It’s hard to suss out what is considered a “spoiler” anymore. Semantically, a spoiler is anything that ruins a major, fundamental surprise about a feature film, be it a surprise plot twist, a surprise cameo, or an unexpected ending. Because Shawn Levy’s new film “Deadpool & Wolverine” (read /Film’s review) lives and dies by its many, many superhero cameos, keeping them all secret has been tantamount to retaining the film’s eventual dramatic power; 80% of the film is structured around I-recognize-that-character moments.
In order to advertise the film, however, Marvel Studios had to reveal several notable cameos ahead of time. A spoiler is only a spoiler if the information is broken by an independent source. If the same information is revealed by the film’s marketing team, it arrives to a mass public with the corporation’s blessing.
As such, it’s not a spoiler to say that Laura/X-23 (Dafne Keen), a key character from James Mangold’s excellent “Logan,” appears in “Deadpool & Wolverine.” Laura was the reason Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) rose out of his depressive, end-of-life malaise to commit one final act of heroism before he died in “Logan.” Her inclusion in “Deadpool & Wolverine” seems like it should have been a massive reveal.
In an interview with Variety, chief Marvel executive Kevin Feige was asked why X-23’s presence in “Deadpool & Wolverine” was revealed in its advertising, specifically just one week before the film’s release when ticket pre-sales were already high. It seems Feige did it as a personal favor to Keen. She wanted to attend the “Deadpool & Wolverine” premiere.
Dafne Keen walks the red carpet
Big Hollywood premieres are essentially giant proms wherein a film’s cast and filmmakers can parade down a red carpet wearing their Sunday finest and be photographed by the assembled press corps. Plebs are also allowed to attend, and the tone in the theater tends to be celebratory. Many people love the high energy and bustle of a film premiere, seeing them as a persistent element of Hollywood glamour. Premieres are also an opportunity for actors to meet each other for the first time. Dafne Keen, for instance, only has scenes with a few other actors from “Deadpool & Wolverine.” The dozens of other characters remained out of her sight. A premiere would let her finally meet those other players.
But if Keen were to walk down the red carpet, onlookers would immediately know that X-23 was in the film. Why else would she be there? Feige knew about how rapid news can spread, so he decided to cut it off at the knees. He put Keen in the “Deadpool & Wolverine” trailers so the actor no longer needed to fear being a walking spoiler. As he explained to Variety:
“Dafne really wanted to go to the premiere and we said, ‘Well, she really can’t come to the premiere because it would be a spoiler.’ We hadn’t shown it yet. […] [Her appearance] was great in the final trailer [and] that meant Dafne could come to the premiere.”
Photos from the premiere show Keen and Jackman on the red carpet together. She appears to be having a wonderful time. Fans may have been baffled by a big spoiler in a last-minute trailer, but Keen’s happiness balances it out. Plus, “Deadpool & Wolverine” had many, many other cameos besides. The film wasn’t spoiled.
“Deadpool & Wolverine” is now playing in theaters.
