Disney’s Bob Iger Says ‘Deadpool’ Will Stay R-Rated

There are many, many questions that will be asked the days, weeks, and months ahead following Disney‘s deal for Fox. One of the many queries being pondered is whether or not the squeaky clean Disney will be willing to sully their family brand with some adult oriented grit. Back in the day, the studio reached the non-kid market thanks to movie arms like Miramax and Touchstone Pictures, but in recent years, they’ve strictly stayed in the all-ages, four-quadrant vein. However, “Deadpool” fans have reason to breathe easy.

Speaking with investors this morning, Bob Iger revealed that while “Deadpool” will transition to the Marvel umbrella, no one is going to mess with its R-rated spirit.

“[‘Deadpool’] clearly has been and will be Marvel branded. But we think there might be an opportunity for a Marvel-R brand for something like ‘Deadpool,’ ” he said (via THR). “As long as we let the audiences know what’s coming, we think we can manage that fine.” 

READ MORE: 16 Big Questions On Disney’s Purchase Of 20th Century Fox

So, it sounds like Disney and Marvel are open to the idea of going R-rated in general, depending on the property. However, it should be mentioned that Kevin Feige hasn’t been in a particularly hurry to go down the R-rated road with the superhero brand.

“I don’t think it’s out of the question. When I started at Marvel seventeen years ago, the ‘Blade‘ franchise was doing very well. A lot of people didn’t even know that it was based on a Marvel character because at the time they sort of hid the fact it was Marvel. So, not out of the question, but not something we’re working on right now,” he said this summer.

Certainly, it’s not the rating that makes a superhero movie shine, but the story. More broadly speaking, though, will Disney even take the risk of making something like “Deadpool” or “Logan“? As “Kick-Ass” and “Kingsman” creator Mark Millar points out, with lots more money on the line, the future doesn’t look bright in that regard.

Good for Disney, bad for Fox as extra levels of bureaucracy creep into creative. Also bad for talent as agents have one less studio bidding for projects. I see zero upside to this, beautiful gambles like Deadpool never happening at Disney. https://t.co/pGJjDbC8YN

— Millarworld (@mrmarkmillar) December 14, 2017

Interesting times ahead, with the rest of Hollywood wondering just how much the movie industry and television landscape as we’ve known it is going to change.