Spoilers ahead. As far as sequels go, Deadpool 2 has a lot to live up to. Deadpool was the surprise superhero hit of 2016, a sort of under the radar blockbuster, but it lacked one thing that most self-referential hits tend to cultivate: cameos. Unsurprisingly, the sequel changes all of that, bringing in one of the biggest surprise appearances the superhero movie world has ever seen. The Brad Pitt cameo in Deadpool 2 is so wild and amazing, it might just ruin all other cameos for the rest of time. And it's just one of many celeb appearances that happen in the film.
Pitt's cameo doesn't come until about mid-way through the film, when Deadpool's newly formed X-Force goes out on their first mission. Feeling down about his life and inspired to become a real superhero, Deadpool stages a rescue mission and recruits a handful of super-powered misfits to help him. There's the super strong Bedlam (Terry Cruise), Zeitgeist (Bill Skarsgård) who spits acidic vomit, Shatterstar the alien (Lewis Tan), the lucky Domino (Zazie Beetz), regular human Peter (Rob Delaney), and the Vanisher, a man who can make himself invisible. When the team is first assembled, Vanisher doesn't show himself. But when he crashes violently into electrical wires and is electrocuted while parachuting, his face is revealed, and it's none other than Pitt. Yup — to Deadpool's chagrin and the audience's delight, Pitt, the most beautiful member of X-Force, dies in an electric mess.
Pitt's cameo is surprising, not only because it marks his first foray into the superhero blockbuster genre, but also because he's been keeping a relatively low profile over the past few years. The last time the actor starred in a movie released in theaters was in 2016's Allied, and in 2017, he made more headlines for his personal life (that Angelina Jolie split) than for his work. So seeing him show up briefly in Deadpool 2 is a shock.
Unfortunately, however, the cameo won't come as a surprise to those obsessed with Marvel spoilers. In late March, it was reported by The Hollywood Reporter that Deadpool reshoots had relocated to Los Angeles to film "a secret cameo." Rumors immediately began swirling that Hugh Jackman (aka Wolverine) was finally on board to appear in a Deadpool movie. Others floated the possibility of a Stan Lee cameo. But one month later, on May 8, the website MCU Cosmic correctly identified Pitt as the cameo in question. They even accurately reported that the gag would be that Pitt was the real face of the Vanisher.
For now, it looks like Pitt's cameo in Deadpool 2 is the full extend of his involvement with Marvel, but it's possible that Vanisher could return in a potential Deadpool 3. The post-credits sequence sees Deadpool manipulate Cable's time-traveling technology to go back in time and save Peter, and while the Vanisher isn't shown in the scene, it's possible that Deadpool saved all of X-Force, meaning Pitt could be back in his invisible superhero suit. Granted, this doesn't seem all that likely. Pitt has been transitioning away from acting and into producing movies like12 Years a Slave, Selma, and Moonlight, and his IMDB page is full of upcoming producing credits, including a film about New York Times journalists Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey's reporting on Harvey Weinstein. So if there is another Deadpool movie, Pitt probably won't return to star, but, who knows — the Vanisher just might.
