Fresh off of its record-breaking debut weekend at the box office (during which it shattered the record for biggest domestic opening weekend ever for an R-rated movie), “Deadpool & Wolverine” has moviegoers quoting scads of profane dialogue while recounting its myriad of outrageous surprises. Plot twists! Cameos! A Jimmy Durante needle-drop! There’s so much going on in Deadpool’s latest adventure that Marvel die-hards will be lining up repeat viewings throughout the rest of the summer and, considering that solid “A” Cinemascore, well into the fall (though /Film’s Chris Evangelista wasn’t quite so enthusiastic in his review).
One bit of business Deadpoolers might want to examine is the hero’s stunningly deft dance moves to NSYNC’s “Bye Bye Bye” over the opening credits. Who knew Wade Wilson had moves like Justin Timberlake? Does this mean star Ryan Reynolds can get down like a demon on the dancefloor, too? According to the 47-year-old actor … no, not really. This sequence required ample assistance from a more youthful someone who can get down without throwing their knee out of joint — and, no, that someone wasn’t the 43-year-old “Prince of Pop.”
Reynolds left the popping-and-locking to a trained professional
During a recent chat with Ashley & Co., Reynolds came clean on Deadpool’s righteous moves. Choreographer and dancer Nick Pauley is the dude in the red suit for most of the character’s amusingly incongruous dance breaks that briefly break up his wanton slaughter of Time Variance Authority officers. As Reynolds put it to Ashley & Co.:
“If it looks like the person who’s dancing doesn’t have arthritis, that’s him. There’s the moments where, you know, there’s a bit of a pop and lock, except the pop, the pop really pops, like it cracks. And the lock will not unlock. So yeah, I would do anything I could to free myself up. But yeah, I will hang on Nick Pauley’s talent. I will hang my hat on his talent there and thank him for his contribution and services.”
With the cat out of the bag, Pauley shared his glee on Instagram over having been a small, yet crucial part “Deadpool & Wolverine,” exclaiming, “Like What?!? What is life?” He went on to describe how thrilling it was to watch himself boogie on the big screen at the film’s premiere, and expressed his gratitude to Reynolds and director Shawn Levy for giving him this opportunity. “It gave me a lot of purpose,” he said. “An amount I haven’t felt in a while.”
Kudos to Mr. Pauley for being one of the most noteworthy dance doubles since Marine Jahan stood in for Jennifer Beals on “Flashdance.” Now someone needs to give him a proper on-screen, unmasked solo like Walter Hill did for Jahan during the dive bar scene in “Streets of Fire.”
