Bloopers That Made Us Love These Superheroes Even More
Superhero movies are obviously a lot of fun to watch—their continued incredible success at the box office is proof enough that audiences all over the world get a kick out of them. Maybe it's because they've got a little something for everyone—plenty of action, high-stakes human drama, and even a few laughs laced into the mix.
As it happens, there are often even more laughs on the set during filming than there are onscreen. It's probably a combination of the set being a high-tech playground and everyone getting punchy from long shooting days, but whatever the case, it makes for some really silly and amusing superhero movie bloopers. We've combed through the gag reels from all your favorite comic book movies and put together a collection of some classic goofs and costumed blunders, so get ready to head up, up and away: here's a fond tribute to some bloopers that make us love these superheroes even more.
Man without fear flocked by feathered friends
He may be blind, but Daredevil has other abilities and heightened senses that make up for it. Not among those abilities, it would seem, is dominion over the sky and its many creatures—as Ben Affleck discovered while filming a fight for a battle scene in 2003's Daredevil. While trying to perform his well-rehearsed stunt choreography, he found himself unable to quite pull it off because the birds that were supposed to make the scene look cool just kept running into him and attacking him, as if he were a blonde lady in a Hitchcock movie.
Even Tobey couldn't take Spider-Man 3 seriously
Spider-Man isn't cool. Or at least Peter Parker, Spider-Man's mild-mannered alter ego, isn't cool. He's certainly no Batman/Bruce Wayne, lacking the Dark Knight's suave self-possession. That's why this blooper reel, in which Spider-Man 3 star Tobey Maguire is completely unable to stop laughing while filming a normal, plot-building, mundane scene, almost feels like it's in character—having a laughing fit in a restaurant is so goofy, it seems like something young, awkward Peter Parker would do.
You talkin' to Ant-Man?
Of course there are going to be some bloopers, riffs, outtakes, and cut scenes from a superhero movie starring Paul Rudd. He's a gifted, veteran comic actor, and he brought a sense of fun and play to Ant-Man—a movie that, at the time, was based around one of Marvel's less mainstream characters. Rudd, who usually stars in wild comedies and small dramas, can't help but reflect on how he's suddenly wearing a superhero suit in a mega-budgeted action movie, which leads to one of the weirdest De Niro impressions of all time.
Is that an adamantium skeleton or are you just happy to see me?
While filming this scene, ultimately deleted from the final cut of the film, Halle Berry and Hugh Jackman were supposed to exchange some quick dialogue between their characters, Storm and Wolverine, along with a tender goodbye kiss. But something about it all just strikes Berry as funny. Is it because she has to kiss a grown man in full-on Wolverine costume and makeup? Is it because it's weird having to suddenly get fake romantic with the guy she's platonically starred alongside in a whole bunch of previous X-Men movies? Whatever the reason, it leads Berry to pull away in hysterics.
Deadpool, the gambler
The dialogue is so self-referential and self-deprecating, and Ryan Reynolds has such a witty, off-the-cuff delivery, that almost the entirety of Deadpool feels like it could have been improvised. That's not to say that Reynolds didn't improvise on set, because he did. A lot. In this particular moment, though, it seems to catch his costars completely off guard. After all, it's in the middle of a fight scene in the back of a speeding car—not generally the type of place where a person breaks out into an old Kenny Rogers song.
Dafoe, da blooper
Willem Dafoe is one of the finest dramatic actors of his or any generation. That doesn't mean he doesn't like to have fun, as evidenced by his decision to play the Green Goblin in the first Spider-Man movie from 2002. He also likes to have fun riffing on set. When filming what's supposed to be a dramatic, tension-building moment in which the villain's ire for Spider-Man threatens to boil over, Dafoe started making a lot of angry noises—and then some other noises. Like pig noises.
Yondus and Yondon'ts
There are a few ways for an actor to react if their scene partner messes up. They can remain silent, go back to their mark, and try again. They can also laugh uproariously. Or they can stay in character and run with the gag. On the set of Guardians of the Galaxy, Michael Rooker went with the latter option. During a walk-and-talk scene with actor Tom Proctor (Horuz), they walked too far, too fast, and Rooker, as the angry, intimidating Yondu, gave the guy a verbal lashing in character about how he "walked us right off the set."
