- Will be released worldwide in late July
- Will be Marvel's first R-rated movie
- Official trailers revealed in February and April
- Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman are its co-leads
- Other cast members confirmed
- Some cameos revealed by Marvel ahead of time
- Plenty of other big cameo rumors
- Will be another multiverse-centric film
- Might be a celebration of Fox's defunct X-Men cinematic universe
- Could set up future Marvel multiverse story threads
We're just days away from Deadpool and Wolverine slicing and dicing its way into theaters worldwide – and, we don't know about you, but we can't contain our excitement any longer. The only Marvel movie releasing in 2024 is almost here so, as the final countdown begins on The Merc With a Mouth and his best bub's (Deadpool's words, not ours) first big-screen adventure, you'll want to know everything about it before taking your seat for one of multiple showings.
Below, you'll find the latest and most important intel on the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film, including its release date, confirmed and rumored cast, story synopsis, various trailers, and what impact it'll have on the rest of Marvel Phase 5 and beyond.
Full spoilers follow for all X-Men and Deadpool movies release so far. Potentially massive spoilers for Deadpool and Wolverine are also discussed, so proceed at your own risk.
Deadpool and Wolverine release date
Deadpool and Wolverine will draw their blades and claws in US theaters on Friday, July 26. It'll arrive a day earlier (Thursday, July 25) in the UK, Australia, and many other international territories.
According to various cinema chains, including UK theatrical chain Cineworld, Deadpool and Wolverine's runtime clocks in at two hours and eight minutes (128 minutes), including its end credits sequence. We won't be in for an Avengers: Endgame-like, butt cheek-numbing showing, then!
Deadpool and Wolverine trailers
Deadpool and Wolverine's final trailer made its way online on July 19, and it contains plenty of new footage and confirms the return of a beloved character from one of 20th Century Fox's final X-Men movies (more on this in our cast section).
Missed Deadpool and Wolverine's second main teaser, which has 6 great Marvel Easter eggs hidden throughout its runtime? Check it out below:
Don't forget to watch the film's very first trailer, which was released in mid-February, either. You can watch it below and then read our Deadpool and Wolverine trailer breakdown to learn about the 10 big moments you missed in it.
There have been plenty of other TV spots for one of 2024's most anticipated new movies in the build up to launch, too, but we'll be here all day if we add them to this section. We'll link to a couple of them in later sections where necessary, though, such as ones that include any confirmed cast cameos. Speaking of which...
Deadpool 3 cast: confirmed and rumored
Potentially big Deadpool and Wolverine cast spoilers follows.
Here's Deadpool and Wolverine's cast list so far. The below includes individuals confirmed to appear by Marvel, as well as those who have been unofficially announced (by the press) to cameo:
- Ryan Reynolds as Wade Wilson/Deadpool
- Hugh Jackman as James 'Logan' Howlett/Wolverine
- Matthew Macfadyen as Mr. Paradox
- Emma Corrin as Cassandra Nova
- Morena Baccarin as Vanessa
- Stefan Kapičić as Colossus
- Brianna Hildebrand as Teenage Negasonic Warhead
- Shioli Kutsuna as Yukio
- Leslie Uggams as Blind Al
- Karan Soni as Dopinder
- Rob Delaney as Peter
- Aaron Stanford as Pyro
- Dafne Keen as X-23
- Wunmi Mosaku as Hunter B-15
- Jennifer Garner as Elektra Natchios
- Rob Delaney as TBC
Reynolds and Jackman need no introduction as their respective characters, but it was nonetheless surprising to hear Jackman would return as Wolverine one final time for this threequel. It seemed he'd called time on his iconic run as the adamantium-clawed mutant with 2017's Logan, one of the last hurrahs of Fox's deceased X-Men film universe.
However, speaking to CNN last January, Jackman said he didn't want to miss out on co-starring in a film alongside Reynolds' Regenerating Degenerate, hence his decision to return. That was in spite of Marvel president Kevin Feige telling Jackman (per Variety) not to do so, too.
