As much as the film makes fun of it, Deadpool & Wolverine is a nostalgic ode to a bygone era of Marvel Fox movies filled with cameos from the original X-Men franchise. A brief appearance of Juggernaut from X-Men: The Last Stand can be spotted by eagle-eyed viewers, but the character nearly looked completely different. Newly unveiled concept art reveals the sequel had to get creative with the cameo after the previous actor rejected an offer to appear in Deadpool & Wolverine.
After the release of Deadpool & Wolverine, concept artists who worked on the film have been sharing their alternate character designs on social media. The latest comes from artist David Masson San Gabriel, who revealed on his Instagram page an alternate, female version of Juggernaut. He says he was commissioned by the filmmakers to do a gender-bent Juggernaut, specifically from X-Men: The Last Stand. It seems that since the original actor, Vinnie Jones, did not return, a much different route was initially considered. Check out the concept art below:
I was asked to do a concept of juggernaut from x3 but as a woman, it didn’t end up in the movie, but ngl this could be pretty badass!!”
Original Juggernaut Actor Almost Returned in Deadpool 3
The original Juggernaut actor from X-Men: The Last Stand, Vinnie Jones, did not reprise his role for the Deadpool sequel. In an interview with Yahoo! Movies UK., Jones revealed he was indeed asked to return, but could not strike a deal to cameo in the film. He also did not particularly care for the process of putting on the prosthetic suit and drinking through a straw for a day.
“Funnily enough I just got asked to do
Deadpool
, the new one now, and I spoke to the director and I just said it’s such a drama putting that suit on mentally and physically. I mean it had its mental toll as well because you’re in it and you can’t do anything all day, you can only drink through a straw. So we couldn’t strike the deal for
Deadpool
…
Deadpool
‘s my favorite movie of all f*cking time more or less. I really wanted to do it, but they didn’t have the budget to put me in the suit.”
Jones’ disappointment with his limited role in The Last Stand has been clear for quite some time. He previously stated his disgust with the reduction of his screen time in the third X-Men film, despite being passionate about the character and signing a three-film deal. The negative experience likely played a major factor in him not returning as Juggernaut in Deadpool & Wolverine.
“I loved the role, but hopefully you can put it f***ing right here, mate. I basically got mugged off. Matthew Vaughn signed me up, and it was a great role and a great script, and Juggernaut was a great character. I signed up for three of them, and that will show you how serious I was about it. Brett Ratner basically dissolved the character. I was in my f***ing trailer half the time. It’s one of the most disappointing jobs I’ve been on as far as, you know, ‘What am I doing here?'”
Deadpool & Wolverine
is currently in theaters worldwide.