Fans who ran out to catch Logan on its opening weekend were treated to a very cool, Deadpool-shaped surprise. Flipping the script on Marvel’s post-credits scene tradition, the new Wolverine flick began with a lead-in short of Wade Wilson trying (and failing) to fight some crime. The 3.5-minute teaser was a nice gift. It was also a reminder: R-rated comic book movies are here for good.

While *Deadpool'*s $132 million opening weekend was a surprise, Logan’s $85 million opening weekend proves it wasn’t a fluke. (Especially when you consider that *Deadpool *enjoyed the benefit of a President’s Day long weekend.) For 20th Century Fox, which released both films, that's two hard-R off-season comic book movies that blockbuster successes. One more, and it’s officially a trend. And if the pre-Logan teaser is any indication, the third one is on its way: Deadpool 2, directed by *John Wick’*s David Leitch, hasn't begun filming yet—as the short film noted it’s "Coming. Not soon enough"—but promises to open even bigger than its predecessors.

And it should. The idea of “superhero movies for grown-ups” has been around for a while (remember Punisher: War Zone?) but never took off. As always, the concern is at least partially commercial: Studios were afraid of losing big money by not being family-friendly. That’s not the case anymore. If Deadpool demonstrated there’s money to be made here, Logan has proven that you can do it with a mainstream character.

But the trend shouldn’t stop at the Deadpool sequel (or sequels, if the Merc with a Mouth goes full franchise). There’s also potential here for Logan's Laura/X-23 to pick up the Wolverine mantle. (Actress Dafne Keen and Logan director James Mangold are already on board.) And outside the X-Men universe, Marvel is stocked with characters who go full grown-up. They’re surely happy on Netflix, but if any of the Defenders (Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Daredevil, and Iron Fist) got a movie, we now know they could surely succeed with a big fat "R" on the poster. Doug Liman is reportedly working on a live-actionJustice League Dark; could that be hard-R? Considering that the animated version is, it only seems right. And the list goes on: Moon Knight? An un-Caged Ghost Rider? An MCU-compatible Blade?

This isn’t a call for darker, more violent superhero movies. It’s a call for more mature ones. As we learned with Suicide Squad, all that’s gritty is not gold. Not every hero needs a dysfunctional past (or present) to be compelling. But if there’s a story that could benefit from some swearing, sex, or savagery—or all three—studios no longer have a plausible excuse to avoid that.

Logan had a great weekend at the box office. Given the reviews and the strong Cinemascore it got from fans, it’ll likely have an awesome week, too. It’ll all be for naught, though, unless studios listen to more than the cash register, and take notes as to why audiences liked it. If Hollywood takes the right cues from Wolverine, he'll be more than a moneymaker—he’ll be a pioneer.