Hits and misses
Chloë Grace Moretz is a young actress, but she's been working a long time and was already a seasoned professional when she made Kick-Ass 2, reprising her role as self-made superhero Hit Girl. In this clip, Moretz delivers her line with such conviction that nobody but the script supervisor would've even known she'd muffed it...until she uses that same dramatic weight to announce that she has, in fact, delivered the incorrect bit of dialogue.
Wrong studio, Spidey
The first X-Men movie was released in 2000, long before the Marvel Cinematic Universe was up and running with its various spinoffs, team-ups, sequels, and crossovers. Before that, superhero movies were generally standalone affairs featuring just one comic property. All of this is to say that it's really silly and surprising when a guy dressed as a certain web-slinger known for being able to do whatever a spider can sneaks into the lineup of super-powered mutants, ready to fight. (Also, Marvel, take note: Spider-Man Joins the X-Men would make $10 billion at the box office. Make it happen.)
Blooper-sense tingling
With Spider-Man: Homecoming, Tom Holland gave audiences the third Spider-Man franchise launch in 15 years. In this scene as Peter Parker, he attempts to tell a teacher why he can't commit any more time to a school activity because of his involvement with Tony Stark, a.k.a. Iron Man. That sets up a great blooper where Holland makes a clever callback to a famous line from the first Spider-Man from 2002...which itself was first uttered in Spidey's first comic book appearance in Amazing Fantasy #15 way back in the day.
Bloopers forever!
Black Panther was a thrilling departure from the usual superhero movies of the last few years. Set in the utopian African paradise of Wakanda, the film stars a perfectly cast Chadwick Boseman as king T'Challa, a.k.a. the Black Panther, empowered by the Heart-Shaped Herb and a connection to the spiritual realm. The movie, meanwhile, was empowered by a script that was just as much about its fascinating villain, Erik Killmonger, as it was about its hero. Michael B. Jordan played the antagonist, joining Heath Ledger's Joker in the ranks of complex and memorable comic book movie villains with his award-worthy performance. But at the end of the day, this was still an action movie, and action movies need stuff to get blown up real good. It's up to Jordan's Killmonger to attach some explosives to a building, as is a villain's way...but they just won't stick the way they're supposed to. You'd think Marvel could afford better prop glue.
When Drax destroyed
What is the measure of a man? Is it strength? Bravery? Talent? Muscles? Being a god that walks among mortals? Probably that last one, at least as far as Drax the Destroyer (Dave Bautista) of the Guardians of the Galaxy is concerned. The brute who doesn't understand subtext and nuance makes a notable appearance, along with the rest of his squad, in Avengers: Infinity War. In this scene, Drax, Groot, Rocket Raccoon, Gamora, and Star-Lord all gather around an alive (but just barely) Thor. Star-Lord, as he and his portrayer (solid bro Chris Pratt) are wont to do, wonder aloud how this "dude" is still alive. It is with this word choice that Drax brings up a unique distinction. A "dude" and a "man" are not the same thing. Star-Lord? That guy is a "dude." But the mighty Thor, well, to Drax, he's unequivocally a man — a "handsome, muscular man" at that. The verbal wordplay from Drax sends the cast into hysterics — even the usually unflappable Bautista.
Strange things are afoot
Doctor Strange is, appropriately, one of the strangest Marvel Comics properties, and effectively bringing it to the screen required the involvement of no less than one of the finest actors of his generation. An Emmy winner for his portrayal of Sherlock Holmes on Sherlock, and an Oscar nominee for his role as WWII codebreaker Alan Turing in The Imitation Game, Benedict Cumberbatch is a very serious actor and he brings real gravitas to Dr. Stephen Strange — or rather Doctor Strange, a.k.a. the Sorcerer Supreme, a guy who can use magic for real and tap into the powers of mystical entities in his fight against evil. Despite the importance of the actor, the importance of the character, and the importance of his mission, sometimes all Cumberbatch can do is just dance. In this blooper, his rapid-fire karate moves somehow descend into some sweet disco moves (and jazz hands).
And now, a poem from Superman's dad
Despite just a few moments of screen time, Marlon Brando received top billing in the original Superman movie, released in 1978. His portrayal of Jor-El, Superman's father, before their home planet of Krypton is blown to smithereens amounts to little more than a cameo, but Brando was just coming off of his unforgettable, Oscar-winning performance in The Godfather, so he was a draw, more so than relative newcomer Christopher Reeve. Brando is a pro, but it took a while for even an actor of his stature to "get into character." Witness this footage of Brando goofing around on set. He's supposed to be recording a message to his young son to be seen long after his own death, but instead, Brando recites a serious poem...then segues into "Camptown Races." It's a fine bit of on-the-set silliness made all the more bizarre because one isn't used to seeing a serious actor like Brando acting like a goofball.
