Josh Brolin had a pretty big superhero year in 2018. Not only was the star (arguably more so than even Chris Evans or Robert Downey, Jr.) in “Avengers: Infinity War” as the villain Thanos, but he also starred as anti-hero Cable in “Deadpool 2.” Both films were massive box office hits, cementing the actor’s legacy as a superhero film legend. But according to the actor, in a recent appearance on the always-great Team Deakins podcast, Brolin explained that there was a big difference in working on both superhero films. And surprisingly, it’s not the Marvel Studios film that felt more like a product than a film.
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“‘Deadpool’ was hard,” Brolin said. “Even though it was funny, it was harder. That was more of a business transaction, it was more, ‘We need to make this like this,’ which I didn’t feel that way with ‘Avengers.’”
The actor further explained the reason why he felt inspired on the set of the most recent ‘Avengers’ films. Apparently, it came down to how The Russo Brothers would constantly bring up landmark films from the past to help gain more impactful performances from their actors.
“They would constantly go back and reference ‘Scarface’ or ‘Dog Day Afternoon,’” Brolin explained. “Whether or not it was a manipulation, they knew what to throw out there to bring it back into something inspired.”
Now, we shouldn’t think that Brolin throwing a bit of shade at “Deadpool 2” for being a “business transaction” detracts from anything that was created in that feature. There’s no denying that the “Deadpool” sequel is wildly popular and just as beloved as the original film. And a big part of that is due to Brolin’s great performance as the curmudgeonly Cable. But it is interesting that a film that seemed so fun to film (at least from the outside eye) could have been a bit of a slog.