Deadpool 3 doesn't sound like it's happening any time soon

(Image credit: Fox)

Deadpool 3 doesn't sound like it's coming any time soon, based on a recent interview with the Marvel character's co-creator Rob Liefeld. Speaking to io9, Liefeld says he knows there's no progress on Deadpool 3 at the moment, but that this doesn't exactly concern him. 

"Do I know that there is no movement on a Deadpool 3 right now? I know that. Yes. And does that worry me? No. Not at all." Liefeld was clarifying previous remarks he'd made about the possibility of a third film, indicating that since the movie isn't on Disney's current schedule, there's no certainty it's actually going ahead.

"Regardless of whatever inside perspective I may have, what I do know is that until a movie is put on a schedule, it's not taken seriously," Liefeld said. "And what people don’t like is that I have assessed the schedule for the next, give or take, five years and I don’t see Deadpool on it. [So] I don’t see that it can arrive earlier than that."

Disney has Marvel movies scheduled up until late 2022. While it's true Deadpool isn't on the schedule, there's an outside possibility it could be one of the numerous 'Untitled 20th Century' movies on Disney's release list for the next couple of years. 

That said, this isn't the only recent interview that alludes to little progress being made with Deadpool 3. In conversation with Total Film, star Ryan Reynolds had said that he "really didn't know" what we was going to happen with the character going forwards. "It's just all so new with it being over at Marvel now, and, you know, figuring out the ins and outs as much as I can, from where I sit. We'll see."

In December 2019, though, Reynolds had previously suggested Deadpool was moving ahead at Marvel, "with the whole team" involved. 

Both Deadpool movies were enormously successful, grossing more than $800 million each. Back in 2017, news broke that Fox was planning a team-up picture featuring Deadpool based on the X-Force series of comics, to be directed by Cabin in the Woods director Drew Goddard. 

That movie appeared to be a victim of the Disney-Fox merger, according to a tweet by Liefeld:

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Does Deadpool fit in a world with the MCU?

When Disney took over 20th Century Fox, it was unclear what would happen to Deadpool. While many are excited by the prospect of the X-Men being reintroduced in the MCU, after too many inconsistent pictures in the series from Fox, Deadpool doesn't immediately fit the very template-led, all-ages vision that guides the massively successful Marvel movies. 

Still, a third Deadpool movie featuring Reynolds seems unlikely to confuse audiences, given how well-established the character is. Deadpool 2 was released two years ago, and it's not exactly encouraging that a third movie doesn't have a place on the schedule.

That said, the final Fox-made X-Men movie, The New Mutants, will release on August 28. 

Samuel Roberts

Samuel is a PR Manager at game developer Frontier. Formerly TechRadar's Senior Entertainment Editor, he's an expert in Marvel, Star Wars, Netflix shows and general streaming stuff. Before his stint at TechRadar, he spent six years at PC Gamer. Samuel is also the co-host of the popular Back Page podcast, in which he details the trials and tribulations of being a games magazine editor – and attempts to justify his impulsive eBay games buying binges.