Emma Corrin Claims Deadpool and Wolverine Villain Cassandra Nova Is Inspired by Willy Wonka and Inglorious Basterds’ Hans Landa

Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman are gearing up to wow Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) fans in Deadpool & Wolverine . Their iconic characters, Wade Wilson and Logan, will team up to fight a common enemy, Cassandra Nova, played by The Crown‘s Emma Corrin. While fans are already intrigued by Corrin’s appearance, in a recent chat with Entertainment Weekly , she shared some fascinating details about the inspiration for her character. According to Corrin, Nova is a mix of Gene Wilder’s eccentric and unpredictable Willy Wonka from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory , and Colonel Hans Landa, the Nazi villain played by Christoph Waltz in Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds .

Corrin explained: “Ryan and Shawn (Levy) pitched this idea, which I totally agreed with: ‘We want this villain to not be a villain in the way that you expect. We want you to be so attached to her, so charmed by her, and just when you think she might have totally seen into your soul and you’re going to be best friends, you’re dead.’ They wanted her to be unpredictable.”

Emma Corrin added that she was inspired by the character of Christoph Waltz: “He’s so disarmingly polite and kind and simple, it’s really scary. It’s all the more sinister because he doesn’t need to do anything.”

In the comics, Cassandra Nova was originally thought to be the twin sister of X-Men founder Professor Charles Xavier. However, it was later revealed that Nova is actually an alien parasite. Although she was born without a physical body, she possesses superpowers similar to Xavier’s, which she has used to fight mutants. The upcoming Deadpool & Wolverine film will be the first time Nova has appeared outside of the comic book world since her debut in 2001’s New X-Men 114.

It has already been confirmed that Lady Deathstrike, played by Kelly Hu in X-Men 2: X-Men United, Aaron Stanford as Pyro in X-Men 2 and X-Men: The Last Stand, as well as Sabretooth, played by Tyler Mane, will be making their return in the upcoming Deadpool & Wolverine movie. There are also plenty of rumors about new X-Men characters appearing. Rumors suggest that Elektra, played by Jennifer Garner, could have a major role in the film, alongside Taylor Swift, who could appear as either Dazzler or Lady Deadpool.

Directed by Shawn Levy, Deadpool & Wolverine stars Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin, Matthew Macfadyen, Morena Baccarin, Leslie Uggams, Karan Soni, Stefan Kapicic, Brianna Hildebrand, Rob Delaney, Lewis Tan, Aaron Stanford, Kelly Hu, Tyler Mane, Jason Flemyng and Ray Park.