Deadpool 3 is currently in production and Ryan Reynolds is adding a special superhero to its cast. In a hilarious new video shared to Reynolds’ Instagram Tuesday, the Free Guy actor revealed that Hugh Jackman, aka Wolverine, would be gracing the screen once more, for the third installment in the Deadpool saga.
The video sees a forlorn Reynolds, who apologizes for not attending Disney’s D23 conference earlier this month. Debating over how to appease the franchise’s fans, and top the last two Deadpool movies, Reynolds said he had to do some serious soul-searching before making the big announcement.
“Hey, everyone, we’re extremely sad to have missed D23, but we’ve been working very hard on the next ‘Deadpool’ film for a good long while now,” Reynolds says in the video. “I’ve had to really search my soul on this one. His first appearance in the MCU obviously needs to feel special. We need to stay true to the character, find new depth, motivation, meaning. Every Deadpool needs to stand out and stand apart. It’s been an incredible challenge that has forced me to reach down deep inside. And I…I have nothing. Yeah, just completely empty up here. And terrifying. But we did have one idea.”
It’s then that the X-Men actor walks by, cluing fans in on what Reynolds has up his sleeve.
“Hey, Hugh, you want to play Wolverine one more time?” he asks, as Jackman walks past in the background.
“Yeah, sure, Ryan,” Jackman nonchalantly replies. The video ends with Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” — dubbed in the video as “I will always love Hugh.”
A “Coming Hughn” teaser then flashes across the screen before the Deadpool logo appears, this time sliced up by Wolverine’s claws. In the video, Reynolds also included a release date for the highly anticipated film, informing fans that Deadpool 3 is slated to hit theaters Sept. 6 2024.
“Hard keeping my mouth sewn shut about this one. ⚔️,” he captioned the clip.
Deadpool‘s entrance into the Marvel Cinematic Universe was confirmed last January. In an interview with Collider, Marvel Studio President Kevin Feige confirmed a third Reynolds-led Deadpool flick, something that had been uncertain following 20th Century Fox’s sale to Disney.
In addition to confirming the movie, Feige noted that it will maintain its R-rating, though other MCU films are rated PG-13.
Sisters Lizzie Molyneux-Logelin and Wendy Molyneux are behind the script with Reynolds overseeing, Feige noted at the time.
“It will be rated R and we are working on a script right now, and Ryan’s overseeing a script right now,” he shared. “Again, a very different type of character in the MCU, and Ryan is a force of nature, which is just awesome to see him bring that character to life.”
Deadpool first premiered in 2016 and was followed by Deadpool 2 two years later.