In line with his love for the Merc With a Mouth, Ryan Reynolds spent $10,000 so that Deadpool could wear a Bea Arthur T-shirt. Following his first outing as Wade Wilson in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Reynolds made his true debut as the character in 2016’s Deadpool. Completed on a $58 million budget, the R-rated, irreverent movie grossed $783.1 million at the international box office, which changed the way people looked at comic book adaptations. Its unprecedented success inevitably led to Deadpool 2 in 2018. Now, both films are some of the highest-grossing R-rated projects of all time.
Deadpool’s big-screen success is thanks in large part to the lengths Reynolds went to remain faithful to the comic book character. Even after getting a green light on the film, Reynolds peppered Deadpool with allusions to its source material. For example, at the beginning of the first film, Wilson wears a tank top featuring the face of the Golden Girls, Bea Arthur, who passed away in 2009. Fans of the comic know that the anti-hero harbors a crush for Bea Arthur, so much so that he rages when Halle Berry is crowned Sexiest Woman Alive instead of her. This idiosyncrasy detail may have gone overlooked in more negligent hands, but Reynolds made sure to reference it in the movie via Wilson’s shirt and Deadpool’s engraved swords (among other things).
Eric Alper on Twitter recently reminded the world that Reynolds paid $10,000 for permission to wear a T-shirt with Bea Arthur’s face on it in Deadpool. If any fans were in doubt as to the truth of this, the tweet even prompted a reply from Reynolds. The star added, “And per Bea’s family, the money went to her favorite charity.”
Everyone, including Reynolds, often jokes that the actor is Deadpool in every movie (and in real life). Red Notice writer and director Rawson Marshall Thurber is astutely aware of this gag. Sending Reynolds the script for Netflix’s Red Notice, Thurber got in on the Bea Arthur joke, saying, “If you want to do it, you don’t have to call me back, just send me a topless picture of Bea Arthur and I’ll know you’re in.” Upon loving the script, Reynolds, of course, responded in kind. Not only does Reynolds’ irrevocable relationship with Deadpool permeate his professional life, but he has also helped his respective franchise survive 2018’s Disney-Fox merger.
Shortly after the release of Deadpool 2, Disney acquired 20th Century Fox and all its properties, bringing Deadpool, the X-Men, and the Fantastic Four under the control of Marvel Studios. Before this, Deadpool 3 was an almost certainty, but was thrown into limbo once Disney came into the mix. However, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has since confirmed that Deadpool will return, and even Reynolds even recently made his irreverent MCU debut alongside Korg in a promotional video for Free Guy. That being said, Deadpool 3 is expected to be R-rated with Reynolds saying there’s “a 70% chance” it begins filming next year. When it does, however, it’s certain that Deadpool‘s beloved Bea Arthur will make another appearance as well.
