When Deadpool landed in theaters in his solo movie, audiences were in for a good time. The Merc with a mouth packed a huge amount of Easter eggs and pop culture references for fans to eat up while they watched him break the fourth wall and battle bad guys on a bridge. Of course, because of the sheer amount of Easter eggs in the movie, some of them took a rewatch—or three—to catch.
By the time the movie released, Marvel fans knew to look out for cameos from Stan Lee and to spot the other comic book characters that might appear. Most of the easy-to-miss Easter eggs, however, came in the form of nods in writing or on clothing. That's because sequences could go by so fast that fans might not have caught them the first time around.
10 Feige's Famous Pizza Is A Nod To The Producer
Today, Kevin Feige is best known as the man behind the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The producer is credited with the vision of connecting the massive Marvel landscape for the last decade, though he, of course, had a lot of talented help.
He gets a shout-out in Deadpool with a pizza place named after him. The nod, however, isn't for the MCU per se. Feige also produced the first trilogy of X-Men films and even the final movie of the Blade trilogy. Ryan Reynolds starred in the latter.
9 Bea Arthur Makes A Deadpool Cameo
In the same scene that involves Feige's Famous Pizza, there's another Easter egg for fans. This one is a pop culture nod that is a double Easter egg, in fact.
In the comics, Wade Wilson is a big fan of Golden Girls, specifically actress Bea Arthur. The Deadpool Corps spaceship is even named for her. Naturally, that means the character had to sport a t-shirt with her face on it in the movie. Of course, this is also a bit of a meta nod since Ryan Reynolds also acted with former Golden Girl Betty White in the movie The Proposal, and the two kept in touch after filming.
8 Wade Is A Broadway Fan
Before he actually becomes Deadpool, Wade Wilson starts a relationship with Vanessa and is diagnosed with the cancer that puts him on the path to treatment from the Project-X program. Not long after being diagnosed, he sports a t-shirt depicting the logo for the Broadway show RENT.
Yes, the shirt does feature the official logo sold to promote the musical. It's an appropriate nod as the musical features numerous characters with life-threatening illnesses—specifically, the AIDS virus—as they embrace the idea of living in the moment.
7 Deadpool's Creative Team Members Get Their Own Signs
Deadpool is one of the many comic book movies that seek to honor the creative team that brought the character to life. Throughout the movie, there are several nods to writers, artists, and crew members who help shape the character.
The main action sequence that features flashbacks throughout the movie provides some of those nods as street signs and highway exits provide Easter eggs for fans. Most of them are easy to spot right away, but a few might require a second look. Ed McGuinness is one of the illustrators that worked on the character while Paul Wernick is one of the movie's writers. Steve Ditko didn't have a hand in this particular character, but the comic book heavyweight is one of the creators of Spider-Man, one of Deadpool's favorite teammates in Marvel comics. All three names appear on highway signs in the movie.
6 Sister Margaret's Chalk Board Features Real Names
It's likely that a fan could catch a few of the names on the dead pool on the chalkboard at Sister Margaret's. The sheer number of names, however, means that the image needs to be paused and rewatched to catch them all.
There are famous actors, like Ryan Reynolds and TJ Miller in a meta nod, on the board. Also included are comic book creators like Rob Liefeld. Political figures like Vladimir Putin even make the board.
5 Wade Mentions A Radioactive Sharpei
After Wade undergoes his physical transformation, he mentions that he looks like he was bitten by a radioactive sharpei. Plenty of fans would recognize that getting bitten by a radioactive anything (like a spider) could imbue a character with superpowers in classic comic book stories. It's the latter part of the line, however, that's really the Easter egg.
In a 2004 Deadpool comic, the title character actually mentions something similar. He describes himself as a cross between Ryan Reynolds and a sharpei. That line makes for some real-life foreshadowing for the actor since it was years before he would play the character.
4 Marrow Appears In The Project-X Lab
With so many Marvel characters tied up in the MCU or in X-Men movies, Deadpool didn't have access to a ton of comic book characters to bring to the screen. That doesn't mean some X-Men characters don't get cameos.
One of those cameos occurs when Wade looks around the labs at the Project-X facility and sees a doctor examining a woman who has bones protruding out of her back. That character is a nod to Marrow, a mutant who has the same power. She doesn't often enter into X-Men stories, and she spends some time living underground with the Morlocks. In the comics, the bones protruding from her skin are actually painful, though she can use them as weapons.
3 Bob Is A Hydra Agent With A Significant Wife
Deadpool spares one of the soldier-like enemies working against him, remembering "Bob" from Project-X. While Bob is a relatively common name, comic book fans will recognize it as a nod to Deadpool's frenemy, a Hydra agent named Bob that frequently crosses paths with the hero. Bob isn't the only nod in his scenes.
Deadpool also references Bob's wife Gail. That would be a nod to Gail Simone, a prolific comic book writer who has worked on impressive runs for Birds of Prey, Domino, and yes, Deadpool.
2 Vanessa References Playing Many Roles
While a lot of fans were aware going into Deadpool that his love interest was also inspired by a comic book character, not all movie-goers knew the character's history. Though she never exhibits any of her comic book abilities in the movie, Vanessa does allude to them.
In the comics, Vanessa is actually an X-Force team member known as Copycat. In her natural state, she has blue skin, but as a shapeshifter, she can copy different physical forms. The movie allows her to reference that as she informs Wade she's, "played many roles" without going into any detail.
1 Rob Liefeld Has A Cameo
In addition to Liefeld's name appearing on the board at Sister Margaret's, the comic book creator has a slew of references in the movie. His name also appears written on a coffee cup, for example. Outside of the written shout-outs, however, Liefeld even appears in the flesh.
He's actually one of the customers at Sister Margaret's. Wade even greets him by name, though it's a moment that's easy for audience members to miss the first time around. Liefeld is one of the creators of both Deadpool and his sequel partner, Cable.