Warning: MAJOR SPOILERS ahead for Deadpool 2

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TJ Miller’s role in Deadpool 2 seems to have drastically changed from what’s originally planned.  Debuting in 2016’s Deadpool as Weasel, Miller’s humor was on full display next to Ryan Reynolds as the two’s back and forth style was one of the movie’s highlights, so it wasn’t a surprise when the actor was confirmed as one of the returning characters for the David Leitch-directed sequel.  He was even supposed to have a bigger role in the film as teased by Miller himself last year. However, instead of a more prominent role, Weasel not only remained a minor character, he’s also painted as somewhat of a bad guy for ratting out the X-Force’s plan to Cable.

One of the things teased by Miller was a plan for Weasel and Dopinder (Karan Soni) to have their own subplot. Dopinder and Weasel both had a number of moments, but at the end of the film, it’s apparent that Dopinder still has a part in franchise’s future (be it Deadpool 3 or X-Force), but Weasel won’t.

The change in Miller’s role in the sequel is arguably rooted on the sexual harassment charges made against the star late last year. Miller’s bad behavior has apparently been an open secret in the industry for a few years now, but since the influx of women coming forward to call out men in power in Hollywood for their misconduct that started with Harvey Weinstein’s scandal, one victim decided to publicly accuse the actor of punching and choking her during a sexual encounter in 2001.  While the former Silicon Valley regular strongly denied the accusations, his name being embroiled in such a high-profile scandal was more likely the reason why Fox ultimately decided to minimize his involvement in Deadpool 2.

Despite this, Fox producer Lauren Shuler Donner confirmed that they won’t be recasting Miller as Deadpool 2 was already in the final editing when the news broke out. Reynolds and his team, however, found a way to decrease Weasel’s role in the movie via reshoots that lasted from February to early April to ensure that the project won’t suffer any blowback from heavily featuring an alleged sexual offender. This was especially critical since Ridley Scott’s All The Money In The World became blatant proof that it’s never too late to recast a disgraced actor when  Christopher Plummer replaced Kevin Spacey despite the movie already being ready for release.

While it’s also possible that the actor’s previous talk of Weasel’s expanded role in the sequel could’ve been Miller’s idea which was scrapped when he exited the project, the writing team of Paul Wernick and Rhett Reese, alongside Reynolds remained intact. So if anything, it was the trio’s ultimate decision to minimize the character’s role in the film, something that could be linked back to the sexual charges against the comedian.

The full plan for Goddard’s X-Force movie isn’t clear yet, but at this point, it’s safe to say that Miller is already done with the franchise, especially after he was arrested for calling in a fake bomb threat on an Amtrak train, and Reynolds has confirmed the comedian won’t be in Drew Goddard’s upcoming X-Force offshoot. Deadpool 2 may not have acknowledged the issue, but with the character’s ability to break the fourth wall, it won’t be difficult to explain his absence in the film series moving forward - assuming his absence isn’t just ignored altogether.

MORE: Drew Goddard Already Has His Own Story For X-Force

  • Deadpool 2 Release Date: 2018-05-18 X-Men: Dark Phoenix Release Date: 2019-06-07 New Mutants Release Date: 2020-08-28