Kevin Smith Reacts to Hugh Jackman Returning as Wolverine for Deadpool 3: “He’s the Gold Standard”

This week saw some huge news for Marvel fans when Ryan Reynolds announced that Hugh Jackman will be returning as Wolverine in Deadpool 3. Both Reynolds and Jackman appeared in two videos this week, one announcing the big reveal, and one explaining why the new movie won’t mess with the powerful ending of Logan. Jackman’s return to the role he first played 22 years ago has been a hot topic on social media this week, and longtime Marvel superfan Kevin Smith talked about the news on the latest episode of Fatman Beyond. 

“This is the first Deadpool under Marvel, that’s why they thank Kevin Feige in the second trailer,” Smith explained. “Talk about the stroke of brilliance in terms of it’s Deadpool 3, and we all love Deadpool, and we all f*cking went for Deadpool 2, more or less. You know, there’s a good chance we were all gonna go for Deadpool 3, but man, if you wanna f*cking clinch that, you want to make it a sure f*cking thing, you want to ‘No Way Home‘ that sh*t, they just figured it out.”

Smith added, “Why wouldn’t you pay ANYTHING to get Hugh f*cking Jackman to come back as Wolverine again? I mean, think about it, is there anybody else you could do that for who would matter that much? He’s it. Of all the characters and the actors, he’s the gold standard in terms of like, ‘Oh my god, this f*cker is back.’”

Jackman said this week that the decision to return as Wolverine in Deadpool 3 was his own. On TikTok, u/uncrazed caught up with the X-Men star to ask him how Reynolds convinced him to return to the role. Jackman quipped, “I make my own decisions, brother.”

Here’s what Reynolds said during the big Deadpool 3 announcement: “Hey everyone, we’re extremely sad to have missed D23 [the official Disney fan club expo], but we’ve been working very hard on the next Deadpool film for a good long while now,” he began. “I’ve had to really search my soul on this one. His first appearance in the MCU obviously needs to feel special. We need to stay true to the character, find new depth, motivation, meaning. Every Deadpool needs to stand out and stand apart. It’s been an incredible challenge that has forced me to reach down deep inside. And I… I have nothing. Yeah, just completely empty up here. And terrifying. But we did have one idea. Hey, Hugh, you want to play Wolverine one more time?”

Deadpool 3 is scheduled to be released on September 6th, 2024.