Major spoilers follow for Deadpool and Wolverine and Loki season 2.
Deadpool and Wolverine has sliced and diced its way into theaters – and, just like the 33 Marvel movies preceding it, we imagine you’ve got plenty of questions after leaving your screening.
Below, we’ve done our best to answer every big query you have about the Marvel Phase 5 movie. That includes whether there’s a customary end-credits scene, who dies in the film, what impact it has on the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), and more. Before you dive in, make sure you’ve read our Deadpool and Wolverine review and then watched it at a cinema near you. Why? Because we’re entering full spoiler territory from this point on. So, turn back now if you haven’t seen it yet.
Deadpool and Wolverine ending explained: who dies?
A lot of people – and I’m not kidding. From canon-fodder Time Variance Authority (TVA) agents and nearly every member of Cassandra Nova’s mutant army in The Void, to the odd 20th Century Fox legacy character or two (more on them later), Deadpool 3 isn’t messing about when it comes to its kill count.
Thankfully, the titular duo aren’t among that number. Initially, it appears that they perished after teaming up to destroy the Time Ripper – a TVA device that prunes timelines with lightning-quick efficiency, and runs on the fusion of matter and antimatter energy. To stop Nova from using it to eradicate the entire multiverse, The Merc With a Mouth and his new adamantium-clawed bestie demolish its energy cores, causing the Time Ripper to blow up and its subsequent explosion to kill Nova in the process (for what it’s worth, Emma Corrin, who plays Nova, would like to portray the character again in a future season of X-Men 97, so maybe they’ll return some day).
Before they destroy the Time Ripper, Mister Paradox warns them that, in the resulting blast, the matter and antimatter that’ll erupt from the mangled cores will eviscerate our heroes. That’s because the released matter and antimatter will react with one another, setting off an explosive chain reaction that’ll disintegrate any living being in the vicinity.
However, the two mutants survive because… well, it’s not explained very well, but my understanding is that, because the duo destroyed the reactors together, their individual bodies bore the brunt of one core apiece. If one of them had single-handedly destroyed both cores, their body wouldn’t have been able to withstand the mixing of matter and anti-matter, thereby leading to their demise. In short: the titular pair live to fight another day, Nova perishes, and the multiverse is safe once more. Well, for now, at least…
Deadpool and Wolverine ending explained: how many cameos are there? And who plays Lady Deadpool?
At my count, there are 32 big character reveals in the movie. Read my Deadpool and Wolverine cameos guide for a full chronological breakdown of who appears, when and why they show up, and whether they survive to the end of the film. That includes who plays Lady Deadpool, who isn’t portrayed by the subject of the next section’s pressing question, which is…
Deadpool and Wolverine ending explained: is Taylor Swift in the Marvel movie?
No, Taylor Swift does not appear in Deadpool and Wolverine.
In the months leading up to one of the best Marvel movies‘ release, the rumor mill went into overdrive when director Shawn Levy and the film’s two main stars – Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman – were seen hanging out with Swift at a football game in the US. Immediately, Swifties and MCU fans begin to theorize that the world’s biggest pop star was set to feature in Deadpool 3.
The fact that Swift is also friends with Reynolds and his wife/fellow actor Black Lively, with whom she was also seen hanging out with (how dare she!) did little to quell the speculation. And, with industry insiders suggesting that she was being lined up to play Dazzler, one of the X-Men‘s many members and a mutant whose main superpower is converting sound into various forms of light, the conjecture refused to die down. Indeed, days before the film’s release, Reynolds had to come out and categorically deny that Swift was part of its stacked cast, although some fans continued to believe he was just trying to throw them off the scent.
As it turns out, Swift isn’t in the film. At all. Nope, she’s not even a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo in the background. So, let this be a lesson to us all: don’t believe everything you read on the internet, folks.
Deadpool and Wolverine ending explained: is there a mid-credits and/or post-credits scene?
There’s no mid-credits scene. Instead, a selection of behind-the-scenes clips from 20th Century Fox’s 13 X-Men movies (find out how to watch the X-Men movies in order while you’re here) play alongside the end credits, which are accompanied by Green Day’s beloved ‘Time of Your Life (Good Riddance)’ song.
As for a post-credits scene, there is one, but it doesn’t signal what’s to come (from a storytelling perspective) in the MCU’s Multiverse Saga. Instead, Deadpool is seen in the division of the TVA that Mister Paradox’s renegade band of agents operated in. Starting with his back to the camera, Deadpool turns to face the audience and, breaking the fourth wall – classic Deadpool – tells us that he’s sick of being blamed for Johnny Storm/The Human Torch’s death in the film’s second act.
