Ryan Reynolds Reveals How He Convinced Hugh Jackman To Un-Retire Wolverine for ‘Deadpool 3’

Deadpool 3 won’t hit theaters until November 2024, but that doesn’t mean we won’t be thinking about the Merc with the Mouth every second until then. As more cast members are announced alongside Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine return, and tidbits of information leak, it only stokes the flames for how excited I am for Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I’m not the only one, since every media person who encounters Ryan Reynolds seems to be inquiring about the upcoming movie.

During an appearance at the 2023 Canadian Screen Awards, Entertainment Tonight Canada only had a few minutes with Reynolds, and of course, the reporter had to ask about Deadpool and the epic team-up between Reynolds and Hugh Jackman, as he comes out of retirement as Wolverine. Jackman had previously stated he would no longer play the character after 2017’s Logan. So, how did Reynolds convince Jackman to pick the claws back up again?

Working that Deadpool magic

Reynolds joked about how difficult it is to keep up with Jackman while training for their superhero return. Calling Jackman “a beast” and saying that Jackman is “clearly obsessed with his own body,” Reynolds said it has been hard to keep up with the other actor in the gym. He also expressed just how excited they both were to return to the screen together since the pair previously played the same duo of characters in the disastrous X-Men Origins: Wolverine movie.

Thankfully, we are getting a do-over for Wolverine and Deadpool, since both the actors and the comic book characters have such great chemistry. When asked how he convinced Jackman to bring Wolverine back to life, Reynolds said he hadn’t stopped asking for the last decade. “I mean, I never stopped. I was just pestering. I’m like a gnat over the last many years,” he joked.

The main reason, however, was the differences in the updated version of the character. “What we pitched him was enough of a divergence from the character that he knows and the character he’s left behind that it gives him something completely new to play and something he’s really excited to do.” I like to imagine Deadpool in the French maid’s outfit was part of the equation somehow, too. It’s Deadpool 3! Who knows what outlandishness is coming our way!?

(via ET Canada, featured image: 20th Century Fox)