Not Angel's best flight
The X-Men comics roster has grown bewilderingly huge over the decades — even hardcore fans can have trouble keeping track of who's been a member of the various X-teams — which means some characters are simply going to be given short shrift. The mutant known as Angel has often been relegated to the back burner, but in X-Men: Apocalypse, he had his time to shine; played in this outing by Ben Hardy, he's drawn under the spell of the titular bad guy and subjected to a painful transformation that changes his wings to metal. In this outtake from Apocalypse, Angel is required to provide an emotional howl for the ages. Whether joking around or just not quite ready for the cameras to roll, Hardy instead lets out a series of hilariously weak and pathetic yelps.
Thor, meet floor
Thor: Ragnarok, the third entry in the MCU film franchise about Chris Hemsworth's Norse deity, mixed up the formula a little bit. Under the direction of Taika Waititi, the movie is more of a comedy about superheroes than it is a superhero movie with a splash of comedy in it, like, say, Guardians of the Galaxy. There's a lot of high wit and low silliness in the film, and to that end, it would actually work in the context of the Ragnarok to include the occasional bit of physical comedy. Instead, Waititi relegated the mistakes to the gag reel, because although Thor tripping while stepping down off a throne is funny, Thor probably wouldn't laugh at his own incompetence after the fact, because Thor is not incompetent in any way. That's pretty much what happens in this scene. While trying to get out the line, "A wise king never seeks power," Hemsworth can't walk and talk at the same time, and gets stymied by an errant step.
Superman returns to the sky (eventually)
Brandon Routh was relatively new to Hollywood when he scored what was potentially the role that would thrust him onto the A-list: Clark Kent, and Superman, in Bryan Singer's 2006 franchise reboot Superman Returns. Routh had booked a few TV guest spots and some small movies before he filmed the first Man of Steel movie in nearly 20 years — certainly nothing that required extensive visual effects and wire work. That's a very unique skill set, and one that takes a lot of getting used to. In other words, it's really hard to walk, and then run, and then turn that flying into running while being simultaneously attached to and held up by an extensive network of wires. From this blooper reel collected on the Superman Returns shoot, Routh can't quite get the hang of it, and falls a lot while filming some Smallville scenes. When it comes to flying, he looks about as green as a young Clark Kent would.
Deadpool has a lot of options
Talk about the perfect casting — who else but the sarcastic and yet also somehow charming Ryan Reynolds could play the sarcastic and yet also somehow charming Wade Wilson/Deadpool, the fabled "Merc with a Mouth"? That combination of actor and character led to a lot of improvisation and trying out late-breaking lines of dialogue, such as in this scene in which Wade is held against his will and roped into a bunch of weird, experimental, and frightening medical procedures. Left under the "care" of the intimidating Angel Dust (ex-MMA fighter Gina Carano), Wade expresses his anxiety by doing what he usually does — using humor as a defense mechanism. The line filmmakers ultimately went with was "You're gonna leave me all alone here with less-angry Rosie O'Donnell." But they made Reynolds try out a number of other options, all committed to film here, including "Kevin Sorbo," "Nikki Sixx," "Busta Rhymes," "Henry Winkler," and "Criss Angel, Mindfreak." Of course, when they finally settle on O'Donnell, Reynolds can't get through the subsequent punch to the face without laughing.
It's a Wonder she didn't freeze to death
Both in 2017's Wonder Woman and the various other iterations of the character, Wonder Woman's costume wasn't much of an improvement on the native dress she wore on her home island of Themyscira. It's pretty the same skimpy, traditionally feminine suit of armor, although made more relevant to the American war effort with the added patriotic colors of red and blue. Other than that, it's pretty much just a slightly metallic skirt and bodice. That kind of outfit is fine for training and hanging around a Mediterranean island all day, and apparently for fighting bad guys on the frontlines, but it is not functional as beach wear (even though it looks like beach wear.) In this blooper from Wonder Woman, Gal Gadot comes across Chris Pine's Steve Trevor washed up on the shore. He's dressed in fatigues, and protected from the elements. Gadot, in Diana's normal clothes — not so much. The sea water leaves the star shout-out-loud cold.