By Elisa Leonelli
July 25, 2024
After many interviews with Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman and Shaw Levy on Deadpool & Wolverine (see counter cover story Best Movie July) we interview for the first time with them the two British actors, Emma Corrin and Matthew MacFayden, who play Cassandra Nova Xavier and Mr. Paradox
What was the contribution of the new performers of these two Marvel Comics characters seen for the first time in movies?
Levy: For us to have Emma Corrin and Matthew MacFayden in the two main supporting roles was a privilege and a gift, because they are both unpredictable actors and added their talent and dexterity to the film.
Reynolds: They have physical athleticism and mental agility. Despite the fact that Shawn and I wrote the script, we never knew what words would come out of their mouths.
And how did you feel about entering this universe already established by dozens of Marvel films?
Corrin: In the beginning I felt nervous and overwhelmed by the idea of entering this huge universe, but as soon as I set foot on the set I found it a very intimate environment, like that of a beautiful family. These three (Shawn, Ryan, Hugh) made us think that anything was possible, that we could not give the wrong answers.
MacFayden: It could have scared me, but it wasn’t like that, I found it a happy and cheerful set, led by these three men, so I had a lot of fun. Shawn has the great gift of giving everyone self-confidence, enthusiasm and excitement, a magnificent and liberating quality in a production of this dimension.
Matthew Macfayden-Paradox (c) Marvel
Mr. Paradox had only appeared on a 2005 issue of Marvel Comics in the She-Hulk series. As Mobius does for Loki, he explains to Deadpool how the Time Variance Authority (TVA) works, he tells him that he could become a hero.
Given that TVA was already introduced in the Loki TV series with Tom Hiddleston, did you study it to better understand the concept of how its agents monitor the various timelines of the multiverse?
MacFayden: I’m ashamed to say it, but I didn’t, and in a way it was better because I could have a fresher approach. It’s a very complicated world and I jumped into it hoping for the best. Mr. Paradox is an interesting character, an angry, dissonant type, a middle-high manager who has the ambition to perform more important tasks.
Emma Corrin-Cassandra © Marvel
Cassandra is the twin sister of Charles Xavier, who kills her in the womb having understood her evil nature; she still manages to get out of it, but is born without a body. It’s the dark side, the double negative of Professor X with the same telepathic powers. She first appeared in a 2001 issue of the New X-Men series.
What did it mean to play Cassandra in an absurd and profane film like Deadpool & Wolverine?
Corrin: This absurdity aroused my interest and I found it very funny to put Cassandra in the Deadpool universe, with everything we know about her origin and the relationship with Charles Xavier. The key for me was to understand that villains are the ones who have the most fun, to find out that what triggers her is the relationship with her brother, so that we can sympathize with her, and through her interactions with Wolverine to explore the X-Men story. I had fun like a kid playing in a sandbox.
Reynolds: What I liked about Emma’s performance was that she never treated Cassandra as an evil person, but as a hero. We are all convinced that we are the heroes of our history, the number one in our eyes. And this was a fascinating coloring for the character.
Ryan Reynolds-Deadpool, Hugh Jackman-Wolverine © Marvel
Why do you think it’s necessary to see this movie in the cinema, on the big screen?
Reynolds: Only in the cinema can you experience the collective effervescence of an experience shared with others, which I experienced from an early age. This particular movie is like a baseball fastball that was designed and created to delight audiences, and its only purpose is to provoke joy. So the bigger the screen the better.
Jackman: I’d like to add that cinema is the temple of the modern age. This film is fun and full of action scenes, but it also deals with friendship, so seeing it at the cinema sitting with dear friends is the best experience.