Hugh Jackman’s $300M Sci-Fi Favorite Might Finally Have a Future After Latest Disney Update

The good news for sci-fi fans in the modern era is that even if a movie flops at the box office, time heals all wounds, and the cult that forms around something can easily propel it to make a return. We’ve seen this in action plenty of times, like when the popularity of the original Blade Runner gave way to the 2017 sequel, Blade Runner 2049. History repeated itself, though, as the sequel was also seen as something of a disappointment despite critical acclaim; but now the franchise is poised to return again, with the Blade Runner 2099 sequel TV show set to arrive this fall.

One of the most popular movies that was seen as a bit of a failure before but has enough of a fandom now to generate potential is the Hugh Jackman movie Real Steel. The 2011 movie from director Shawn Levy has had revival talks for years now, with no concrete notion about its potential fully addressed; now, though, it may have just gotten a boost. Levy and his 21 Laps production company have officially signed an overall deal with Disney’s 20th Television, luring the prolific creator away from Netflix, where he’s been for years. With the new deal, Levy will “develop and produce series across Disney Entertainment’s global portfolio,” which has us asking one question: Is this finally what gets Real Steel back into the world?

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A Real Steel TV Series was officially announced back in 2022, with minimal updates in the years that followed, but last year Levy noted that its future was uncertain, making it clear he didn’t want to deliver a sequel or TV show unless he knew it was going to do the original justice. Though Real Steel itself isn’t noted in the larger press release about Levy’s new deal with Disney, it doesn’t take much to connect the dots about his history with Disney, current work with the studio, and plans for the future to wonder if the sequel’s potential might have just gotten a major boost.

Before directing billion-dollar hits like Deadpool & Wolverine and the upcoming Star Wars: Starfighter, Levy broke into Hollywood directing episodes of Disney Channel original shows like The Famous Jett Jackson. He noted as much in his statement about his new deal with the company, noting “it honestly just feels like home.” It’s worth noting that Levy, naturally, already has a lot on his plate. The upcoming Star Wars: Starfighter is already in the can but won’t be released until May of 2027; after that, his future work as a director is already spoken for with the upcoming Ryan Gosling-starring Ghost Rider movie, confirmed to release in the summer of 2028.

All of that is to say, if the Real Steel sequel or TV spinoff finally gets off the ground thanks to Levy’s new deal with Disney, he may not be super hands-on with it, depending on the timing. Another major question about the franchise’s future is whether Jackman himself would return to the series. One assumes that it would be much easier for a VFX-heavy project like this to get off the ground if its very famous star was also attached, but to date none of the sequel talk has come from Jackman himself.

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