Not only is the Deadpool movie finally happening, but 20th Century Fox also gave it a February 12th, 2016 release date, too. Why now all of sudden? Perhaps it’s got something to do with the fact that the filmmakers apparently figured out a way to make Deadpool a PG-13 film.
Even though the character may deserve an R-rated movie, going the PG-13 route still seemed inevitable. The quality of the content should always be top priority, but moviemaking is still a business and when you’ve got a business to run, dishing out a product that cuts off a significant amount of the target audience isn’t the smartest approach. Hit the jump for more on the Deadpool movie rating rumor.
In the latest episode of Meet the Movie Press over at Schmoes Know, Mark Reilly revealed:
"I heard from the director that they finally figured out the script and it was right before this was announced … that they figured out, and you guys are all gonna hate this, they figured out how to make it PG-13 and therefore not lose its soul - that's a quote - of the script so that they can make it."
It’s not surprising, but it is especially disappointing after Simon Kinberg teased his own personal preference to take a chance and run with an R-Rating back in April:
“Yeah, it makes sense to me. Genuinely it’s early phases, early days, but if you’re gonna do a Deadpool movie, I think you’ve gotta do a hard-R, darker movie and he is the perfect character to do it with.”
Many would probably agree, but when you look at the R-rated superhero movie numbers, it’s pretty obvious why Fox would rather go in another direction. Watchmen made $185.3 million worldwide, but Warner Bros. likely hoped for far more and the same goes for films like Kick-Ass, Dredd and Constantine, just to name a few.
Again, an R-rated Deadpool movie has far more appeal than a PG-13 one, but that test footage is still incredibly effective and it doesn't seem like anything in it would warrant an R-rating, so perhaps this could still work.