Shawn Levy Says ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Is “Not ‘Deadpool 3′” & A Two-Hander Adventure

This July, Marvel Studios’ first and only feature film release of 2024, “Deadpool & Wolverine.” In the latest installment in The Multiverse Saga, Ryan Reynolds’ merc-with-a-mouth, Wade Wilson, is on the cusp of joining Earth-616 (teased in the first trailer), with Deadpool finally getting paired up with Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine in yet another adventure on the big screen. However, director Shawn Levy (“The Adam Project”) cautions that his new sequels are different from the previous two installments during the Fox era of the franchise, which is not so much a solo outing.

Levy spoke with Screen Rant at CinemaCon last weekend (read our recap here) and teased what’s in store for this not-a-third-“Deadpool” movie.

“As far as crafting the ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ story, I felt privileged every day because you’re talking about two massive movie stars in their most iconic roles. It also gave me an opportunity.” The director also explained why Wolverine’s co-lead status pushes it out of the realm of a solo outing. “It’s the third ‘Deadpool’ movie, but it’s not ‘Deadpool 3.’ It’s a different thing that’s very much ‘Deadpool & Wolverine.’ And it’s not trying to copycat anything from the first two movies. They were awesome, but this is a two-hander character adventure.”

READ MORE: Karan Soni Says ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ “Takes Full Advantage Of The MCU” While Also Poking Fun At Kevin Feige

The comments seem to echo Reynolds’ own concerns with the franchise. Back in 2018, the actor said he wasn’t sure if there would be a “Deadpool 3” because he felt the character’s journey had been fully told, and to continue with the franchise, they’d have to do something much different. And that feels like what “Deadpool & Wolverine” has evolved into.

“I just think if you’re going to do another Deadpool solo film, you’ve got to really, like, get that budget down to nothing and just swing for the fences, and break all kinds of weird barriers, and do stuff that no one else can do,” Reynolds said at the time.

Levy’s comments shouldn’t be surprising given the running gag of the previous two films, which was the lack of big-time mutant characters appearing in the franchise, such as Jackman’s Logan. Those budgetary and character restrictions have been lifted at Marvel Studios with the chatter of various Foxverse/Singerverse appearances said to be in the film, such as reports of Jennifer Garner’s Elektra showing up, and the trailer already confirming that Pyro actor Aaron Stanford is reprising his role from the original “X-Men” trilogy. 

Levy’s also “two-hander” comments make complete sense after he told Deadline last year at the Toronto International Film Festival, “I would say it’s more a descendant of ‘Mightnight Run,’ and ’48 Hours,’ and ‘Planes, Trains & Automobiles.’” All comedic road trip movies feature two main characters who are essentially forced to work together to face their common goals.

How Deadpool and Wolverine actually join the current Marvel 616 timelines is unclear, but surely the TVA will somehow be involved. Will they bring in Earth X (seeds already being planted in “Fantastic Four” with the Earth X version of Silver Surfer played by Julia Garner), or will the events of “Avengers: Secret Wars” lead to all this? We’ll just have to wait to see how it all plays out.

‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ will hit screens on July 26, 2024, making the mutants’ first big live-action debut in the MCU, and presumably, a new trailer should be arriving in the next few weeks.