Vanessa Carlysle

An escort and Wilson's love who proved that even civilians can hold their own.

Vanessa Carlysle is an escort and Wade Wilson's fiancée. She becomes romantically involved with Wade after they meet, and accepts his marriage proposal a year later. When Wade is diagnosed with terminal cancer, he leaves her so she will not have to watch him die. After Wade escapes the laboratory where he was disfigured, he seeks out Vanessa but does not reveal that he is alive because he fears she will shun him due to his scarred appearance. Ajax kidnaps Vanessa and takes her to a decommissioned Helicarrier in a scrapyard. She angrily berates Wade for leaving her but reconciles with him after seeing his disfigured face and learning the reason why he never came back.

Quick Facts

Occupation: Escort

Lore & Background

Vanessa Carlysle is introduced as an escort who meets freelance mercenary Wade Wilson. They become romantically involved, and a year later, she accepts his marriage proposal. After Wade is diagnosed with terminal cancer, he leaves Vanessa so she will not have to watch him die. Following his escape from Ajax's laboratory, Wade seeks out Vanessa but does not reveal that he is alive out of fear that she will shun him because of his new scarred appearance.

Ajax later kidnaps Vanessa and takes her to a decommissioned Helicarrier in a scrapyard. After Deadpool rescues her, Vanessa angrily berates Wade for leaving her but reconciles with him after she sees his disfigured face and learns the reason why he never came back to her. The film does not explore the character's comic book alter ego Copycat, as the writers wanted to focus on Deadpool. Makeup designer Bill Corso included some references to Copycat's blue appearance in the comics.

Reader's Guide

Baccarin described Vanessa as 'scrappy' and not a damsel in distress. The character was initially designed as a 'typical prostitute', but Baccarin worked with the costume and makeup teams to make her appearance more layered. Makeup designer Bill Corso, however, included some references to Copycat's blue appearance in the comics. Vanessa accepts Wade's marriage proposal a year after they meet. After his transformation, Wade seeks out Vanessa but does not reveal that he is alive out of fear that she will shun him because of his scarred appearance. After Deadpool rescues her, Vanessa angrily berates Wade for leaving him but reconciles with him after she sees his disfigured face and learns the reason why he never came back to her.