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‘Deadpool & Wolverine Face Off in Snowy Ant-Man Arena Battle’
[Editor’s note: The following post contains spoilers for “Deadpool & Wolverine.”]
One of the highlights of “Deadpool & Wolverine” was the climactic Ant-Man Arena battle. Here, Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) and Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) team up with Elektra (Jennifer Garner), X-23 (Dafne Keen), Blade (Wesley Snipes), and Gambit (Channing Tatum) to fight Cassandra Nova’s (Emma Corwin) henchmen. However, the wintry look of the scene wasn’t planned.
Initially, the battle was scheduled to be shot last summer at Pinewood Studios. Unfortunately, delays caused by the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes pushed production to December. The U.K.’s bleak skies were unforeseen, and snow became an additional challenge.
ILM, supervised by Vincent Papaix, was responsible for VFX of the battle. They collaborated with Marvel’s production VFX supervisor Swen Gillberg to adapt to the new conditions. “I was on set one day where stuntmen in costume were doing some rehearsal, and we shot a wide-angle shot and a very tight shot with one set of lighting and one with natural light,” Papaix told IndieWire. “It was very cold [33 degrees], so when people talked, their smoky breath was visible, which wasn’t in the script. They asked if we could remove it, but it’s very time-consuming.”
Gillberg and Papaix suggested a test using natural gray and ambient light. Papaix made quick composites on his laptop to present to director Shawn Levy and Ryan Reynolds. “I said, ‘This is what you see right now. But if we turn off our slide and add some snow, we can achieve a more grungy look that fits ‘Deadpool,’” added Papaix. “They said, ‘That looks cool, let’s do it.’”
A week later, the team sprayed the set with fake snow. “Filming in December and embracing the cold really enhanced the final battle’s look. They even used some Christmas music in slow motion,” Papaix said.
The snow used in the scene was a mix of practical, fake, and CG snow, not initially part of the photography. Machine learning aided in depth-layer mapping, which helped composite snow and other elements. “Depth-layer mapping is an artist-driven technique that allows for a volumetric representation of a 2D image, improving CG effects integration,” explained Papaix. “These tools allow our artists to focus more on creativity, rather than mundane and repetitive tasks.”
The battle was shot on the main floor of the arena set. ILM handled CG set extension for the upper level, including the giant Anti-Man helmet, arm, hands, and gates as they opened. They also created digi-doubles for all the principal and crowd mutants, encompassing model, texture, shading, and cloth simulation for their costumes. The stunt and CG fighting were layered, with Marvel handling mocap.
“Integrating that battle involved extensive roto and very complex compositing in layers,” said Papaix. “Despite being quick in the cut, we had six complex shots that required extensive planning and execution.”
One standout scene features the camera moving around all the mutants using their superpowers. Another highlighted Gambit’s abilities, displaying explosive bio-kinetic energy with playing cards. Channing Tatum makes his Marvel debut as Gambit, a role he was set to star in an unproduced feature.
“He brings great energy,” Papaix noted. “You can put cards on people. In one scene, he juggles his cards and throws them, causing explosions. We showcased lots of blood, bones, flesh, muscle, and organs in a very gory way, which Shawn Levy and Ryan Reynolds loved.”
In one shot, Gambit jumps into a hero pose and activates a button that extends into hot metal. He then stabs a Russian character (Billy Clements), causing his entire upper body to explode in a gory spectacle.
“We studied previous ‘X-Men’ movies to pay homage to those effects,” said Papaix. “With better tools now, we can simulate physics more accurately. We relighted characters to make them glow more in 3D, ensuring everything looked great on screen.”
Source: IndieWire