As for other returning faces, Baccarin (Vanessa), Kapičić (Colossus), Hildebrand (Negasonic), Kutsuna (Yukio), Uggams (Blind Al), Soni (Dopinder), and Delaney (Peter) all reprise their roles from the first two Deadpool films.
The film's first trailer also revealed Stanford is back as the fiery mutant known as Pyro, who featured in the first three X-Men films (read up on how to watch the X-Men movies while you're here). He'll be joined by another alum from the very first live-action film starring the mutants, too, with another new Deadpool and Wolverine trailer teasing an X-Men movie rematch 24 years in the making - that being one between Wolverine and Sabretooth.
On the newcomer front, Macfadyen (Succession) is on board as Mr. Paradox, a new Time Variance Authority (TVA) agent, which adds major ties between Deadpool 3 and Loki season 2. He's not the only callback to the latter Disney Plus series, however, with a July 21 TV spot confirming that Mosaku's Hunter B-15 will make a surprise cameo as well.
But back to the new faces. Corrin (The Crown) is playing the movie's primary villain Cassandra Nova, the biological twin sister of Charles Xavier (the X-Men's founder, for the uninitiated) and an incredibly dangerous telepath who uses her powers for destructive purposes. As revealed in Welcome to Wrexham season 3 episode 5, Delaney is playing an unnamed TVA agent, but we don't know how substantial his role will be.
Given this movie's multiversal scope, we can expect other X-Men and defunct Fox universe characters to cameo. The first of those is X-23, aka Laura, aka Wolverine's "daughter" (read: clone) from Logan. Her appearance was revealed in yet another new Deadpool and Wolverine trailer that spoiled this newest big Marvel cameo. Garner (per The Hollywood Reporter (THR)) is also expected to reprise her role as Elektra from 2003's Daredevil film and the character's 2005 self-titled flick.
Elsewhere, Marvel fans are convinced they spotted two big character Easter eggs in the film's first trailer: iconic Fantastic Four adversary Doctor Doom and Lady Deadpool, a multiversal variant of the wisecracking antihero. The former seems like a red herring but, with the latter appearing in subsequent TV spots and teasers, MCU fans believe anyone from Anya Taylor-Joy to Reynolds' wife and fellow actor Blake Lively may portray Lady Deadpool.
As for actors who say they won't appear, Charlie Cox won't be adding to his MCU cameo roles, with the Daredevil star telling TechRadar he isn't in Deadpool 3. Zazie Beetz also told Decider she won't be back as Deadpool 2's Domino. Neither will Josh Brolin, who played Cable in Deadpool 2 (per Collider), Vinnie Jones as Juggernaut from X-Men: The Last Stand (via Yahoo) – there is a Juggernaut variant in the film – or Famke Janssen as Jean Grey from the original X-Men film trilogy (per ScreenGeek).
There's nothing like coming together.#DeadpoolAndWolverine. Only In theaters July 26. #LFG pic.twitter.com/wZr0ZQ2DfPApril 22, 2024
Remember the never-ending speculation about who'd cameo/appear in Doctor Strange 2? Marvel fans find themselves in a similar spin over the sheer quantity of wild rumors for Deadpool and Wolverine.
For starters, with Corrin playing Nova, Patrick Stewart has been touted to make another appearance as Charles Xavier/Professor X, everyone's favorite telepath (we just hope he doesn't die again!). For what it's worth, Stewart has apparently held discussions about featuring, telling the Happy Sad Confused podcast: "It [a cameo] has come up."
Jackman and (potentially) Stewart's appearances raise questions about other former X-Men stars turning up. Indeed, there's no end to speculation that Ian McKellen and/or Michael Fassbender will appear as their iterations of Magneto. James McAvoy's young Professor X is rumored to feature, although he's downplayed such suggestions to Entertainment Tonight.
A Succession reunion between Macfadyen and Brian Cox – the latter portraying William Stryker, the man behind Wolverine's creation, in numerous X-Men films – was rumored, but Cox told The Starting Line podcast he knew nothing about that. James Marsden, who played Cyclops in the original movie trilogy, didn't rule himself out when speaking to The Playlist, though. Lady Deathstrike (X-2: X-Men United) and Azazel (X-Men: First Class) were seemingly revealed in Deadpool 3's second trailer as well.
