Deadpool & Wolverine Almost Featured This Iconic Marvel Villain
Prior to the decision to make Cassandra Nova the villain in Deadpool & Wolverine, the filmmakers considered other possibilities for the main baddie. In an interview with Collider, star Ryan Reynolds revealed that they toyed with the idea of having Mephisto AKA The Devil be the main villain.
Director Shawn Levy said the crew had a lot of “almost” versions of the story before the writers pinned down exactly what the narrative would be for Deadpool & Wolverine, and in one version, Mephisto was the bad guy. However, this didn’t go forward, but it’s not exactly clear why. Reynolds previously discussed the numerous different ideas he tinkered with before Hugh Jackman joined the project and the film became something of a team-up.
Levy said he was drawn to the idea of Cassandra being the villain in part because of how she connects with X-Men’s legacy. “It was this idea of Cassandra Nova as a sibling to Charles because Cassandra’s link to Professor X creates an interesting dynamic and fascination in Cassandra about you [to Jackman],” Levy said.