{"id":9352,"date":"2018-05-15T05:00:32","date_gmt":"2018-05-15T09:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crookedmarquee.com\/stage8\/?p=9352"},"modified":"2019-01-12T14:47:17","modified_gmt":"2019-01-12T19:47:17","slug":"hannibal-king-ryan-reynolds-first-wade-into-the-deadpool","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crookedmarquee.com\/stage8\/hannibal-king-ryan-reynolds-first-wade-into-the-deadpool\/","title":{"rendered":"Hannibal King: Ryan Reynolds’ First Wade into the Deadpool"},"content":{"rendered":"

Deadpool<\/i> came in like a comet in 2016, grossing $783.1 million worldwide \u2014 fantastic for any movie, but unheard of for a hard-R superhero movie. Audiences responded to Ryan Reynolds\u2019 Bugs-Bunny-on-meth take on the character, and to the way the film didn\u2019t believe in a fourth wall and poked fun at the superhero genre. <\/span><\/p>\n

But as much as audiences were delighted that they hadn\u2019t seen anything like Deadpool<\/i> before, they actually had. Twelve years before Deadpool<\/i> \u2014 seven years before Green Lantern<\/i> \u2014 Reynolds had a supporting role in Blade: Trinity<\/i> as wise-cracking vampire hunter Hannibal King. Audiences can be forgiven for not remembering this because the film was a flop best remembered for comedian Patton Oswalt\u2019s account<\/span><\/a> of how miserable a shoot it was. But revisiting the film, we see that Hannibal King is actually Ryan Reynolds\u2019 first run at playing Deadpool \u2014 he just didn\u2019t know it yet. <\/span><\/p>\n

Hannibal King was turned into a vampire after hooking up with the wrong person. After five years of being what he calls a \u201cvampire cabana boy,\u201d he was rescued by Abigail Whistler (Jessica Biel) \u2014 estranged daughter of Abraham Whistler (Kris Kristofferson), Blade\u2019s mentor \u2014 and cured of his vampirism. He has now dedicated his life to fighting vampires. But King\u2019s character is established before we even see him, as Blade: Trinity<\/i> begins with his opening narration, which contains elements of Deadpool\u2019s meta-commentary:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIn the movies, Dracula wears a cape, and some old English guy always manages to save the day at the last minute with crosses and holy water. But everybody knows the movies are full of s***. The truth is, it started with Blade, and it ended with him. The rest of us were just along for the ride.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>King doesn\u2019t appear on screen until 32 minutes in, and once he does, the film turns into a buddy comedy where Blade is Murtaugh and King is Riggs. Blade holds King and the rest of the Nightstalkers as a joke outfit because they have fun while hunting vampires. Abigail listens to her iPod; King notes, \u201cShe listens to trip-hop, trance, I\u2019m more of a David Hasselhoff guy.\u201d King makes jokes and wears a nametag that reads \u201cHello My Name is F*** You.\u201d In every scene King fires off quips and zingers both at Blade and the rest of the team. When he\u2019s eventually captured by Dominic Purcell\u2019s Dracula he is in manic survival mode, and that\u2019s where his delivery most directly mirrors Deadpool. <\/span><\/p>\n

Hannibal King wakes up to discover he\u2019s being held captive by Danica Talos (Parker Posey) \u2014 the vampire who turned him \u2014 and Jarko Grimwood (Triple H). They have this conversation:<\/span><\/p>\n