We're still waiting on an official release date for the third movie, but we do now know that long-time Bob's Burgers writers Wendy Molyneux and Lizzie Molyneux-Loeglin have been hired to write the threequel.
According to Deadline, the pair were hired after Reynolds met with writers to hear their pitches, both he and the studio felt the sisters' take was the "perfect fit". Even though there are writers now, the third movie remains in early development, so we can't expect to see it any time soon. "It will not be [filming] this year. Ryan is a very busy, very successful actor. We've got a number of things we’ve already announced that we now have to make," Feige told Collider.
That means a 2022 production start at the earliest.
That hasn't stopped Reynolds from teasing us all with tantalising photos, of course.
Depending on when it starts filming in 2022, there's a chance we could see it in 2023. Marvel already has two movies confirmed for that year (Ant-Man 3 and Guardians 3), but there are still two dates free: July 28 and November 3.
Once a more specific filming start date has been confirmed, we should have a better idea of when the Merc with a Mouth will return. If there's one certainty in life, it's that Ryan Reynolds will reprise the role of Wade Wilson for Deadpool 3. Nobody else has confirmed their involvement yet, so we'll have to wait and see who's joining Reynolds.
Deadpool 2 introduced us to a range of new heroes too with the X-Force team and although some didn't survive long enough, we could see the likes of Cable (Josh Brolin) and Domino (Zazie Beetz) again.
However, Beetz isn't so sure she'll be back as she revealed in March 2021 that she hadn't heard anything about a role: "I would love to revive the role... I haven't had any specific conversations around it. But I'm interested." Fellow teammates Colossus (Stefan Kapičić), Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand), Yukio (Shioli Kutsuna) and Russell (Julian Dennison) will probably round out the X-Force team if we see them again, perhaps with Peter (Rob Delaney) in tow.
Fans shouldn't hold out much hope to see the likes of Shatterstar (Lewis Tan) and Zeitgeist (Bill Skarsgård) return for Deadpool 3, but superheroes always cheat death in the comics, so never say never.
One character who already cheated death (as long as Deadpool 2's post-credits sequence is canon) in the franchise is Vanessa, Deadpool's girlfriend, and it's safe to assume that she'll return for the sequel too.
Baccarin defended Vanessa's lack of screen time in the sequel with fans accusing the movie of 'fridging' her. "I can understand that people felt that way and I certainly was disappointed that I didn't have more to do, because I just loved the part so much," she said.
"But in watching the film and reading the script, it felt like such an emotionally pivotal role in the film and the entire arc of his character in the film is set into motion because of what happens to my character." The Merc with a Mouth might have his hands full fighting to protect her though, as previous Easter eggs have hinted that Mr Sinister could turn out to be the big bad of Deadpool 3.
Failing that, Deadpool 2's cut cameo from the likes of Omega Red during the Ice Box Prison scene could also hint at the future of the franchise.
TJ Miller played Weasel in the first two movies, but has said he'd "rather they didn't" make a third movie and if that means he won't be back, we won't be too bothered by it.
Will we finally see an on-screen reunion for Ryan Reynolds and his nemesis Hugh Jackman? We simply don't know. Reynolds has teased that the threequel is "looking to go in a completely different direction", teasingly adding: "Often, they reboot or change a character maybe like four movies too late."
We don't know if this is the same idea that the Molyneux sisters will be taking for their take on Deadpool, but they already have to deal with potentially fitting Deadpool in the MCU, so it'll feel different already.
Though Deadpool's original director said the threequel didn't need an R rating to be great, the movie will be rated R, so don't worry about that. Feige confirmed in February 2021 that since Deadpool has "established" itself as an R-rated franchise, "we already said we would not mess with [the rating]".
It's unclear how the movie's MCU connection will play a part in the continuity of the series from the first two movies or if it'll effectively be a soft reboot. Does this mean that time travel will play a more prominent role in Deadpool 3?
The last time we saw Negasonic Teenage Warhead, she was fixing Cable's time machine so Deadpool could right the wrongs of the past, including a regrettable yet hilarious career choice made by Ryan Reynolds.
Deadpool 3 could also prove fruitful if Marvel wants to introduce other former Fox characters. Wernick suggested to Den of Geek that the future of Deadpool could be crossover-heavy.
"There's a lot to be sorted out, like how Deadpool fits into the Marvel Universe with the other characters and into the release schedule of the MCU. Then it's, do the X-Men get in there at some point? Fantastic Four? There's a lot to be sorted out."
Leitch said: "You can put [Deadpool] in with any one of those characters, or an ensemble of those characters, and it just sort of magnifies what you're doing. So that's probably one aspect that they are entertaining, and hopefully, they are entertaining more ideas as well."
But, as we said, Leitch hasn't been in touch with Disney so this is pure speculation on his – and our – part. For what it's worth, Deadpool has joined the MCU... sort of.
He has also said he wants to explore Deadpool's pansexuality in the future: "I certainly think that this universe... needs to represent and reflect the world in very real ways." Deadpool 3 could also prove fruitful if Marvel wants to introduce other former Fox characters. Wernick suggested to Den of Geek that the future of Deadpool could be crossover-heavy.
"There's a lot to be sorted out, like how Deadpool fits into the Marvel Universe with the other characters and into the release schedule of the MCU. Then it's, do the X-Men get in there at some point? Fantastic Four? There's a lot to be sorted out."
Leitch said: "You can put [Deadpool] in with any one of those characters, or an ensemble of those characters, and it just sort of magnifies what you're doing. So that's probably one aspect that they are entertaining, and hopefully, they are entertaining more ideas as well."
But, as we said, Leitch hasn't been in touch with Disney so this is pure speculation on his – and our – part. For what it's worth, Deadpool has joined the MCU... sort of.
