The 2025 Oscars had more surprise appearances than Marvel’s cameo-filled Deadpool & Wolverine. On Sunday, the Conan O’Brien-hosted ceremony kicked off on ABC and Hulu with an 18-minute monologue — nearly as long as Adrien Brody’s Best Actor speech — that had it all. There were cameos by a hoodie-clad Adam Sandler (“Dressed like a guy playing video poker at 2 a.m.,” O’Brien quipped), a piano-playing Sandworm from Dune: Part Two, a “slightly disappointed”-looking John Lithgow, and, during O’Brien’s song and dance number, yet another variant from the multiverse: Dancing Deadpool.
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Although Deadpool’s Oscars appearance on camera was shorter than comic-accurate short king Wolverine, eagle-eyed viewers spotted some familiar dance moves: those of Ryan Reynolds’ dance double, choreographer Nick Pauley, who performed NSYNC’s “Bye Bye Bye” in the opening minutes of the Marvel Studios blockbuster.
You can watch the dancing Deadpool crash the Oscars at the 17:40 minute mark:
Related: Missed the Oscars? How to Watch the 2025 Oscars Replay on Streaming (Including for Free)
Pauley, who was credited as “Dancepool” in the movie, confirmed he was wearing the suit on stage at the 97th Academy Awards in a video posted to Instagram. And as it turns out, Pauley’s behind-the-scenes video has yet another Marvel cameo: from Oscar winner and Iron Man star Robert Downey Jr.
Watch Pauley’s video with the Iron Man fistbump flyby below.
“Is this real life?” Pauley captioned the post. “Im in shock rn sooo long post coming soon. BUT the first people I’m thanking are Wendy and David; my incredible wardrobe team and friends who were stuck with me all week.”
Pauley recently marked the one-year anniversary of filming the original Dancepool dance, which opened Deadpool & Wolverine with Wade Wilson slaying “Bye Bye Bye” as he slew a squad of Time Variance Authority Minutemen using pieces of Logan’s (Hugh Jackman) adamantium-laced skeletal corpse as a weapon.
“There’s the moments where there’s a bit of a pop and lock,” Reynolds, the film’s star, co-writer, and producer, said in 2024. “Except the pop really pops, like it cracks, and the lock will not unlock — so yeah, I would do anything I could to free myself up. I will hang [my hat] on Nick Pauley’s talent and thank him for his contribution and services.”
Last summer, Pauley posted a video of himself popping and locking out of costume. Pauley thanked Reynolds for “believing in me to play Dancepool,” adding: “It is the greatest honor of my life!”
If you missed the 2025 Oscars ceremony, find out how to stream the replay on-demand. Marvel Studios’ Deadpool & Wolverine is now available to stream on Disney+.
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Star Wars. Courtesy of Disney
