A new set photo from Deadpool 2 continues to fuel speculation that the Mutant Messiah will appear in the movie. As if the sequel to last year’s Deadpool weren’t already anticipated enough considering how much of a hit the first film was, the past week has doubled the excitement. Not only were we given our first look at Domino in the film, but today brought with it the first image of Josh Brolin as Cable. Even better, but the exciting reveal was quickly followed by another shot of the character, showing off his full costume.

Of course, as intriguing as the new look at the character is, fans can’t help but wonder why Cable has a teddy bear with him in the photo. Is it an irreverent detail? A nod to a promo image from the first Deadpool? Or something else entirely? For most fans, the shot immediately brought to mind young Hope Summers. A mutant born in a time when no new ones were appearing, Hope and Cable are chased throughout time as they struggle to survive against those who wish the girl harm. Now, a new photo adds a little more evidence that this plot point could feature in next year’s film.

YVRShoots (via CBR) captured one of Josh Brolin’s stunt performers on the set of Deadpool 2. In a slight variation on the shot we saw of Brolin as Cable, the stand-in is wearing a poncho remarkably similar to the one Cable wears in the comic arc featuring Hope.

#Deadpool2 wire stunt in downtown Vancouver this morning. Stunt double for ….. pic.twitter.com/hdXax4Wdfs— YVRShoots (@yvrshoots) August 7, 2017

While the fashion choice is a fairly common one in dystopian fiction, the poncho is iconic enough that Hope herself eventually dons it when she returns to the present. While it’s hardly concrete evidence, it’s getting tough to ignore the clues that keep pointing towards the arrival of Hope Summers.

The various X-Men franchises are always looking to expand their mutant rosters, and Hope has a lot of story potential. Not only does she add some shading to Cable, but her story allows for lots of time traveling adventures that we could see play out in X-Force or a Cable spinoff. She also adds another young mutant Fox can build stories around, something they’ve been increasingly doing over the years.

For now, there’s been no official response to the teddy bear. The coming weeks, however, are likely to feature plenty of speculation and maybe even more evidence supporting the theory. While we may not know for sure until the movie arrives, the string of reveals we’ve had for Deadpool 2 so far could mean an answer won’t be too far off.

Next: Will Hope Summers Solve the X-Men Universe’s Continuity Problems?

Source: YVRShoots (via CBR)

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