Believe it or not, it sounds likeDeadpool 2is getting a PG-13 release later this year calledThe Deadpool Before Christmas. Fox scored a home run earlier this summer with the highly-anticipated sequel and it looks like they’re doing just about anything they can to squeeze everything out of that cash cow while they still can. That’s apparently going to involve them somehow getting the movie down from its very R-rated cut to a PG-13 version, which could allow younger viewers to see it who may not have had the chance to previously.
According to a new report, the studio is indeed planning to release a PG-13 cut ofDeadpool 2in theaters this December. This comes as thestudio has done some major shifting with their release calendar.Alita: Battle Angelhad previously been set for release on December 21, but that’s been shifted to June 04, 2025, which was whenDark Phoenixwas supposed to arrive. But that nextX-Menadventure has now been bumped once more to July 30, 2025, the date previously held for the long-gestatingGambit, which will now (hopefully) arrive on August 03, 2025. Don’t hold your breath on that one though.
That December 21 date is downright crowded. Warner Bros. is releasingAquamanon that date, with Paramount also set to dropBumblebee. There’s also the Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly comedyHolmes and Watson, as well as Robert Zemeckis’Welcome to Marwen.Alita: Battle Angel, which comes with a hefty price tag, seemed doomed to fail on that date. A PG-13 cut ofDeadpool 2, on the other hand, literally can’t fail.
The business behind this decision seems to make sense.Deadpool 2made $734 million at the box office during its initial theatrical run. That trails onlyDays of Future Pastand the first Deadpool in terms of theX-Menfranchise. But the R-rating, even if it does seem downright essential to the character and the material, does prevent certain viewers from accessing it. If they can find a way to tone it down and get the MPAA to give a new cut of the movie a PG-13, what does Fox have to lose? Any money they could stand to make at this point would be instant profit and a cherry on top of an already very profitable sundae.
Ironically, the fear when the first Deadpool was first announced was that the studio would chicken out and go for a PG-13 rating, similar to what Sony has done withVenom. Unfortunately, at the present time, details regarding the release are scarce. But expect Fox to make an official announcement soon. If we’re lucky, Ryan Reynolds will be back at with some very clever and entertaining marketing. Morbid curiosity may be enough to get certain fans to show up just to see what a (relatively) clean Deadpool movie looks like. And that is probably exactly what Fox is thinking right now. This news was first reported byDeadline.
