diff --git a/lib/evm/evm.ts b/lib/evm/evm.ts
index 9d786e84a67..b9a7fa1c875 100644
--- a/lib/evm/evm.ts
+++ b/lib/evm/evm.ts
@@ -108,6 +108,7 @@ export default class EVM {
   _targetMessage: Message | undefined
   _targetMessageResult: EVMResult | undefined
   _accountMessageResult: EVMResult | undefined
+  _lastOvmREVERTData: Buffer | undefined
 
   constructor(vm: any, txContext: TxContext, block: any) {
     this._vm = vm
@@ -144,6 +145,11 @@ export default class EVM {
       this._targetMessage = message
     }
 
+    if (message.isCallToOvmREVERT()) {
+      // slice off 4 bytes methodId + 64 bytes abi encode --> gets the raw data passed in
+      this._lastOvmREVERTData = message.data.slice(68)
+    }
+
     let result
     if (message.to) {
       const code = await this._state.getContractCode(message.to)
@@ -199,8 +205,6 @@ export default class EVM {
           returnData = returnData.slice(160)
         }
 
-        result.execResult.exceptionError
-
         const EOAReturnedFalse =
           this._accountMessageResult?.execResult.returnValue.slice(0, 32).toString('hex') ==
           '00'.repeat(32)
@@ -210,6 +214,12 @@ export default class EVM {
           ? new VmError(ERROR.REVERT)
           : this._targetMessageResult.execResult.exceptionError
 
+          // The OVM does not allow for EVM creation messages that revert.
+          // We can recover the initcode's intended revert data by checking the last call to ovmREVERT.
+          if (wasDeployException && !!this._lastOvmREVERTData) {
+            returnData = this._lastOvmREVERTData
+          }
+
         result = {
           ...result,
           createdAddress: this._targetMessageResult.createdAddress,
diff --git a/lib/evm/message.ts b/lib/evm/message.ts
index dbf6a62a291..5991683081b 100644
--- a/lib/evm/message.ts
+++ b/lib/evm/message.ts
@@ -6,6 +6,8 @@ import VM from '../index'
 import { toHexString, fromHexString } from '../ovm/utils/buffer-utils'
 import { NULL_ADDRESS } from '../ovm/utils/constants'
 
+const ovmREVERTMethodId = Buffer.from('2a2a7adb', 'hex')
+
 export default class Message {
   to: Buffer
   value: BN
@@ -54,6 +56,10 @@ export default class Message {
     )
   }
 
+  isCallToOvmREVERT(): boolean {
+    return this.data.slice(0, 4).equals(ovmREVERTMethodId)
+  }
+
   toOvmMessage(vm: VM, block: any): Message {
     if (!vm.contracts.OVM_ExecutionManager.address) {
       throw new Error('Cannot create a message because the ExecutionManager does not exist.')