There has been a couple of major announcements about the upcoming and anticipated Marvel sequel that is Deadpool 3. Not only did we get a confirmed release date of September 26th, 2024 but it’s also been confirmed that the mighty Hugh Jackman will reprise his role as Wolverine, just five years after retiring from the role in 2017 with Logan. While there are still major plot details that have yet to be revealed, at least it’s confirmed that the movie is in active development and is expected to come out less than two years from now. There are plenty of fans out there that are excited about this news, other folks…..not so much.
Ever since this announcement was made a week ago, there have been plenty of folks on social media platforms that have had no problem in voicing their displeasure of this news. Many of have complained that this cheapness the ending of Logan, the last movie with Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine where *SPOILER ALERT* he dies. Jackman had stated repeatedly he wanted to end the story of his iconic character on a high note which is why he initially wanted to retire from the role with Logan. Now, that he’s back, it makes the whole movie feel like it was for nothing and is yet another example of Hollywood refusing to leave a property well enough alone after it has been giving finality.
Folks such as Bailey here:
While I can understand a reason or two for those claims, I think people are REALLY overexaggerating over this news.
First off, I’m fairly certain that the Wolverine we will see in Deadpool 3 will not be the same character as we saw in Logan or maybe not even the prior X-Men movies. To be honest, it’s hard to really tell whether or not if Wolverine is supposed to be the exact same character in each of those movies because of how messed up the continuity is in the Fox universe. Even if it is suppose to be one of the version from the movies, I’m fairly certain it will take place in a time period far removed from Logan, long before the events of that film even happened. Especially if the newest update from Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman themselves is any indication.
That in of itself should have been obvious to anyone with half a brain. Ryan Reynolds has voiced his praise for Logan multiple times and I highly doubt he wants to mess with that movie. I also don’t believe Hugh Jackman would have returned if it meant it would screw with the perfect epilogue he was given in that movie. Even taken away that sense of pride and accomplishment from Logan directly, I still don’t think Hugh coming back one more time as Wolverine does any sort of harm.
One thing you have to keep in mind is that Logan and Deadpool are two completely different kinds of movies. While both are R-rated with plenty of blood and gore, they both have very two distinct tones and tackles different subgenres of it’s own. Logan is a dark, bleak western that also happens to have comic book elements to it that can be enjoyed by those who aren’t even a fan of superhero movies. Deadpool is a goofy, lighthearted, over-the-top action flick with comic book elements and very episodic-like storytelling that can be perfectly enjoyed by fans of superhero movies or even good comedies. They both have two completely different goals for their respective movies and able to succeed at them in completely different ways. While Logan would have still been perfect as Hugh Jackman’s last go-around as the character, Deadpool 3 allows him to take part of what I would imagine being a perfectly enjoyable buddy cop-kind of flick with two of the most beloved actors in Marvel canon bantering and quipping off each other for two hours, just like they have always wanted.
This also helps deliver something that fans have wanted to see for years, especially with a Deadpool movie. That being Ryan’s Deadpool and Hugh’s Wolverine coming together in an R-rated action flick where they claw, slice, and dice bad guys in the most bloody and brutal way possible. We got glimpse of that in Origins: Wolverine but that will be on full display in Deadpool 3. Not to mention, we might at long last get to see Hugh Jackman in that iconic Wolverine costume, something we never got to see once in the Fox X-Men movies aside from a brief deleted scene in The Wolverine. As long as Hugh was perfectly finding coming back for one more round, I don’t see how his return ruins anything in Logan or prior X-Men movies.
All of this basically means is that you can get two different endings of the Wolverine character. You got the sad but bittersweet ending of Logan while you will likely get a more fun, uplifting ending in the form of Deadpool 3. If the movie is able to deliver on the goods that fans have wanted to see with Ryan and Hugh together along with doing more comic-accurate things like the Wolverine suit, then it’s basically a win-win situation for everybody.
While I can understand concerns about Hugh Jackman returning once again after initially stepping down from the role as Wolverine, I do think this is a very different case than with most franchises out there who tend to bring back older actors who had previously moved on from their most famous roles. The Fox X-Men movies and Deadpool movies have such distinct tones and feels that it’s hard for me to imagine getting upset over it since it most likely won’t even feel like the same version of the character. It’d be like getting mad over the Toy Story shorts that came along after Toy Story 3 and claiming that ruined the perfect ending of that one (Yes, I know Toy Story 4 is a thing but I’m mostly talking about between 3 and 4 and how there were folks complaining about the shorts because it ruins the ending of 3.). The Deadpool movies feel so different, more episodic, and more inconsequential to the other X-Men movies that I’m puzzled why folks have tended to have such a vital reaction to this news.
Heck, no matter what, this whole thing can be seen as a win-win for both those who are excited for Deadpool 3 and those who are not. If the movie is good, then you get another good movie and ending for Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine. If the movie is bad, then you can just pretend Logan was the true last movie with Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine.
Life is that simple. Enjoy what you like, ignore what you don’t like. If this announcement has really annoyed you so much that you believe it ruins Logan for you, then there’s a good chance you probably didn’t think that movie was really that good at all, now realizing that, and are just lashing out at the movie because of it. Might want to think on that before rendering something as meaningless.
Regardless, Deadpool 3 is set for a September 6, 2024 release date with Ryan Reynolds reprising his role as Wade Wilson/Deadpool and Hugh Jackman returning as Logan/Wolverine.
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