Director Shawn Levy recently outlined the cameos planned for Deadpool & Wolverine. On a recent podcast, Levy confirmed that the team considered characters like Nicolas Cage’s Ghost Rider and Ben Affleck’s Daredevil. But, he and Ryan Reynolds revealed why Cage’s Ghost Rider never made it to the final cut.
Ryan Reynolds and team tried to get Nicolas Cage’s Ghost Rider in Deadpool & Wolverine
Ryan Reynolds and director Shawn Levy recently discussed efforts to include Nicolas Cage’s Ghost Rider and others in Deadpool & Wolverine.
Appearing on EW’s Awardist podcast, Reynolds confirmed that characters like Ghost Rider and Ben Affleck’s Daredevil were considered early on. “They were in early drafts…but then as it shook out, you’re sort of looking…We’re trying to make the movie responsibly…it’s the biggest budget of any of the Deadpool movies…So, you’re shrinking things,” Reynolds explained. “But we did talk to Nic Cage…we tried to get him, but he was a no-go…I would’ve loved him,” he further stated.
Marvel concept artist Rodney Fuentebella had previously teased this scrapped scene with illustrations of Ghost Rider, Daredevil, and other iconic characters. The artwork depicted a large Deadpool Corps. fight scene. It featured characters like Wesley Snipes’ Blade, Chris Evans’ Human Torch, and Jennifer Garner’s Elektra, along with Affleck’s Daredevil and Cage’s Ghost Rider.
They planned to fight alongside Reynolds’ Wade Wilson and Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine. Although some characters did not make it, Levy expressed gratitude for those who did. He said, “Luckily, we got a lot of yeses…mostly because Ryan would just call them directly. He’d often do an ambush FaceTime and put them on the spot.”
While Cage’s cameo did not happen in the latest Deadpool outing, he recently reprised an alternate superhero role in The Flash, appearing as Superman from an alternate dimension. In an interview with Yahoo Entertainment, Cage reflected on this cameo and said, “What I was supposed to do was…[witness] the destruction of the universe…Kal-El was bearing witness [to] the end of a universe…I had no dialogue [so had to] convey with my eyes the emotion.”
Despite missing out on Deadpool & Wolverine, the ongoing MCU Multiverse Saga may offer Cage another chance as Ghost Rider. Deadpool & Wolverine is available on DVD and Blu-Ray. It will also arrive on Disney+ on November 12.
