Following its stellar success earlier this year, the sequel to Deadpool appeared to be a sure thing on its way to recreating that magic one again, until director Tim Miller left the project last week. While it was a serious blow to the sequel, it looks like the movie may not be director-less for much longer. The word is that that 20th Century Fox is eyeing John Wick director David Leitch to take the chair for Deadpool 2.
While it would appear that no official decision has been made, and several other directors are on the list of potential candidates for the job, Mashable is calling David Leitch the "strong frontrunner" to take over as director following Tim Miller's departure. The word is that Ryan Reynolds' agency, WME, has been pushing their star to get one of their other clients hired for the job and David Leitch is the one they're pushing. If this report is to be believed, Fox is on board with the call.
Of course, if you look at the credits of John Wick you won't see David Leitch's name listed as the director. Instead, you'll see Chad Stahelski's name. The truth is that the pair co-directed the movie, but Director's Guild of America rules only allow multiple directors to be listed in special circumstances. The truth is that both directed and both produced John Wick but the pair each took one credit instead to make the guild happy.
Prior to directing, David Leitch's film work was focused on stunts, as he was the stunt coordinator for Ryan Reynolds previously in X-Men: Origins: Wolverine. He was also the second unit director for Captain America: Civil War and Jurassic World. His next directorial effort will be an adaptation of the graphic novel The Coldest City starring Charlize Theron and James McAvoy.
While David Leitch is hardly a household name, he certainly has the credentials to pull off a solid Deadpool sequel. While action was not the thing Deadpool was most known for, as a superhero movie it's a vital element, and if anything, Leitch may be able to raise that game. When it comes to the humor, the screenwriters from the original movie, Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, are back, so there's little worry that there will be a significant change to the character's voice.
Without knowing who else might be under consideration it's tough to play favorites, but Deadpool 2 could likely do worse if David Leitch is truly the heir apparent to Deadpool 2. He's certainly capable of directing good movies, even if we only have a single sample to base our judgment on. What do you think? Is the director of John Wick the man to take over Deadpool 2 ? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
