News that Hugh Jackman is returning as Wolverine in Deadpool 3 has blown up the internet, Marvel fans around the world collectively losing their minds at the mere thought of the previously unthinkable crossover. And yet, Ryan Reynolds low-key revealed the plot of Deadpool 3 back in 2021, and reports back in 2019 teased even more of what to expect in the upcoming sequel.
"Before Disney bought Fox, Deadpool 3 was gonna be a road trip between Deadpool and Logan. Rashomon style," Reynolds tweeted back in 2021 while promoting the mental health awareness campaign #BellLetsTalk from Bell Canada, a company trying to raise awareness and combat stigma surrounding mental illness. "For real," the actor added.
Rashomon is a Japanese thriller from maestro Akira Kurosawa that tells the same story – of how a samurai was murdered – from multiple different perspectives. Each person's account of the story is different, leading to a fraught ending in which the truth is never truly confirmed, though we can infer what actually happened.
Could a potential Deadpool 3 see Deadpool and Wolverine recount their own pasts while on a road trip? It would even make sense for each version of the past to be true thanks to Marvel's multiverse – and this is, after all, the Multiverse Saga. Whatever happens, it's sure to get ugly: previous reports, from way back in 2019, signal a punch-up between the clawed hero and the Merc With A Mouth.
"They’ve been joking about it for years, but insiders tell me that the possibility of Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds onscreen as Wolverine and Deadpool is no laughing matter," wrote Showbiz Cheat Sheet back in 2019. "Disney wants to offer Jackman truckloads of cash to return as Logan one more time to face Deadpool in an R-rated buddy picture, kind of a 48 Hours with mutants."
The report added that it would be a "hilarious" sendoff for Jackman's character, who already seemingly said farewell in Logan which saw Wolverine die. 48 Hours is a bonafide classic buddy-cop movie starring Eddie Murphy and Nick Nolte. Released back in 1982, the movie sees Notle's inspector free Murphy's convicted criminal for 48 hours so that he can help with an ongoing investigation.
At the time of publication, the Cheat Sheet report was thought to be inaccurate due to Jackman having previously said he would not return as Wolverine again – turns out, it was right all along, and it once again backs up the idea of Deadpool 3 being a road trip movie. Whether the plot of Deadpool 3 has been changed since then remains unclear, but whatever happens, the idea of Wolverine and Deadpool teaming up is a brilliant one, and it will surely be a highlight of Marvel Phase 6.
For more on the MCU, check out our guide to all the upcoming Marvel movies. You can also see our guides to the Marvel timeline and how to watch the Marvel movies in order to clarify any more potential questions you may have.
