Deadpool 2 is not going to be bigger, badder and better than the original Deadpool. In fact, it might be a smaller, more intimate movie. And that is something we've been hearing all along. At the heart of the matter, star and driving force behind this X-Men spin-off sequel, Ryan Reynolds hints that is really what the 'creative differences' between him and departed director Tim Miller were really about.

As 2016 wraps up, Deadpool, released this past February, stands as one of the few crowning achievements in cinema for the year, not released by Disney (even though it still holds that coveted Marvel stamp of approval). It brought in an amazing and unexpected $132 million on its opening weekend, going onto earn $782 million worldwide. Reynolds and his team are wasting no time moving forward on the sequel, even with the loss of original director Tim Miller, which was followed by composer Junkie XL also leaving the project.

Ryan Reynolds has been named Entertainment Weekly's Entertainer of the Year of 2016. And he took a few moments out of his year end festivities with his wife and kids to talk about his achievements over the past 12 months. About Deadpool 2 and where it currently stands on the production slate, he says this.

"We're just in the development stage but we're about to move into production."

One of the more contentious points of disagreement between Ryan Reynolds and former director Tim Miller was over the casting of new Mutant character Cable. Miller reportedly wanted Kyle Chandler, Ryan nixed that idea. Now, they are currently deep into the casting process trying to find the right actor for the role, presumably someone who is starting to show their age. Ryan also says they are 'looking at' potentially casting for telekinetic female merc and Cable love interest Domino, which has long been rumored. There have also been rumors that Spider-Man could show up for a cameo, but that would be quite the feat as it would mean Marvel, Sony and Fox all having to work together, which won't likely happen anytime soon.

Ryan Reynolds wants everyone to know that he has no hard feelings about Tim Miller. And even goes onto praise the man's work. He says this about working with Miller on the first movie.

"There is not a human being on earth that worked harder on Deadpool than Tim. He's an incredibly, incredibly talented director."

Deadpol 2 shoots in early 2017 for a 2018 release date. With Tim Miller gone, the team had to scramble to find a replacement director. They ended up lucking out, as they scooped up John Wick co-director David Leitch. This is an artist whom Ryan Reynolds only has the utmost respect for. He says this about the hiring.

"Everbody was just a fan of his work. He's just a guy who's so muscular with his action. He also really understands those Deadpool sensibilities and where we need to take the franchise from here. And I love John Wick. One of the things that David Leitch does that very few filmmakers can do these days is they can make a movie on an ultra tight minimal budget look like it was shot for 10-15 times what it cost."

At the heart of it all, Deadpool 2 is meant to be a lean, mean fighting machine that doesn't eat up the enormous budget usually associated with superhero blockbusters and other summer style tentpole films. Producer Simon Kinberg joined the discussion to say this about the X-Men spin-off.

"The goal for us when we sat down and started talking about it was it needs to be as provocative and startling as the first film which means it can't just be a continuation of the first film. It has tonally and stylistically be as fresh and original. That's a big challenge especially because they had 10 years to gestate on the first movie and we don't have that kind of time on the second movie. That's the biggest mandate going into on the second film: to not make it bigger. We have to resist the temptation to make it bigger in scale and scope, which is normally what you do when you have a surprise hit movie. But actually stay true to the tenets of it's the tone and the style and the humor that make it so special - it's not the explosions and the special effects."

Deadpool 2 doesn't have a proper release date, despite some wanting to will it into existence. Fox does have an untitled Marvel movie set for release on November 2, 2017, but that's a little too ambitious. There is also an untitled Marvel movie set for June 29, 2018, which sounds about right. It was reported just yesterday that the next non-Deadpool X-Men movie will also begin shooting summer 2017. No title was announced, but many believe it will be New Mutants, set in the 90s, and following the events seen in this past summer's X-Men: Apocalypse.