Deadpool & Wolverine has the honor of being the first MCU movie to be rated R, which comes as no surprise to those familiar with the first two movies in the Deadpool franchise.
Echo beat the film to the rated R equivalent record, being a streaming series with a TV-MA rating, and the first Deadpool was the first Marvel movie across any studio to be geared towards a mature audience with an R rating.
Still, Deadpool & Wolverine is the first movie in the MCU proper to hold this 18+ (or younger but with a guardian age 18 or older) age restriction.
Why Is Deadpool & Wolverine Rated R?
Deadpool & Wolverine certainly earns its R-rating.
Typically, movies are rated R for a variety of reasons, ranging from gore to mature themes, substance abuse, sexual content, and anything in between.
So what specifically gives Deadpool & Wolverine this rating?
(And do not worry, there will not be any spoilers in this rundown.)
Violence
The violence and gore in Deadpool & Wolverine are prominent and gratuitous, to say the least. Nearly every major scene involves some kind of fight, usually one with swords, guns, or both.
Given that both Deadpool and Wolverine have regenerative healing factors, and are close to if not fully immortal, no wound is more than a scratch to them.
As such, many scenes involve one or both title characters being impaled through like a kebab, and little regard for survival, as that is a near guarantee for both characters.
There are multiple skeletons in the movie and some where the audience is fully aware of who the skeleton used to be in the body of.
In addition, there is repeated use of body horror used offensively to inflict physical and/or psychological damage.
Language
The New York Post counted more than 100 uses of the F-word in Deadpool & Wolverine.
Before this movie, the MCU had exactly one use of the swear word, that being in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Deadpool & Wolverine alone has enough uses of the F-word to equal one for every live-action MCU project, and nearly 60 still to spare.
Beyond that, the adult language and dirty jokes in the movie are rampant. There are several conversations involving explicit depictions of sexual behavior, desire, and history.
Sexual Content
In addition to the discussion of sexual behavior, explicit sexual language tends to be a source of comparison when Deadpool needs a metaphor. Some such turns of phrase can get quite colorful and often involve descriptive detail.
The Deadpool & Wolverine popcorn bucket on its own is a crude sexual joke.
There is also one joke indicating the molestation of someone — presumably a child — before the events of the movie.
Drugs
Interestingly, drugs are probably the least prominent of the reasons for Deadpool & Wolverine's R-rating.
A joke in an early sneak peek revealed that Kevin Feige specifically banned cocaine — or any alternative name for it — from the movie. In former Deadpool movies, that has been the largest source of drug use.
There are conversations about drugs — including the not-necessarily-so-taboo cocaine — but not too much drug usage.
However, alcohol consumption is a major component of the movie. Granted, that is typically the case when it comes to Wolverine.
Deadpool & Wolverine hits theaters on Friday, July 26.
Read more about Deadpool & Wolverine on The Direct:
Deadpool and Wolverine's Unsurprising Post-Credits Scene Count Confirmed
Marvel Takes Action to Prevent Deadpool and Wolverine Spoilers from Spreading
Gillian Blum has been a writer at The Direct since 2022, reporting primarily from New York City. Though she covers news from across the entertainment industry, Gillian has a particular focus on Marvel and DC, including comics, movies, and television shows. She also commonly reports on Percy Jackson, Invincible, and other similar franchises.
