Why The Deadpool Cast Looks So Familiar

After escaping Ajax's lab, Wade Wilson is reluctant to return to his former life and worried about how his girlfriend will react to his disfigurement. While attempting to clean bloodstains from his clothes at a laundromat, he's befriended by Althea (Leslie Uggams), an elderly blind woman. Eventually, Wilson moves in with "Blind Al," whose snarky and motherly personality make her the perfect roommate as he tries to track down and kill Ajax. Al eventually convinces him to seek out his girlfriend Vanessa and reconcile, pointing out that looks are only one part of love.

Leslie Uggams began her performing career as a singer, putting out several records in the '50s and '60s before scoring her own variety show, The Leslie Uggams Show, in 1969. You may also recognize Uggams as Kizzy from the popular 1977 TV miniseries Roots, or for her appearances in Backstairs at the White House, The Love Boat, The Good Wife, and Nurse Jackie. She is also a renowned stage actress, with numerous Broadway and off-Broadway roles to her name and a Tony Award for her part in the 1967 production of Hallelujah, Baby! Most recently, Uggams played Lucious' mother Leah during the 2016 season of Empire, and she is slated to reprise her role as Blind Al in the 2018 Deadpool sequel.