Deadpool And Wolverine Actor Responds To Criticism From Wrestler Who Used To Have The Role

By now, even the people who haven’t seen Deadpool & Wolverine know that the film features numerous actors from 20th Century Fox’s Marvel movies reprising their roles. There are also a handful of cameos and callouts to other non-Fox Marvel films, but not all of the original actors returned. Former WWE star Kevin Nash recently commented on his replacement in the new film, and now his successor has responded.

Warning: the following contains minor spoilers for Deadpool and Wolverine. If you haven’t seen the movie or don’t want to know what happens, stop reading now.

In 2004, Nash had a small but memorable role in The Punisher as an assassin called The Russian. Thomas Jane’s Punisher narrowly survived that fight against his seemingly impervious foe. During a recent episode of his podcast, Nash said that the new Russian performer “looks nothing like the character I played. That looks nothing like the Russian.” Nash then said, “It looks like they gave somebody a favor.”

The actor in question is Billy Clements, who felt the need to respond to Nash’s comment on Instagram.

“I really worked hard to get that role,” said Clements. “Trained seven years, started from an extra at the bottom of the pile. Doing everything I can, audition after audition after audition, just trying the best to get where I could. To finally get that role was an honor. You know, it meant so much to me, everything in the world. I couldn’t believe I was a genuine Marvel character.”

Clements noted that he put on 32 pounds of muscle for the role and studied Russian for three months. He also praised Nash’s take on the character, and he explained his familiarity with the original character as he appeared in the Punisher comics. The actor finished his remarks by thanking Ryan Reynolds, Kevin Feige, and director Shawn Levy for allowing him to audition and for taking a chance on him in the role.

Deadpool & Wolverine is now playing in theaters. But the Russian wasn’t the only Marvel cameo in the film.