The Deadpool series has an average readership of about 45,000 readers. Ryan Reynolds has had 2 films break fifty million dollars (one of which is 4 years old, the other 5), and hasn't broken 40 mil since. Explain to me how doubting the surefire success of such a series represents a lack of understanding of "the popularity of any of the things or people involved". Watchmen had more name value and insane buzz and yet still completely overwhelmed to the tune of what is going to be a massive loss for Warner Brothers. And that one was about as faithful as they come.
Without the stats, I was going to say the same thing really...
Ryan Reynolds hasn't exactly been a "box office hit" for a long time, and even when he was raking in a lot of money, it was a handful of years ago....and Deadpool, as cool as he is, has never been the most popular comicbook out there.
There are easily 20 other Marvel characters far more popular, actually.
And really, you saw pictures, and you don't know how they're going to have it end up...so really, lets put the cart in front of the horse some more.
Aaaaaaand? I'm pretty sure the movies, all of the Marvel ones, have followed their own universes. Like the old school "Amazing Spider-Man" and "Adventures of Spider-Man" and such shit...they were the same guy, different "universes" that stories sometimes were similar, but other times weren't.
It's creative license.