Deadpool & Wolverine is already making waves, making a historical crossover in the MCU with Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman reprising their roles respectively. But before, the movie hit the theatres, Shawn Levy reflected on taking a humorous jab at Hollywood’s lengthy movie runtimes.
The playful jab would have included two of Hollywood’s most respected directors, Denis Villeneuve and Christopher Nolan, but Levy opted to leave them out.
Shawn Levy Talks About Deadpool & Wolverine‘s Movie Runtimes Joke
In an interview with Digital Spy, Shawn Levy, the director behind the widely acclaimed Deadpool & Wolverine, reflected his thoughts on the extended runtimes for their films.
In recent years, there have been several discussions on movie runtimes, with directors like Denis Villeneuve and Christopher Nolan, embracing it to elevate their filmmaking style.
In the newly released banger, Levy talked about including a joke that references the lengthy runtimes of movies, stating that he found it rather exhausting. He shared,
I’m personally astonished that a three-hour movie has become an acceptable norm. I find it exhausting. It, for me, places the bar so high because boy, you better have made a masterpiece if you’re gonna ask me to sit for three hours.
He then talked about the acclaimed directors, praising them for their work, which pushes the boundaries of traditional movie length as it showcases complex narratives.
Now, sometimes people do. Denis Villeneuve is capable of making those movies. [Christopher] Nolan is capable of making those movies. I think I’m pretty good at my job, Ryan’s really good at his job, but the movie is only as long as the story wants it to be.
He reflected that the directors have pretty much kept their storytelling balanced with the runtime, which Levy noted is important to make a movie successful. For the unversed, the Wesley Snipes starrer runs for 127 minutes and 45 seconds.
While the director got enough creative freedom to express Merc with the Mouth’s adventure to its best, there was one joke that was just a step too far.
One Deadpool & Wolverine Joke Was Asked to Changed
Fans must be aware of the fact that no jokes are off-limits for the anti-hero, which was prominently observed in Ryan Reynolds’s new banger. From taking a jab at Hugh Jackman‘s divorce to dissing Marvel, the Merc with the Mouth left no opportunity to bring its irreverent humor to the table.
Although the studio approved several of the movie jokes, there was one particular line that they were asked to change. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the film director got candid about that jab, which couldn’t get the studio’s yes.
Levy shared,
The general rule is to never punch down and to only take the piss out of people who can take it…There was only one line in the entire movie that we were asked to change.
He added,
We have made a pact, Ryan and I, to go to our grave with that line, but I will say that it was replaced with an equally dirty line of dialogue about Pinocchio shoving his face up Deadpool’s a-s and starting to lie like crazy. I was like, ‘Ryan, that’s your replacement line in response to, ‘Can we clean it up?’ That’s Ryan Reynolds for you, audacious to the very edge.”
Despite the request to alter the joke, our titular actor returned with an extra audacious joke, making it more like Deadpool-style. This only showcased that Reynolds has committed to keeping his character’s spirit intact.
As for the movie, it has garnered critical and commercial acclaim, grossing over $1 billion worldwide, as per the Numbers.
Deadpool & Wolverine is running in theatres.
