Deadpool; American superhero film

Deadpool is a 2016 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. It is the eighth installment of the X-Men film series, and is directed by Tim Miller. Written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, the film stars Ryan Reynolds, Morena Baccarin, Ed Skrein, T. J. Miller, Gina Carano, Brianna Hildebrand, and Stefan Kapičić. In Deadpool, Wade Wilson hunts the man who gave him an accelerated healing factor, but also a scarred physical appearance.

Development of a Deadpool film began in February 2004 with New Line Cinema. However, in March 2005, New Line put the film in turnaround and 20th Century Fox became interested. In May 2009, after Reynolds portrayed the character in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Fox lent the film to writers, and in April 2011, Miller was hired for his directorial debut. CGI test footage created by Miller and Reynolds was leaked in July 2014 to an enthusiastic response, leading to Fox greenlighting the film that September. Additional casting began in early 2015, and principal photography took place in Vancouver, Canada, from March to May. Visual effects were provided by multiple vendors, and ranged from the addition of blood and gore to the creation of the completely computer generated character Colossus.

Deadpool premiered in Paris on February 8, 2016, and was released on February 12, 2016 in North America in IMAX, DLP, D-Box and premium large formats. The film had the highest-grossing opening weekend for an R-rated film in North America, and broke numerous other box office records, while receiving generally positive reviews, with critics praising Reynolds' performance, the humor, and the action sequences, but criticizing the plot as formulaic. A sequel has been greenlit.

Wade Wilson is a former special forces operative who works as a mercenary in New York City. He meets escort Vanessa Carlysle at a local bar and they become romantically attached. One year later, Wade proposes to her and she accepts, but he suddenly collapses. Wade is diagnosed with terminal cancer and though Vanessa remains by his side, he fears losing her.

A recruiter from a secret program approaches Wade offering an experimental cure for his cancer. Although Wade initially refuses, he decides to leave Vanessa and undergo the procedure. At a laboratory, Wade meets Ajax and Angel Dust, whom he instantly resents. Ajax injects Wade with a serum designed to awaken latent mutant genes, then has him subjected to weeks of torture to induce stress and trigger the mutation without success. Wade discovers Ajax's real name, Francis Freeman, and mocks him. In response, Ajax straps Wade into an airtight chamber which raises and lowers the oxygen level to keep Wade constantly on the verge of asphyxiation. Ajax reveals to Wade their true purpose: to make super-powered slaves to be sold to wealthy customers. Several days later, Wade develops a healing factor which cures his cancer and he escapes from the chamber with a severely disfigured face and skin. He attacks Ajax, but relents when told that his disfigurement can be cured. Ajax subdues Wade, impales him with a rebar and leaves him for dead in the burning laboratory.

Wade attempts to return to Vanessa, but is afraid of her rejecting him because of his appearance, and keeps himself away from her. After consulting his best friend Weasel, Wade decides to hunt down Ajax and have his disfigurement cured. He becomes a masked vigilante, takes the alias "Deadpool", and moves into the home of an elderly blind woman named Al. Following a string of leads, Deadpool tracks down Ajax to a convoy of cars on an expressway. He kills all the escorts, corners Ajax and demands a cure to his disfigurement. The confrontation is interrupted by two X-Men, Colossus and Negasonic Teenage Warhead, who have been trying to recruit Deadpool. Taking advantage of the distraction, Ajax escapes. Colossus handcuffs himself to Deadpool and begins dragging him away, in order to take him with them back to the X-Men's mansion. Deadpool cuts off his own hand and escapes. His hand slowly regenerates overnight.

Ajax goes to Weasel's bar and learns about Vanessa. In response, Weasel calls Wade and tells him Vanessa is in danger. Wade goes to the strip club where she works but hesitates before he can face her. As a result, Ajax has time to kidnap Vanessa. He and Angel Dust tell Deadpool to meet them on a decommissioned helicarrier in a scrapyard.

Deadpool convinces Colossus and Negasonic to help him, and the trio takes a cab to the scrapyard. While Colossus and Negasonic battle Angel Dust, Deadpool fights his way through Ajax's henchmen, and eventually engages him in close combat. After Angel Dust knocks out Colossus, Negasonic uses her power to repel her, but accidentally destroys the equipment holding the helicarrier upright. As the helicarrier tips over, Colossus wakes up and takes Negasonic and Angel Dust to safety, while Deadpool successfully saves Vanessa. Ajax, still alive, attacks Deadpool, but is subdued and reveals there is no cure for Wade's disfigurement.

Colossus urges Deadpool to spare his enemy, but Deadpool kills Ajax. Wade turns to Vanessa, who removes his mask revealing his face. Vanessa is angered that Wade left her, but still loves him. She accepts him, and they reconcile by kissing.

In a post-credits scene parodying Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Wade bids the audience to leave because the movie is over. Wade however has a change of heart and announces a sequel featuring Cable before reminding the audience to pick up their trash.