The Merc with a Mouth just added another title to his name: box office king.
Disney’s blockbuster sequel Deadpool & Wolverine has grossed an astonishing $1.086 billion worldwide in just 23 days, dethroning 2019’s Joker ($1.078 billion) as the highest-grossing R-rated movie in history.
Premiering on July 26, the latest Marvel installment opened with an impressive $211 million domestically, marking the sixth-largest opening weekend ever. Since then, the film has continued to dominate, raking in $516 million in North America and $568 million internationally. It’s already outpaced the total earnings of its predecessors—2016’s Deadpool ($783 million) and 2018’s Deadpool 2 ($786 million)—in just two weeks. Deadpool & Wolverine is now the second-biggest hit of 2024, following Disney-Pixar’s Inside Out 2 ($1.558 billion), and only the second R-rated movie ever to cross the billion-dollar threshold.
“Thanks for making Marvel Studios’ first R-rated movie the biggest of all time,” Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige said in a statement. “It’s amazing to see how much audiences love this movie, just like we enjoyed making it. All those discussions were worth it!”
Feige is referencing a joke in the film where Deadpool claims Feige’s only restriction was “no cocaine.” In reality, Feige clarified in a July interview with Variety: “After you hear a joke for the 28th time, it loses its punch. Maybe I’m a bit old-fashioned when it comes to drug humor, but I felt like, ‘Eh, it’s not that funny.’ Ryan, naturally, stored that and made it a great gag in the movie.”
Starring Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool and Hugh Jackman reprising his role as Wolverine, the film is a milestone for Marvel as it introduces characters previously held by 20th Century Fox into Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe. It also marks the MCU’s first R-rated entry.
“It’s not R-rated just for shock value,” Reynolds told Variety before the release. “It’s all about staying true to the character. Deadpool’s humor and crudeness are part of who he is—a mix of a chaotic 7-year-old’s mind in an adult’s body.”
The film’s stellar performance can be credited not only to Reynolds and director Shawn Levy’s reunion with Jackman’s iconic Logan, but also to a star-studded lineup of Fox-era heroes. Fans flocked to theaters to catch surprise appearances from Jennifer Garner as Elektra, Chris Evans as the Human Torch, and Wesley Snipes as Blade, all joining Deadpool and Wolverine in their chaotic mission to fix a fractured timeline. To avoid spoilers, devoted fans rushed to see the film multiple times, adding to its box office success.
