Who is playing Lady Deadpool in the MCU?

Deadpool and Wolverine is out in cinemas now, and one of the biggest questions that Marvel fans have had in the lead up to the release is over the identity of Lady Deadpool.

Ever since the character made an appearance in one of the film's many trailers theories went wild over who could be playing her. There have been plenty of rumours about the comics character identity on the big screen, including the possibility of it being pop star Taylor Swift.

Now that the film is out all has been revealed, and if you're curious about whether it's Tay Tay under the mask then look no further. But be warned, this article contains spoilers.

Who is Lady Deadpool?

Lady Deadpool is taken straight from the pages of Marvel Comics, with the character first showing up in the 2010 issue Deadpool: Merc with a Mouth #7. She's a version of Deadpool from an alternate universe, named Wanda Wilson. Much like her male counterpart, she has a number of superhuman abilities, including advanced stamina, agility and reflexes. She also has the same advanced healing abilities as Deadpool.

Read more: Deadpool and Wolverine like 'chocolate and peanut butter', says star (PA Media)

This time period in the Deadpool comics looks set to be a big inspiration behind Deadpool and Wolverine, with another incarnation from that era, Dogpool, already confirmed to appear in the movie. In fact, in the film we see a version of the Deadpool Corps — a super-team made up of various alternative Deadpools from different realities.

Lady Deadpool was considered the de facto leader of that group so that is why the character makes a cameo in the film.

Who plays Lady Deadpool in Deadpool and Wolverine?

Before the film was released, speculation abounded that Taylor Swift was set to be Lady Deadpool, and if there have been two dominant cultural forces in the last few years it's the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the singer. In fact, the Eras Tour concert film outgrossed The Marvels at the global box office last year. Swifties one, Marvel nil.

Read more: Ryan Reynolds shares why he chose not to ‘get paid’ for Deadpool (The Independent)

Swifties drew some wild connections to come to this conclusion. They believed that some of the social media promo content for Deadpool and Wolverine was filmed in the same location as Swift's music video for All Too Well, which starred the movie's director Shawn Levy. Swift and Reynolds were also seen together at an American football game, as a result of the pop star's friendship with his wife Blake Lively.

However, it turns out that the character is not being played by the singer, the character isn't even Ryan Reynolds himself as some speculated. Lady Deadpool is played by the actor's real wife.

Lively had fuelled speculation that she is playing the character when she shared a picture of herself on set with her husband on social media. In the end it turned out not to be a red herring, as the credits reveal that she voices the character — we never see Lady Deadpool remove her mask though.

Watch: Deadpool and Wolverine trailer teases Lady Deadpool

There has also been speculation that Swift might be playing a completely different character in the MCU. Dazzler is a mutant who can convert sound — usually from music — into energy beams. That definitely seems like a perfect superhero for a pop sensation to portray.

This theory got even more intense following the release of Swift's album The Tortured Poets Department, in which the song Clara Bow featured a repeated use of the word "dazzling". It's a bit of a reach, sure, but nobody sleuths like a Swiftie.

For what it's worth, Levy and Reynolds both swerved questions about whether Swift was in the movie in the lead up to its release, keeping the flame of speculation alive.

In an interview with Fandango, Reynolds said: "Movies like this, there's so much speculation, so many people that might end up in the film... Anything could happen, and that's sort of what I love about this universe and this world. Surprises are the essence of Deadpool."

But in a separate chat with E! News, Reynolds said: "I will say once and for all that the cameo thing with Taylor because she's our friend — that is not in this film."

Turns out he was telling the truth, and now we know that Blake Lively is Lady Deadpool.

Deadpool and Wolverine is out in cinemas now.