Minor spoilers lie ahead for Bullet Train, even if it’s a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it deal.
Director David Leitch and star Brad Pitt recently reflected on the “beautiful symmetry” of working together on action spectacular Bullet Train, more than two decades on from the former acting as the latter’s stunt double on Fight Club and many subsequent productions.
However, that sense of symmetry rears its head again in hilarious fashion later on in the movie, tying back to Leitch’s Deadpool 2 in the process. Obviously, Pitt stopped by the superhero sequel for precisely one second as the Vanisher when X-Force were meeting their grisly demises, while Bullet Train finds the actor’s assassin Ladybug constantly infuriated by mentions of fellow hitman Carver.
Eventually, Carver’s identity is revealed during a quick flashback where his face appears onscreen for roughly one second, with the role being filled by none other than Ryan Reynolds. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Leitch revealed the demands made by his Deadpool 2 and Hobbs & Shaw collaborator to swing by for an instant.
“Working with a comedic genius like him has affected me in Bullet Train. It was great to call him back. ‘Favor. Here’s the deal.’ He said, ‘As long as it’s the same length as Brad’s Vanisher cameo.'”
It feels like Reynolds is almost everywhere you look these days, but knowing that he only agreed to show up in Bullet Train if it served the exact same purpose as Pitt’s one-second spot in Deadpool 2 is about as self-aware and meta as the Merc with a Mouth himself.