Additionally, MCU leaker CanWeGetSomeToast (per MarvelNewsFilms) claims Happy Hogan will show up, DanielRPK (again, via MarvelNewsFilms) also suggests Channing Tatum secretly filmed scenes as beloved X-Men member Gambit.
Further cameo talk was fuelled by KnightEdgeMedia's Caleb Williams tweeting Jessica Alba's Sue Storm will appear, while another industry insider in MyTimeToShineHello (per MarvelNewsFilms again) even suggests Chris Evans will return to his superhero roots to portray a variant of Johnny Storm/The Human Torch. Oh, and don't be surprised if Wesley Snipes' Blade (per DanielRPK via MarvelNewsFilms) plays a crowd-pleasing supporting role.
As for Wolverine and Deadpool variants that Jackman and Reynolds could play, the first trailer suggests Jackman may play one of Wolverine's aliases – the Madripoor-dwelling Patch – while a separate trailer confirmed Reynolds will portray a variant dubbed 'Perfect-Pool' (due to his general handsomeness). Expect the A-listers to play other variants throughout the flick.
Finally – and this would arguably be the biggest cameo of them all, if it's true – pop megastar Taylor Swift has long been rumored to make a shock cameo as Dazzler, a mutant with the ability to turn sonic vibrations into various forms of light. For their part, Reynolds (via the Vancouver Sun) and Levy (per The Wrap) haven't tempered expectations. We'll see if there's any truth to this hot speculation once the movie is out in the wild.
Deadpool 3 story speculation
Full spoilers follow for Deadpool 2 and Logan.
Marvel hasn't released an official plot synopsis for Deadpool and Wolverine. Usually, one is revealed alongside a project's first teaser but, given the secrecy surrounding this film, a story brief hasn't been provided. Still, based on its trailers and various reports, we have some idea of what its plot will entail.
For starters, Deadpool 3 will be R-rated, making it the first MCU film to carry this age rating. In January, Marvel released its first 18-plus TV show in Echo, so it's already laid the groundwork for adult-centric MCU projects to take their place alongside their PG-13 brethren.
Next, director Shawn Levy doesn't consider this film to be Deadpool 3. Speaking to Collider, he said: "It's very much a Deadpool movie, but this is not Deadpool 3. This is Deadpool & Wolverine, and it is singular because of that". That doesn't mean that Marvel's latest flick will be a standalone affair, mind you – there are numerous ties to previous X-Men movies, suggesting there'll be some continuity from 20th Century Fox's messy X-Men film timeline. That said, Levy also told AP News that MCU newcomers won't need to watch every Deadpool and X-Men movie to enjoy this one.
Full spoilers for some Deadpool and X-Men movies, plus potentially big story spoilers for Deadpool and Wolverine, follow.
So, how will Deadpool and Wolverine begin? The trailers reveal Wade has retired from the antihero life, but things aren't going well with Vanessa. In fact, the latest issue of Total Film magazine (thanks to IGN for the catch) not only revealed that the movie is set six years after Deadpool 2 but Vanessa also has a new boyfriend. So much for saving her in your last flick, eh, Wade?
Anyway, Wade's whisked away by the TVA amid some birthday celebrations for reasons unknown, but online chatter suggests it's because they want him to help them save the multiverse. However, we suspect the chaotic Deadpool won't be pleased with being kept on a leash by a bureaucratic organization, even if it's more benevolent in the wake of Loki season 2. Of course, Deadpool and Wolverine could be set before the end of Loki's second season, which would mean it's an organization still caught up in red tape.
But we're getting off track. Jackman's return as Wolverine sparked concern among fans of Logan, with the titular character dying in that film. It was a fitting end for Jackman's iconic run as Wolverine, so viewers were worried that Deadpool and Wolverine would undo the bittersweet nature of Jackman's at-the-time final outing.
In a September 2022 YouTube video, though, Reynolds and Jackman addressed the biggest question surrounding Wolverine's reappearance – that being, how he's alive in this movie. "Logan died in Logan, [so] we're not touching that," Reynolds explained, thus easing potential fan disgruntlement.
