Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige helped bring Deadpool into the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), and that meant describing what “pegging” is to a few co-workers who weren’t familiar with the term.
Deadpool and Wolverine is primed to be the first R-rated movie in Disney’s MCU, but the rating is more than just a letter grade. Past films in the saga have toyed with mature ideas, such as some of the more unsettling elements of 2022’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness or even the F-bomb that showed up in last year’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Deadpool, however, is a bit more…crass.
The Merc with a Mouth has a long history of spewing profanity and violence, and that trend continued into Ryan Reynolds’ first and second Deadpool movies. Judging by its first few trailers, Deadpool and Wolverine will fall right into line, marking a major moment for MCU history. Some clips have shown the titular red-and-black-suit-wearing character taking shots at Disney’s expense before Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine drops his own string of F-bombs. There’s one line in question that had Feige pulling out the dictionary.
“Is that supposed to be scary?” Wade Wilson says to a soldier carrying an electric baton. “Pegging isn’t new for me, friendo, but it is for Disney.”
The Marvel boss spoke about the learning curve associated with Deadpool and Wolverine’s MCU debut during an interview with Variety. Although he’s familiar with what pegging is (you can Google it), not everyone who saw the trailer was as aware.
“I know what pegging is — it’s in the first Deadpool movie,” Feige said. “But there were people I work with who didn’t know what it was. I had to explain it to them.”
Feige’s talk with Marvel staff was likely one of a few conversations that needed to happen as work on Deadpool and Wolverine proceeded. Comic book fans everywhere have been curious to see just how far Marvel and Disney would let the third live-action Deadpool movie go. Another trailer gag sees Deadpool teasing that Feige said cocaine was off-limits, but the superhero head says he wasn’t quite so strict.
“We were open to anything,” Feige explained. “Maybe I’m slightly prudish when it comes to drug use, but I was like, ‘Eh, it’s not that funny.’”
The MCU is mutating into a different beast in 2024. Deadpool and Wolverine director Shawn Levy has said the July film is “not like any MCU movie,” which could be exactly what the franchise needs considering it’s the only film in the saga releasing this year. Marvel acknowledged that it recently experienced a rough period but plans to come back strong with a new, more organized release schedule. The change of pace will see the MCU getting around two-to-three movies and two shows per year.
Deadpool and Wolverine comes to theaters July 26, 2024. While we wait only a few more weeks for its release, you can read up on how the film was almost shelved. For everything else coming up in the MCU, you can read about every project in the works here.
Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor with IGN. He started writing in the industry in 2017 and is best known for his work at outlets such as The Pitch, The Escapist, OnlySP, and Gameranx.
Be sure to give him a follow on Twitter @MikeCripe.
