25 years and almost 20 movies later, Deadpool and Wolverine’s Ryan Reynolds pays tribute to Fox’s “weird and risky” Marvel universe with an emotional farewell

Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool in Deadpool & Wolverine — (Image credit: Marvel Studios)

Ryan Reynolds has paid one last tribute to Fox’s "weird, uneven, and risky" Marvel universe following the emotional credits video featured in Deadpool and Wolverine.

Just before the Deadpool and Wolverine post-credits scene, a few minute’s worth of B-roll video, behind-the-scenes footage, and interview clips from the making of Fox’s entire stable of superhero movies were shown – from X-Men, Fantastic Four, and even the likes of Elektra.

It was a heartfelt goodbye to a period that, across 18 movies, helped kickstart and maintain the superhero phenomenon – and surprisingly poignant to boot.

"This isn’t just Deadpool saying ‘Oh, Hello’ to the MCU. It’s Deadpool – and Hugh, Shawn and me – saying farewell to a place and an era that literally made us," Reynolds tweeted, accompanied by a picture of various Fox-verse cast members assembled for 2015’s San Diego Comic-Con.

This isn’t just Deadpool saying ‘Oh, Hello’ to the MCU. It’s Deadpool – and Hugh, Shawn and me – saying farewell to a place and an era that literally made us. We are forever grateful to the fun, weird, uneven and risky world of 20th Century Fox. It was our origin story and we… pic.twitter.com/bvrp3cToteJuly 27, 2024

For almost two decades, Fox held the rights to certain Marvel characters, including the majority of X-Men and Fantastic Four characters. Disney’s 2019 acquisition of Fox, however, means that those rights now fall under the Marvel Studios umbrella.

The end result? The likes of Deadpool and Wolverine, 2025’s Fantastic Four, and Robert Downey Jr. playing Doctor Doom in the MCU.

Still, it’s one of those rare things in superhero cinema: a genuine, heartfelt, and permanent goodbye. It may have been messy – but it had its moments.

For more on the MCU, check out everything announced at Marvel’s SDCC 2024 panel.

Seen Deadpool and Wolverine? Then dive into our breakdown of the Deadpool and Wolverine ending, plus our guides to Deadpool and Wolverine cameos, Deadpool and Wolverine Easter eggs, and all the Wolverine variants and Deadpool variants found in the threequel.

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.