Emma Corrin Details Surprising Inspirations for Deadpool & Wolverine’s Cassandra Nova

Deadpool and Wolverine’s main villain, Cassandra Nova, draws inspiration from two iconic personalities, according to Emma Corrin’s interview with British GQ.

Corrin revealed that Gene Wilder’s Willy Wonka from the 1971 movie and Christoph Waltz’s Col. Hans Landa from the 2009 Quentin Tarantino film Inglorious Basterds greatly influenced the character’s portrayal.

“There’s something extravagant in Gene Wilder’s performance,” Corrin told the magazine.

“And it’s a similar energy that Christoph Waltz has in Inglorious Basterds because he’s wearing a uniform so he can sit there and drink a glass of milk and pretend he’s a f***ing fairy godmother,” Corrin added.

In an Entertainment Weekly interview, Corrin mentioned that director Shawn Levy and actor Ryan Reynolds provided guidance on what they wanted to see in Cassandra Nova’s character.

“‘We want this villain to not be a villain in the sense that you expect them to be. We want you to be so endeared by her, so charmed by her, and just when you think that maybe she’s totally seen into your soul and you are going to be best friends for life, you’re dead,’” Corrin recalled.

It was Levy and Reynolds who pitched Waltz’s Landa character while Corrin suggested Wilder. Combining these influences with their own unique touch, Corrin aimed to embody Levy’s vision, making Cassandra unpredictable like a sudden change in the weather.

Corrin described Cassandra as having the ability to “play the sun, then the clouds come, and you have no idea when it happened or what just happened.”

In the GQ profile, Corrin also answered fans’ questions for the magazine’s Actually Me segment on their YouTube channel. When asked what prompted them to take on the role of Cassandra, Corrin expressed a desire to break away from their usual roles and embrace the challenge of playing a villain. The opportunity to work with Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman further motivated them.

“I think probably because it is a major contrast to my normal roles, and I always wanted to play a villain. And then Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman,” Corrin explained.

They noted that working with Ryan Reynolds was like a masterclass in improvisational comedy, a genre they hadn’t explored much before.

“Ryan improvs the entire time. And it was kind of like a masterclass in that kind of comedy and that kind of genre of film, which I hadn’t really done before. Yeah, what’s not to love,” they shared.

Corrin, an Emmy nominee in 2021 for their portrayal of Princess Diana in Netflix’s The Crown, recently starred in Hulu’s miniseries A Murder at the End of the World.

Further into the video, Corrin stated they asked Marvel for a personal trainer before starting production on Deadpool 3, anticipating a “huge transformation,” but the request was declined.

“They said I don’t have to undergo any physical training,” Corrin noted.

“They were like, ‘That’s absolutely not required of you. Please stand down,” they added.

Corrin acknowledged the pressure of starring in a superhero film, especially given the rising “superhero fatigue” among audiences. However, they expressed confidence in the project.

“There’s a lot of pressure on it, but I think that it’s the right one at the right time,” they explained.

“Because it’s Deadpool, and Deadpool has always broken the mold, right? That’s why Ryan is a literal genius,” Corrin continued.

The hope is for Deadpool and Wolverine to rejuvenate Marvel’s appeal. With box office projections suggesting it could open at around $200 million, the film is on track to potentially break records as the highest-grossing R-rated film in history.

Deadpool and Wolverine is scheduled to hit cinemas on July 26.

Source: British GQ, Entertainment Weekly