‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Ending Explained: Is the Fourth Wall Broken for Good?

“Deadpool & Wolverine” is now in theaters, which means the agonizing wait to see Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) and Wolverine (a returning Hugh Jackman) team up and go on an adventure across the multiverse is finally over. As has been teased, they travel around and run into friends new and old alike, facing down a bureaucratic villain within the TVA named Paradox (Matthew Macfadyen) and the evil twin of Charles Xavier, Cassandra Nova (Emma Corrin). It’s quite the odyssey!

But how does their journey wrap up?

Let’s get into it, but before we do, we must issue the strongest spoiler warning imaginable. If you haven’t watched the movie yet, please do so beforehand. This article will be here when you’re done. And you’ll get so much more out of it!

An Army of Deadpool Variants

Early in the movie, we are introduced to the idea that Wade Wilson, aka Deadpool, is pulled out of his universe and put to use by the TVA. Paradox said that this is his opportunity – he can finally be a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Maybe even join the Avengers! (Earlier in the movie, he has a job interview with Happy Hogan and it does not go well.) Of course, the downside to this is that his universe, Earth-10005, will be permanently deleted (like “Coyote vs. Acme”) because it has lost an “anchor being” – a person so monumental that when they die, the fabric of that existence starts to wither away: Wolverine. That sends Wade on an interdimensional hunt for another Wolverine to replace him and he comes back with the “worst” Wolverine.

Paradox wants to speed up the process of disappearing Wade’s timeline, and banishes Deadpool and Wolverine to the void – a dumping ground for forgotten or unused creatures, lorded over by a giant smoke monster last seen in “Loki” season 1. Anyway, Wolverine and Deadpool get back to Deadpool’s world via Cassandra Nova’s sling ring, which she pulled off an unseen dead Doctor Strange variant. Their mission is to shut down a Time Ripper – a device that Paradox has created to help prune Deadpool’s timeline. Cassandra Nova, previously content to lord over the void, also wants to use the Time Ripper to rip apart all other universes, leading everybody to have to live in the void under her rule.

Deadpool and Wolverine need to shut down the machine, and in order to even get to it, they have to fight an army of Deadpool variants that are working for Cassandra (for some reason) – this includes Lady Deadpool (voiced by Reynolds’ real-life wife Blake Lively), Dogpool, a Cowboy (voiced by Matthew McConaughey) and a Deadpool that is just a floating zombie head (don’t ask).

They end up fighting through this horde of Deadpool variants, including in a single-take sequence where they battle them through a parked bus (it’s very violent). Finally, thanks to the emergence of Peter (Rob Delaney), who is a beloved figure in each of their universes, Deadpool and Wolverine make it to the subway station where Paradox has set up the Time Ripper.

Ending the Threat

When they reach the subway station, Paradox informs them that the only way to shut down the machine is to go downstairs and kill the power. The only problem is that killing the power also means killing yourself, since you have to grab both the positive and negative charges. Wolverine volunteers, and they head down to shut down the machine. Of course, Deadpool being the rascal that he is, incapacitates Wolverine and heads into the chamber where the powerlines are held, ready to sacrifice himself so that his friends can live.

But of course, as Deadpool is struggling with one of the powerlines and is reaching (and failing) to grab the opposite powerline, Wolverine shows up and grabs the other powerline. Together, they shut down the machine. The Time Ripper’s power is overloaded, Cassandra Nova is destroyed and Deadpool convinces B-13 (Wunmi Mosaku) to let the wayward Deadpool variants return to their respective universes instead of getting sent back to the void.

But Wolverine? Wolverine can stay in Deadpool’s world.

Back Home

The end of the movie mirrors a sequence earlier in the film, with Deadpool and his buddies (including Blind Al, Dopinder, Colossus, Negasonic Teenage Warhead and others) gathered around Wade’s crummy apartment. Only this time, there’s somebody new – Wolverine, who let down his X-Men in his universe but who found redemption by teaming up with Deadpool and saving his world. And there’s one other new face in the crowd – X-23 (Dafne Keen), who, in her world, was saved by Wolverine before he sacrificed himself. (This is what happened in “Logan,” in case you forgot.)

What’s more, Deadpool seems to be on the road to recovery with his ex, Vanessa (Morena Baccarin), who it was revealed earlier in the movie, is no longer his girlfriend. And, no, she hasn’t been assigned the superpowers she has in the comic books. Still – this is a wonderful ending for Deadpool and Wolverine. Now they’re together, happy and very much alive. The last shot of the movie is one that captures the snack table, with two masks plopped on top – Deadpool’s red mask and Wolverine’s classic yellow mask. It’s a lovely image and suggests a beautiful friendship, only just beginning.

Cut to black. Cue the music.

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