade refers to as his "family." It seems likely that this is the new X-Force, not simply a black ops team of mutants but also a loose "family" who genuinely care about one another. There's a clever visual nod in Deadpool 2's third act reinforcing this idea, with Wade's costume stained gray by fire and dust; it's the color of the costume he wore when he became a member of X-Force in Rick Remender's comic book run.

That means the stars of the X-Force movie are a team unlike any version we've ever seen before in the comics. It's true that there are three classic X-Force team members; Cable, Domino, and of course Deadpool. But while Deadpool is pretty comic-book-accurate, both Cable and Domino are very different to their comic book counterparts. Cable's convoluted backstory has been ditched in favor of a much simpler, far more personal reason for traveling in time; it's a smart move on Fox's part, given his comic book history is frankly bewildering for all but the most committed X-Men fans. Additionally, in terms of power levels, while Cable is still a powerhouse, there's no trace of his telekinesis and telepathy. Meanwhile, Domino's powers have stayed the same, but Zazie Beetz's version is very different in terms of appearance. Colossus, for his part, was only a brief member of an X-Force team; he joined up during Dennis Hopeless's short-lived Cable and X-Force run, and actually became Domino's lover.

Rounding the team out are three younger members, only one of whom has ever even been associated with the X-Force brand before. Firefist is the cinematic version of the blond-haired and blue-eyed "Rusty" Collins, and while the powers are the same, his character and personality - not to mention his visuals - have been switched up by Fox. Negasonic Teenage Warhead was so different to the original comic book version that Fox had to do a deal with Marvel in order to be allowed to run with their version of the character. And the Yukio of the comics isn't even a mutant, never mind a member of X-Force.

Deadpool has Moved Beyond the Comics

In terms of overall tone and style, the Deadpool films have been about as comic-book-accurate as its possible to be. Ryan Reynolds's Wade Wilson is the perfect big-screen of the Merc With A Mouth, wisecracking and breaking the fourth wall with impunity. But even the first film teased that these movies would move beyond the comics, liberally redesigning Negasonic Teenage Warhead. Deadpool 2 takes that one step further; it sets up a potential X-Force team that's not only never been seen in the comics, it wouldn't even be possible without making radical changes to characters who are either long-dead (Russell) or have a strong fan-base (Yukio).

What makes this particularly interesting, though, is that the underlying concepts are still the same; it's the execution that is radically different. In the comics, the original X-Force was created when Cable agreed to serve as a mentor to a group of young X-Men, the New Mutants. The team gradually turned into an interesting blend of adult heroes - like Cable and Domino - and teenagers who were finding their way in a brutal world that hated and feared them. Deadpool's "family" may not be true to the comic book roster, meaning the team dynamic in X-Force will be unlike anything from the comics, but the themes and ideas remain the same. It's a fascinating approach to comic book adaptations, and it's sure to leave lovers of the comics rather divided. The reality is, though, a comic book roster was never going to be on the cards; most of the classic X-Force team members are reserved for Josh Boone's New Mutants, or (in the case of Olivia Munn's Psylocke) exist in a different time-period and are expected to appear in X-Men: Dark Phoenix.

Drew Goddard already has his own story for X-Force, but whatever it may be, it will be completely different to the comics. The core concepts will remain the same; X-Force will still be the ultimate team of black ops mutants, taking on the most brutal threats to the mutant race. As Deadpool 2 co-writer Rhett Reese noted, the team will still be "much more morally flexible" than the X-Men; that means we're in for a darker, bloodier, and even "raunchier" ensemble movie. What makes this equally fascinating, though, is the question of whether or not X-Force will take a similarly dramatic approach to redesigning its villains. If it does, even the most experienced comic book reader can have no idea what to expect.