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The Merc with a Mouth has been without a movie for four years now. We last saw Ryan Reynolds fill the red suit in 2018’s Deadpool 2 alongside Josh Brolin and Zazie Beetz. Deadpool 3 hit a Mouse shaped speed bump after the Disney/Marvel Studios takeover of the Fox Marvel properties. Deadpool is officially slated to enter the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but at what cost? The first two Deadpool films are endearingly comic-accurate, R-rated romps replete with gratuitous cursing, crude humor, and a whole lot of blood and guts.
When Fox went to Disney, the questions mounted. Would Deadpool be declawed of all of its potty-humored and bloody glory? Would Disney go for a full-on reboot, including recasting from the beloved Reynolds? Would Deadpool 3 even happen at all? Here’s everything we know about it so far.
Deadpool 3: The Plot
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Deadpool 3 is officially happening, and the production is still in the writing stages. Bob’s Burgers scribes Wendy Molyneux and Lizzie Molyneux-Logelin were reportedly commissioned by Marvel to pen the script for the movie. We don't know if they had developed a draft or not. What we do know is that original writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick are now charged with writing the third installment. This is welcome news as the writing on Deadpool and Deadpool 2 was pitch-perfect, from the low-brow jokes, the witty quips, and the thrilling action sequences. Nothing about the originals was broken, so we’re glad it’s not being fixed. Frequent Reynolds collaborator Shawn Levy is signed on to direct the movie.
As for plot points, the possibilities are now endless, thanks to the rich and extended MCU history and characters under the Marvel roof we’ve yet to see. Could we see a set-up for Deadpool to eventually join whatever iteration of the Avengers the MCU has planned for Phase 4 and beyond?
One of the best aspects of Avengers Infinity War was the new character interactions -- Stark and Strange, Stark and the GOTG, Rocket negotiating for Winter Soldier’s arm. All of it was pure gold. Now imagine Deadpool in that movie. That said, we wish the Fox buyout had happened way sooner.
Seeing Ryan Reynold’s Deadpool alongside Chris Evans’ Captain America, Robert Downey Jr’s Iron Man, and Chris Hemsworth’s Thor would have been a brilliant addition. And to get greedy, Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine. Deadpool playing off the original Avengers would have been a simply joyous exercise to witness. With Stark dead, Cap old, and Thor’s post-Love and Thunder career in question, we sadly won’t get to see it, but there’s still meat on the bone. Deadpool and Hawkeye have an established relationship from the comics, as does the former and Doctor Strange. Oh, and plenty of collaboration with Spider-Man is out there to tap into.
Deadpool is such a unique and oddball character you can put him next to anyone and get great contrast and results, so hopefully, an established Avenger shows up in Deadpool 3.
Deadpool 3: The Cast
The most important component of Deadpool is Ryan Reynolds, so having him back already puts this cast in great shape. We saw the death and time travel-induced resurrection of Deadpool’s girlfriend, Vanessa, in Deadpool 2, so it’s likely actress Morena Baccarin will return. Deadpool 2 dabbled in X-Force, with a few comic members joining the team, including Shatterstar and Domino. The former was killed off immediately for a good laugh, and the latter, played by Zazie Beetz, stole all her scenes in Deadpool 2. And, of course, there’s Josh Brolin’s grim and gritty take on Cable primed to make a return with Brolin’s multi-picture deal. With Colossus (Stefan Kapicic) and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand) already representing the X-Men in the Deadpool universe, it would make sense to not only bring them back but to also add to the X-Men roster.
Deadpool 3 could serve as a nice, soft landing spot for Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters, establishing a newly cast X-Men squad and also the existence of mutants in the MCU. We got a presumably Fox-universe Professor X in Doctor Strange in Multiverse of Madness, but that movie stopped short of making mutants a part of the MCU at large. Retaining Kapicic and Hildebrand would be a good move, as their chemistry with Deadpool was excellent, and we only saw the rest of the former X-Men team as a gag scene in Deadpool 2.
Release Date
Since Deadpool 3 is still in pre-production, so there’s no information on a release date. However, Marvel does have a few unidentified movies in its upcoming slate scheduled for February, May, July, and November 2024. Since ’24 is probably the soonest we can hope to see Deadpool on the big screen again, one of these dates could be reserved for Deadpool 3.
Will Deadpool 3 Be Watered-Down?
Kevin Feige and Marvel Studios have pledged to keep Deadpool R-rated, despite the looming Magic Kingdom shadow under which they work. This will be a first for the MCU, which has dealt solely with PG-13 fare since its inception in 2008. The MCU canon Netflix series Daredevil, Jessica Jones et al delved into cranked-up blood and violence, but we haven’t seen a big red splash on the big screen yet. It’s good to know that Deadpool will enter the MCU fully-formed and ready to mix it up with the universe.