Decoding the Puzzling Spider-Man Easter Egg in Deadpool & Wolverine

The highly anticipated Deadpool & Wolverine made an impressive mark at the box office, earning nearly $825 million after just two weekends. It’s clear that it will surpass the $1 billion mark very soon. Given the addition of Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds) to the MCU, many believed that Deadpool 3 would easily achieve this milestone. After watching the movie, it’s evident that it could even reach $2 billion during its theatrical run, thanks to its well-thought-out and entertaining storyline.

However, like any other Marvel movie, Deadpool & Wolverine isn’t without flaws. There are several plot holes in Deadpool 3 that Marvel might want to address in future films.

One intriguing aspect of the movie is Deadpool’s connection to Earth-616. This connection is both logical and somewhat perplexing. A particular Spider-Man Easter egg in the film is already causing confusion among fans. Spoiler alert: it’s not the Easter egg seen in trailers or TV spots.

There’s a memorable scene where Deadpool and Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) are driving around in the Void. One of them is becoming increasingly annoyed by the other. I’ll let you guess who is who. At one point, Deadpool mimics Spider-Man’s web-shooting gestures and sounds, which annoys Wolverine. This moment indicates that both characters are well aware of Spider-Man’s existence.

You might assume we’re about to see a Spider-Man variant in the Void, which would be exciting. Unfortunately, that cameo doesn’t happen. This scene isn’t the confusing Spider-Man Easter egg in Deadpool & Wolverine. I wanted to clarify that before diving deeper.

The first significant Spider-Man Easter egg appears early in the film. Wade visits Earth-616 to apply for a job with the Avengers. He approaches Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) and explains his eagerness to join. There’s a somewhat emotional moment where Happy explains that the world needs the Avengers, not just as superheroes but as symbols of hope.

As Happy speaks, the camera pans to various Avengers-related Easter eggs in his office. Behind Deadpool, there’s a familiar photo on a shelf. This photograph is seen in Avengers: Endgame when Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) decides to invent time travel to help the Avengers with their Time Heist plan.

Spider-Man (Tom Holland) plays a crucial role in Tony’s decision to undertake the Time Heist. Tony blames himself for losing the kid on Titan and sees the Time Heist as an opportunity to bring Peter Parker back.

In Deadpool & Wolverine, we only see half of the photo in Happy’s office. The half that shows Tony Stark is visible, while a toy Iron Man mask obscures the half with Tom Holland’s Peter Parker. Interestingly, the toy mask is the same one a kid wore in Iron Man 2, indicating that this child might be a young Peter Parker.

Some Marvel fans speculate that Peter Parker isn’t shown because of Doctor Strange’s (Benedict Cumberbatch) spell in No Way Home, which made the world forget that Peter Parker is Spider-Man. This theory, however, doesn’t fit the timeline.

Strange’s spell only applies from the events of No Way Home onward, which happens in the summer following Endgame. So, the spell can’t retroactively change the past to make people forget Peter Parker’s identity during his early days as Spider-Man.

Additionally, Deadpool & Wolverine doesn’t show the full photograph to avoid showcasing Tom Holland, as his portrayal of Spider-Man is under Sony’s control. According to the current Disney-Sony deal, Spider-Man is slated to appear in another MCU project before Spider-Man 4, possibly in Daredevil. For now, he can’t appear in a Marvel film— not even indirectly in a photo.

Source: BGR