Deadpool and Wolverine Stars Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackson have been out in force promoting their latest superhero adventure.
During an interview with Andy Cohen on SiriusXM on Friday, July 19, the two actors discussed making the film with director Shawn Levy, and in particular the effort they made to include a Madonna song in the final cut.
It turns out that Reynolds and Jackman, along with Levy, teamed up and met in person with the Material Girl in hopes of getting her permission to license Like A Prayer for the film.
“It was a personal visit to Madonna, where we showed her the sequence in which Like a Prayer would be used,” Levy, 55, explained to Cohen and the audience.
Reynolds, 47, chimed in to share how difficult it can be to get Madonna to license one of his songs, especially Like A Prayer, which is the lead single and title track from her fourth studio album.
Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman talked about how they got Madonna to approve the use of her 1989 hit Like A Prayer in her new movie Deadpool & Wolverine
Reynolds and Jackman, along with director Shawn Levy, met in person with the Material Girl in hopes of getting her permission to license Like A Prayer for the film.
“It was a big accomplishment to ask for it and certainly a big accomplishment to use it,” the Wade Wilson/Deadpool actor confessed of the 1989 smash hit, before adding, “We went and met with her and showed her how it was being used, where and why.”
Levy chimed in to reveal how meeting the legendary pop superstar made them feel like they were “meeting royalty.”
Reynolds, ever the comedian, said he asked a member of Madonna’s team if she had a preference for what she would like to be called when she was first introduced.
“Am I allowed to just say ‘Madonna’?” he recalled of their conversation. “Like, ‘Hi Madonna, I’m Ryan.'”
Not only did Madonna sign the license for use of the song, but she also wrote some notes about where she thought certain parts of Like A Prayer would fit perfectly.
“She gave an excellent grade,” Reynolds said. “She watched it and I’m not kidding, (she said), ‘You have to do this.’ And damn, she was right.”
Levy agreed with the assessment and they then proceeded to make the change over the next two days.
“We literally went into a new recording session within 48 hours to do this story… It made the sequence better,” Levy added.
They recalled the reunion during an interview with Andy Cohen on SiriusXM on Friday, July 19 (pictured)
“It was a big accomplishment to ask for it and certainly a big accomplishment to use it,” the Wade Wilson/Deadpool actor said of the 1989 smash hit.
Ultimately, Madonna gave her approval for Like A Prayer to be licensed to Deadpool and Wolverine, along with some notes on where she thought the clips should be placed.
While she didn’t ask him if he’d seen any of the popular franchises, it seems the fact that the Queen of Pop’s son is a fan of the first two Deadpool films may have helped his cause in the end.
Co-written with Patrick Leonard, Like A Prayer, and its elements of pop, rock, gospel and funk, became Madonna’s seventh number-one hit at the time in 1989.
The album also received universal acclaim from music critics and became an international success, reaching the top of the charts in 20 countries.
Deadpool & Wolverine is the third film in the popular Deadpool franchise that has been a success at the worldwide box office.
Deadpool premiered in 2016 and grossed $782.8 million against a budget of $58 million.
The sequel, Deadpool 2 (2018), was a huge hit with fans in terms of money-making, grossing $785.8 million while working on a $110 million budget.
Deadpool & Wolverine will be released in UK cinemas on July 22 and in the US four days later on July 26.
The actors were spotted on the promotional route on Saturday afternoon in New York.
Deadpool & Wolverine also stars Jackman as James ‘Logan’ Howlett / Wolverine, after first playing him over two decades ago.
Most recently, he played the iconic role in Logan (2017), which also became a huge hit grossing $619.2 million after spending between $97 and $127 million on the budget.
The previous two films in the franchise began with X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009) and The Wolverine (2013), both of which were successful at the box office, although neither of them surpassed the $415 million mark.
Jackman also portrayed Logan/Wolverine in the casts of X-Men (2000), X2 (2003), X-Men: The Last Stand (2006) and X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014).
Deadpool & Wolverine will be released in UK cinemas on July 22, and then in the US four days later on July 26.