Deadpool & Wolverine Is the Latest Movie Franchise to Cash In on Brand Deals

The reviews for Marvel Studios’ Deadpool & Wolverine are in, and they’re nearly as brutal as the hand-to-claw combat in the superhero action flick itself. The Los Angeles Times describes it as “manic meta mush,” and TheWrap calls it an exercise in “corporate synergy.” 

Meanwhile, Vulture damns it with this faint praise: “It’s so determined to beat you down with its incessant irreverence that you might find yourself submitting to it.”

But repeat after us: This will not matter. Who cares about critics? Not this target audience. Fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and others will show up in droves, likely pushing the R-rated movie to record-breaking receipts. Box-office projections range from $160 million to $200 million in the U.S. alone, per Variety, which will provide a much-needed boost to the struggling American theater business.

Brands, not surprisingly, want to collaborate with this blockbuster franchise, which can’t attract many family-friendly sponsors because of its over-the-top violence and profanity. But its billion-dollar history and the star power of real-life close friends Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman have helped draw in a raft of partners across booze, fast food and gaming, among other categories.

Reynolds himself is no stranger to the marketing industry, having launched creative shop Maximum Effort and invested in brands including Aviation American Gin, Mint Mobile and Wrexham FC. Maximum Effort does much of the heavy lifting for Deadpool, starting with a Super Bowl teaser in February that snagged 365 million views in 24 hours, becoming the most-watched trailer of all time.

ADWEEK has rounded up some of the most notable swag and promotions tied to the flick, which opens Friday. Grab some popcorn—in a limited-edition Deadpool & Wolverine souvenir bucket, of course—and dig in.

Aviation American Gin

It’s no surprise that Reynolds’ Aviation American Gin would get in on the act, as the distiller released six specialty bottles inspired by the film. The Deadpool bottle was released first, featuring a colored label that pops as red as Deadpool’s skin-tight costume. More recently, Wolverine got his own pour, featuring the yellow of Wolverine’s suit on the label. Both have logo likenesses of the characters against a black bottle design that strays from the usual Aviation clear bottle.

The bottles were designed by Maximum Effort and Portland, Ore.-based design studio Sandstrom Partners. They are available for purchase in retailers in Florida, California, Texas, New York and Oregon.

Tim Hortons

Another Maximum Effort effort plays off Reynolds’ Canadian-ness. The ad for the coffee giant finds Deadpool sitting on a couch, stating that now that Deadpool is coming out, the character is done with Reynolds, so he’s giving him back so that he is free to do “some stuff” with Tim Hortons. He then jokes that, after three decades in show business, he’s been sucked “pretty dry,” but still has some will to live. Maybe Tim Hortons coffee will perk him up.

DiGiorno Pizza

Frozen pizza brand DiGiorno invites Deadpool and Wolverine into its universe, with help from Publicis and Hogarth. The team has come out with a Deadpool & Wolverine-inspired pizza line that pays homage to the flick with some Easter eggs, and a campaign to promote it. “Hot & Steamy” finds two people eating the pizzas while being fed by Deadpool.

Homage

The Marvel apparel universe delivers Deadpool & Wolverine shirts with custom designs from Homage, billed as “where Maximum Effort meets Maximum Comfort.” The collection, Threadpool, is the first collaboration between Maximum Effort and Homage.

Xbox

Xbox partnered with Marvel Entertainment’s resident “Merc with a Mouth” for a wireless controller to celebrate the release of the movie. The shape is reminiscent of Deadpool’s backside, and it’s named the Cheeky Controller. Getting one was only attainable by entering a global sweepstakes, as outlined on Xbox Wire. The ample, and well-rounded controller now has a version for Wolverine, giving Jackman gamer fans a reason to celebrate.

Heineken

Taking Wolverine’s claws makes him angry, but perhaps a nice brew will calm him down. That’s the concept behind the story of a humorous ad for Heineken Silver. As the two characters get ready to square off in a fight, Wolverine realizes that he can’t produce his claws. Deadpool tries to calm him down by telling him he took the adamantium to make the cans for a couple of refreshing Heineken Silver beers. As they sip together to the strains of “Just the Two of Us,” Wolverine insists that he would rather fight.

Heinz

The signature red and yellow suits spawned a cheeky tie-in with a consumer packaged goods behemoth, which noted that the Deadpool and Wolverine characters “look a lot like another iconic duo: Heinz ketchup and mustard.”

In a first for the legacy brand, Heinz created limited-edition collectibles that let fans accessorize their condiment bottles to look like the warring superheroes. Tiny add-ons include Deadpool’s mask, suit and, most important, katanas, tailor-made for ketchup bottles. Wolverine’s claws, suit and mask are available for mustard cosplay.

Inspiration came from social media, according to Lizzy Goodman, brand communications manager for Heinz U.S. at Kraft Heinz. “Once we made that connection, we couldn’t unsee it, as these similarities go beyond color,” she said in a statement. “One’s sweet, one’s zesty—everybody has a favorite, but really, they’re better together.”

The promo debuted earlier this month with a fourth wall-breaking spot, called “Now You Can’t Unsee It,” with narration from Reynolds.

Old Spice

The personal care brand has already aligned successfully with big-screen and streaming hits of the recent past, including Thor, Dungeons and Dragons and The Witcher. For its first link to the Deadpool milieu, Old Spice centers on a beloved and underused supporting character: Blind Al, played by acting legend Leslie Uggams.

Blind Al, known for having a nose for nonsense, can’t see Deadpool but she sure can smell him. Her solution is to offer her roomie a can of Old Spice Total Body Deodorant because it “fights stank 24/7,” she says in the brand’s commercial, which draws heavily on clips from the flick.

Jack in the Box

The fast-food chain gave Deadpool a bobble-headed makeover, modeled after its wise-cracking mascot, and introduced a limited-time menu item called Mini Chimi Bang Bangs to herald the movie’s release. The Mexican-themed “tiny option” snacks, spawned from Deadpool’s devotion to chimichangas, will be available through Sept. 15.

The brand’s loyalty club, known as Jack Pack, can get special perks like $5 Fandango credits and special Deadpool & Wolverine packaging for spicy chicken strips and waffle sticks, “since great things come in unexpected combinations.”