Boy, oh boy. It’s been an intense few days for Deadpool fans. After news broke that director Tim Miller had walked away from the project over creative differences, people have been buzzing about what this means for the production and with questions about how we got here. The major reasons that have been cited up until this point has been that Miller and star Ryan Reynolds differed over the creative direction for Deadpool 2, and the casting of Cable.

But what if I told you that the differences between the two sides are even greater?

A new report from The Wrap claims that the two sides in this Deadpool 2: Civil War situation wanted completely different movies!

The latest rumor to hit the net, which has already come under some fire, is that Miller was actively campaigning for a big, explosive, stylized superhero sequel that would compete with the tentpole blockbustersput out by Marvel Studios and DC. His film would’ve reportedly tripled the $58 million budget that the first Deadpool carried. 

Meanwhile Reynolds, backed up by writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, wanted a more direct continuation of what made the first film work: A tight budget, a raunchy script, and scaled-down action sequences that focused more on the characters and the humor.

“There were two totally different movies on the table, and one of them just wasn’t ‘Deadpool,’” said one insider. 

The fight over which direction Deadpool 2 would go in possibly even began before the first film came out, according to the report. Miller and Reynolds needed a mediator, Fox CEO Jim Gianopulos, said one of The Wrap’s sources. That claim was denied by another source, though, who says that Gianopulos didn’t get involved and that the problems between Miller and Reynolds didn’t start until after Deadpool came out and sequel talks began. 

Still, if we are to read between the lines, the issue over this Deadpool 2 brouhaha can be very simple. The whole thing, one could say, can be distilled down to dollars and cents. 

Fox heard the two opposing ideas, and then backed the one that was cheaper.

I know you might be quick to jump to the defense of Reynolds, Reese, and Wernick. If this report is to be believed, then their vision for Deadpool 2 sounds much more like what we all want. But I’d like to play the devil’s advocate here. A huge sentiment shared amongst fanboys and casual filmgoers alike is that feeling of “sameness” that they get from most sequels. More often than not, people complain that sequels are just more of the same and end up beating a once-beloved horse to death. 

So maybe, just maybe, Miller was trying to get out in front of that. Maybe the idea of simply tweaking the first Deadpool and adding a couple of characters, felt too safe for Miller. Maybe his vision was to surprise us again- as he did with the first film; To expand the canvas for the character and his surrounding world, perhaps taking advantage of Fox’s ownership of the X-Men film rights, and give him a bigger, better, visually stunning sequel that still had moments of genre-redefining hilarity. 

Miller may very well have been fighting the good fight, folks. In an age where studios are all too happy to just keep giving you more of the same, Miller dared to think bigger for Deadpool 2. 

I, for one, don’t fault him for that one bit. And if Deadpool 2 ends up being lame, we’re all going to think back to this moment and say, “Oh.”

READ ON: “5 Directors We Want To See Helm DEADPOOL 2“

SOURCE: The Wrap