This Video Explains A Bizarre Theory About Deadpool's 'Secret Identity'

Is Deadpool really who he says he is? According to Matthew "MatPat" Patrick of the popular YouTube channel The Film Theorists, there's a good chance the Merc with a Mouth hiding more than just his face behind his mask.

In a wild new video posted on The Film Theorists page, Patrick posits, "Is it possible that Deadpool is actually classical American author Ernest Hemingway?" Patrick takes a jab at how bizarre the theory sounds, but soon dives into a flurry of evidence to support his claim.

Patrick starts by calling into question the Deadpool 2 teaser, titled "No Good Dead," released earlier this year. After a few Firefly callbacks, some cheeky nods to superheroes past, and one gratuitous shot of lead actor Ryan Reynolds' backside, a chunk of text quickly runs up the screen, right at the very end of the video. Patrick explains that the print is actually a "loose plot summary" of Hemingway's award-winning novella The Old Man and the Sea. Based on the colorful language and naughty turn of phrase used, Patrick surmises that Deadpool himself has written the synopsis used in the teaser.

But why was the text included in the first place? Patrick theorizes that The Old Man and the Sea was included because Deadpool is Hemingway. He cites a Deadpool villain claiming to be the real Wade Wilson, Deadpool's foggy memories of his biological origins, Hemingway's canon comic book friendship with X-Men hero Wolverine and possible superhero status, and a handful of personality similarities to prove his point. 

There are plenty more points Patrick raises, including an odd one involving a secret island nation and Hemingway's apparent self-healing powers, which you can check out in the video above.

Of course, Patrick's suggestion that Deadpool is Hemingway doesn't have any true backing, and the similarities drawn in the video are merely coincidental, but it sure is fun to speculate about the hero's spotty backstory. 

Whether Deadpool has any real secrets to confess to remains to be seen, but the hero may shock us all when Deadpool 2 is released on June 1, 2018. Until then, check out the insane (and actually true) history of Deadpool.