He has evidence to prove it, too. Playing a CCTV recording of a captured Deadpool, Wolverine, and Johnny Storm being taken to Nova’s headquarters earlier in the movie, the footage reveals Storm goes off on a foul-mouthed tirade explaining how much he hates Nova. Not only does Chris Evans, who reprises his role as The Human Torch from Fox’s Fantastic Four film duology to the delight of fans everywhere, deliver an brilliant, quick-fire, and edgy monologue, but the scene also vindicates Deadpool.
Remember, before Nova kills Storm, Deadpool tells her all the bad things that Storm apparently said about her. We’re led to believe that Deadpool made it up on the spot to force Nova to focus her attentions on Storm, therefor allowing Wolverine and Deadpool to come up with a plan to scape. As it happens, Storm actually said all of that (and more) about the film’s primary villain. This is one instance, then, where we all owe Deadpool an apology.
Deadpool and Wolverine ending explained: when can I stream it on Disney Plus?
The short answer is: we don’t know. However, if you want more details on when it might arrive on Disney Plus, aka one of the world’s best streaming services, check out my Deadpool and Wolverine on Disney Plus guide.
Deadpool and Wolverine ending explained: what impact does it have on the Marvel Multiverse Saga?
Honestly, not a lot. If I’m being even blunt than that, it doesn’t appear to affect the MCU in any way, shape, or form.
At the end of the movie, Deadpool – with Wolverine and X-23 in tow – simply heads back to his universe (designated Earth-10005) to hang out and eat pizza with the pair and his other pals in his apartment. So, if you were expecting the titular duo to stick around in the MCU once the film was over, or even set up the X-Men’s actual arrival on Earth-616 (the MCU’s designated universe number), you’re sorely mistaken.
That said, there is something that’s teased in Deadpool and Wolverine‘s first act that hints what *snigger* comes next for Deadpool.
During his first encounter with Mister Paradox, the Regenerating Degenerate is told that he has an “important future purpose to serve” in the MCU. What does that mean? The obvious answer is that Deadpool will cross over into the MCU in a future Marvel project, with the odds-on favorites being Avengers 5 (formally known as Avengers: The Kang Dynasty) and/or Avengers 6 (aka Avengers: Secret Wars). It’s likely he’d be joined by Wolverine and X-23 in either/both of those flicks, too, given their potential importance to the multiverse.
Maybe we’ll learn more about what’s in store for these characters during Marvel’s Hall H panel at San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday, July 27. Indeed, the comic titan is expected to reveal more details about its revised Multiverse Saga release schedule, so let’s hope it confirms when we’ll be reunited with this film’s two leads.
Deadpool and Wolverine ending explained: does it contradict what happens in Loki?
Thankfully, no. Ever since it was revealed that Deadpool 3 would have some major ties to Loki season 2, Marvel fans wondered how the two MCU projects would fit together. Based on how Loki season 2 ended in late 2023, viewers became increasingly concerned that Deadpool and Wolverine might retcon certain events in one of the best Disney Plus shows, too.
How so? For one, Deadpool 3‘s titular pair end up having to not only save Earth-10005, but also the Sacred Timeline (i.e. the MCU, aka Earth-616) and every other alternate reality in the Marvel multiverse. That’s because Nova would’ve destroyed everything, except for The Void, using the Time Ripper if our heroes hadn’t stopped her.
That, though, seemingly contradicts what happens in Loki season 2‘s final episode. In it, the titular character becomes He Who Remains 2.0, i.e. the all-seeing, well, overseer of the Marvel multiverse. Indeed, the god of mischief ends up holding the entire multiverse together – using his superhuman abilities – to prevent the multiverse’s destruction. He does so after the Time Loom – another TVA machine that maintains the stability of the multiverse by pruning certain timelines – becomes unstable due to the sheer number of timelines being squeezed through it, leading to its overheating and and exploding, which scatters the dying timelines to the wind. Using his magical powers, Loki single-handedly revives them all, but they’ll only continue to survive if physically holds them. Ergo, Loki is trapped at the End of Time, clutching every timeline branch for eternity.
How does Deadpool and Wolverine potentially contradict this? Well, if Nova uses the Time Ripper to destroy the multiverse, it would effectively retcon Loki’s sacrificial moment in his self-titled show. What’s the point of giving up your freedom to heroically keep every universe alive if another TVA device – in the hands of a supremely powerful being like Nova, no less – can undo your good work?
Right now, nobody in Deadpool 3‘s development, or anyone at Marvel Studios generally, has come out and said whether these two MCU projects co-exist or negate the other. For now, then, it seems Loki season 2’s ending hasn’t been impacted by Deadpool and Wolverine‘s own finale, and we should consider events in both to be canon in the MCU. Hopefully, a future multiverse-centric movie or TV show will give us a definitive answer.