While the Fox series of X-Men movies ended in 2020 with The New Mutants, Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool will live on in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. There haven’t been a ton of specific updates on the threequel’s progress over the years aside from Bob’s Burgers duo Wendy Molyneux and Lizzie Molyneux-Logelin having been hired to write the script, but that changes today. Word’s come in that Shawn Levy has been selected to direct Deadpool 3.
Having already worked with Ryan Reynolds on Free Guy and The Adam Project, the filmmaker will now turn his attention to Marvel’s Merc with the Mouth, with THR sharing that Shawn Levy is in negotiations to direct Deadpool 3. Assuming a deal is reached, Levy will be the third director to helm a Deadpool movie, with Tim Miller helming the first one and David Leitch succeeding him on the sequel.
But that’s not the only Deadpool 3 news that’s come in today. It was also mentioned that Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, who wrote the first two Deadpool movies, as resuming their scripting duties for the threequel. It’s unclear if they will be working off of the material that Wendy Molyneux and Lizzie Molyneux-Logelin put together, or if they’ll be starting from scratch. Ryan Reynolds is still the only actor attached to Deadpool 3, and since he co-wrote Deadpool 2 with Reese and Wernick, don’t be surprised if he at least gives some notes on the next movie’s script too.
Along with Free Guy and The Adam Project, Shawn Levy’s credits include Big Fat Liar (which he’s game to make a sequel for), the Night at the Museum movies and Real Steel, the latter of which saw him directing Wolverine actor Hugh Jackman. The news of Levy being eyed to helm Deadpool 3 comes shortly after Ryan Reynolds shared his support to re-team with the director and Jackman on the threequel. For now, the odds of Jackman donning the adamantium claws again in Deadpool 3 (or anywhere really) don’t look good now, at least Reynolds and Levy are gearing up to collaborate on a third project together.
One thing that’s worth mentioning about Shawn Levy is that most of the movies he’s directed have been PG or PG-13, with 2014’s This is Where I Leave You being the sole R-rated offering. Back in early 2019, then-Disney CEO Bob Iger said shortly before the Disney/Fox merger was finalized that Ryan Reynolds’ Wade Wilson would continue to operate within R-rated parameters., something Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige reaffirmed in early 2021. However, with Levy’s involvement, along with the release of the PG-13 alternate cut of Deadpool 2 called Once Upon a Deadpool, I can’t help wondering if pieces are falling into place for Deadpool 3 to be stamped with a PG-13 rating like the other MCU movies.
CinemaBlend will continue to pass along other major updates on Deadpool 3’s development, including when it will begin filming and be released in theaters. Until then, you’re welcome to look through the upcoming Marvel movies slate to learn what the MCU is sending to the big screen in the near future.
