Disney and Marvel have no plans for R-rated MCU movies
In the aftermath of Deadpool's record-breaking success - the film has already made $621 million worldwide - Hollywood is busying itself with trying to find the next R-rated superhero franchise. One studio that won't be jumping on that trend is Marvel.
At a recent shareholder's meeting, Disney CEO Bob Iger told a Los Angeles Times reporter that "we don’t have any plans to make R-rated Marvel movies" in response to a question about Deadpool. In other words, audiences will need to look elsewhere to get their adult-oriented superhero fix on the big screen.
Given Marvel Studios' own impressive success these comments aren't all that surprising, and it's not like the company are wanting for harder material. Daredevil and Jessica Jones have been very well received on Netflix and both shows go to some dark places. There's also the fact that because the MCU is so tightly-knit (and entirely PG-13), the tone shift that would come from an R-rated movie would be too radical.
In any case, we're pretty sure Captain America approves.
Directed by Joe Russo and Anthony Russo, and starring Chris Evans, Robert Downey, Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Chadwick Boseman, Tom Holland, Anthony Mackie, and Sebastian Stan, Captain America: Civil War opens in UK cinemas on April 29, 2016 and May 6, 2016 in the US.
Directed by Tim Miller and starring Ryan Reynolds, Morena Baccarin, Ed Skrein, T.J. Miller and Gina Carano, Deadpool is playing in UK and US cinemas now.
Images: Marvel & Netflix/20th Century Fox
Sign up to the SFX Newsletter
Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!
Amon is a contributing editor and columnist for Empire magazine, but is also a Film and TV writer for GamesRadar+, Total Film, and others. He has also written for NME, Composer Mag, and more, along with being a film critic for TalkSport. He is also the co-host of the Fade to Black Podcast, and a video mashup creator. Can also do a pretty good Bane impersonation.