Ryan Reynolds reveals he once pitched a stop motion animated Deadpool movie to Marvel Studios. During his appearance at this year’s Time 100 Summit, the actor discussed his time playing Deadpool and shed light on some of the ideas he considered when developing a third movie. He noted that he discussed several different concepts with the higher ups at Marvel before moving forward with the film that eventually became Deadpool & Wolverine. One of these would have brought Deadpool to a different medium: stop motion animation. Reynolds did not shed any light on what the story might have entailed if that version was made.
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“The whole movie was an allegory for Disney buying Fox,” Reynolds said when describing Deadpool & Wolverine. “I pitched 18 different movies to them. I pitched one that was stop motion for Christ’s sakes. One that was a Sundance movie … one shot, the whole thing in a car.”
After Disney acquired Fox, sending the film rights to X-Men characters to Marvel Studios, the third Deadpool movie was in development for an extended period of time. Deadpool 2 premiered in 2018, and Deadpool & Wolverine didn’t hit theaters until six years later. Fortunately for Marvel and Disney, it was worth the wait. Deadpool & Wolverine earned positive reviews and broke box office records, becoming the second highest-grossing film of 2024 (behind only Inside Out 2).
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The response to Deadpool & Wolverine illustrated audiences are interested in more Wade Wilson, but it’s unknown when the Merc with a Mouth will return to the MCU. A Deadpool 4 hasn’t been announced, but Marvel is always looking for a spot to feature the character next. Following Deadpool & Wolverine‘s release, Reynolds has maintained he does not want Wade Wilson to join the Avengers or X-Men, opting to keep the character in his isolated corner of the franchise.
Even though Reynolds didn’t share plot details for his discarded stop motion pitch, the concept along makes it something that would be worth revisiting down the line. It would make for a refreshing change of pace for the MCU, and it would be fun to see what Reynolds & Co. could come up with in the format. Animation presents filmmakers with opportunities to tell stories in ways that aren’t always possible in live-action, so this stop motion Deadpool film would stand out. And this would be the perfect outlet for Marvel to get creative in a manner like this, seeing that Reynolds wants to keep Deadpool separate from the MCU’s superhero teams. A film revolving around him could go against the grain and try something unique.
If Reynolds wanted to, there might be a platform for a stop motion Deadpool project. Marvel Studios has produced multiple Special Presentation titles for Disney+, with another one (starring Jon Bernthal’s Punisher) on the way. Perhaps one day, Marvel would look at the possibility of using the Special Presentation format to have a bit of fun and think outside the box with a different idea. Some of Reynolds’ Deadpool 3 pitches probably aren’t worth reviving (the “car movie” with no action), but the stop motion concept is one that has potential to tell an entertaining story in a creative way.
