Deadpool 3: Ryan Reynolds Teases Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine Return is “Something Completely New”

When it was confirmed that Deadpool 3 would see the return of Hugh Jackman in the role of Wolverine, many Marvel fans were puzzled. Prior to the release of 2017’s Logan, the long-time X-Men star had been adamant that the movie would be his last time playing Weapon X. So what could convince Jackman to return to the role? According to producer and star Ryan Reynolds, the Wolverine that we’ll be seeing in the third Deadpool movie will be “something completely new” for Jackman, at least compared to what he’s done before.

“It’s been fun,” Reynolds said of Deadpool 3 to ET Canada. “He and I are both really excited. We’ve wanted to do this for a decade. So, to have this opportunity now is, I think actually weirdly, the perfect time… I never stopped (trying to recruit Jackman). I was just pestering him like a gnat over the last many years. I actually just think… I believe in timing, as much as hard work and luck and all those intersections that are supposed to meet, timing is a big one as well, and I think he was ready. I think he was excited and what we pitched him was enough of a divergence from the character that he knows and the character that he’s left behind, that it gives him something completely new to play and something that he’s really excited to do.”

Free Guy‘s Shawn Levy is set to direct Deadpool 3 with a cast that also includes returning stars Morena Baccarin and Stefan Kapičić as Vanessa and Colossus respectively. Succession’s Matthew Macfadyen is also set to appear in an undisclosed role. 

What is Deadpool 3 about?

We don’t have official details on what the plot for the movie will be, and even how it will relate itself to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the 20th Century Fox X-Men movies. However, Reynolds himself may have teased what the plot of the movie will be in a moment when he may have thought the movie wasn’t going to get made. In January 2021, Reynolds tweeted the following: “It’s critical to have open, honest and healthy discussions around mental health. By retweeting #BellLetsTalk you can make a difference,” Reynolds tweeted at the time. “In case that’s not enough, before Disney bought Fox, Deadpool 3 was gonna be a road trip between Deadpool and Logan. Rashomon style. For real.”

For those unaware, by “Rashomon style” Reynolds is referencing the 1950 Japanese movie by Akira Kurosawa wherein the same story is told from the viewpoints of several different characters. To that end it seems like the road trip would have shown Deadpool and Logan’s differing perspectives about whatever they were experiencing; to wager a guess, comedic versus dark and brooding.

Deadpool 3 is currently scheduled to debut in theaters on November 8, 2024.