The teaser trailer for Deadpool 3 – now officially known as Deadpool & Wolverine – seemingly confirms a prominent X-Men baddie’s inclusion in the film. So just who is Deadpool 3‘s long-rumored main villain, Cassandra Nova?
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Who Is Deadpool 3’s (Rumored) Main Villain, Cassandra Nova?
Created by comic book writer/artist team Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely, Cassandra Nova first appeared in 2001’s New X-Men #114. She’s a mummudrai, a bodiless parasitic entity native to the Astral Plane (another dimension accessible to psychics and mystics). To gain physical form, Nova fashioned a body for herself in the womb of Sharon Xavier – mother of future X-Men mentor Charles.
As such, Cassandra Nova essentially became Charles Xavier’s evil twin. She wasted no time proving this, either, attempting to strangle Xavier in the womb. L’il Chuck promptly hit back, cutting loose with a psychic blast that caused Sharon to miscarry. He survived, however, Nova’s vessel was delivered stillborn. Yet her consciousness clung in there, and she eventually managed to build a new, adult body for herself.
Nova based this body on Xavier’s DNA, and as a result, she possessed the same incredible mental powers as Charles. She also boasted several unique abilities, such as phasing, and mimicking the DNA of people other than Xavier. On top of all this, Nova was still a mummudrai, and could (among other things) possess those around her. What did Nova use this litany of talents for? Getting revenge on Xavier, of course.
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Nova kicks off her plan with a bang, sending a legion of Sentinel robots to wipe out 16 million mutants living on the fictional island of Genosha. She then infiltrates the X-Mansion by allowing the X-Men to take her captive, only for Emma Frost to snap her neck. But Nova’s apparent defeat was actually a ruse, as she secretly switched bodies with Xavier!
Now masquerading as her brother, Cassandra Nova wreaks havoc on the X-Men’s lives. Her scheming culminates in engineering a conflict between the X-Men and the alien Shi’ar, however, the team manages to expose her involvement. Nova’s defeat follows soon after, and Charles regains his body.
In the years since then, Nova has returned to plague her sibling and his pupils on numerous occasions. That said, the final New X-Men story arc, “Here Comes Tomorrow,” suggests that she’s capable of redemption (albeit in an alternate timeline).
Who Plays Cassandra Nova in Deadpool 3?
So, who plays Cassandra Nova in Deadpool 3? The Crown‘s Emma Corrin – at least, if the online rumor mill is correct. We don’t get concrete confirmation of this from the teaser trailer, although it does include a shot of the back of a bald head that looks a lot like Nova’s. Is this Corrin? We’ll have to wait and see.
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One thing’s for sure, though: Corrin’s definitely in the movie. The British actor is also locked-in to portray a villain – Marvel Studios just hasn’t confirmed which one yet. Corrin hasn’t let anything slip, either. The most the star has said is that they’re “very excited” about their Deadpool 3 role.
Deadpool & Wolverine arrives in cinemas on July 26, 2024.