How will this movie address Wolverine's supposed resurrection? By not bringing him back from the dead at all. Per SiriusXM, Jackman revealed that Deadpool 2's time-travel device allowed Wade to travel back in time and/or to other Marvel timelines. In short, Deadpool could travel to an alternate universe where a Wolverine variant is still alive, thereby sidestepping the issue of bringing Logan's Wolverine back to life using said time-travel device.
Anyway, with the film's leading pair making the jump to the MCU – we hope there's a superhero landing once they do – from Fox's X-Men film franchise, we'd be surprised if Marvel doesn't celebrate and/or poke fun at those movies.
Deadpool and Wolverine will surely take some amusing shots at the MCU itself, with leaked images suggest we'll see a modified version of Moon Knight's cupcake van, while the second trailer appeared to show a modified version of Captain America: The First Avenger's Red Skull car. With Karan Soni also teasing (per Collider) that Deadpool 3 is full of jokes aimed at Feige – Wade Wilson namechecks him in the movie's main trailer – we don't think anyone will be safe from Wilson's witty remarks.
Speaking of Feige, he started in Hollywood as a producer on the first few X-Men movies, so it would be a missed opportunity if he didn't pay tribute to them and bring his filmmaking journey full circle. Judging by leaked images (see the X/Twitter post below) and various trailers, a giant 20th Century Fox logo will be the backdrop to a big Wolverine versus Deadpool showdown in The Void, so don't be surprised if Deadpool and Wolverine takes a very meta approach to Fox's fallen franchise.
The 20th Century Fox logo has been spotted on the set of ‘DEADPOOL 3’ 🎬 pic.twitter.com/m39mR5iHsuJuly 11, 2023
As for The Void – you know, the place at the End of Time (first seen in Loki season 1) where characters from pruned timelines are sent to be consumed by the giant, sentient, trash-temporal entity known as Alioth – CanWeGetSomeToast (via MarvelNewsFilms) claims the bulk of this film will be set there. Is this where our two heroes end up after a potential run-in with the TVA, plus where they meet Nova? We wouldn't be shocked if that's the case.
Speaking of Nova, how does she fit into the story? It seems she's operating out of The Void – did the TVA send her to this location for fear of her potential tampering of the multiverse? That's one possibility, although it's unclear how she'd then escape and wreak havoc in the TVA and/or the MCU (as a couple of TV spots/trailers have teased). Regardless, she'll be the big bad of the piece, so expect our titular mutant heroes to eventually team up to stop her.
If you're down with VanJamz, then I'm with HUGH pic.twitter.com/fs0ZDuTiL0July 17, 2024
There are lots of other rumors about who'll show up, how Deadpool's chaotic nature will play out in the MCU sandbox, and how the plot will reshape not only the Marvel Multiverse Saga, but also bring the X-Men and other mutants into the fold. We'd be here all day if we discuss each and every one, though, so let's hope most (if not all) of our queries are answered when the movie arrives.
Where to watch the Deadpool and X-Men movies
Want to watch every X-Men and Deadpool movie before Deadpool and Wolverine? You're in luck. All of them are available on Disney Plus, aka one of the world's best streaming services, no matter where you live. If you're planning to binge watch as many as you can before your screening and you're not signed up to the platform yet, read our Disney Plus price guide to see how much a monthly or yearly subscription costs.
How will Deadpool and Wolverine impact the MCU?
If Deadpool and Wolverine is as chaotic as it sounds, it could have serious repercussions for the Multiverse Saga.
Fan reception to most Marvel multiverse projects has been lukewarm at best so far, with only Spider-Man: No Way Home and Loki capturing audiences' imagination from a multiversal narrative perspective. Doctor Strange 2, What If...?, The Marvels, and Ant-Man 3 have flattered to deceive, meaning viewers haven't bought into the latest multi-phase story that the comic giant is trying to tell.
That's before Jonathan Majors' firing as Kang is taken into account, too. Marvel is reportedly exploring whether to recast the multiversal villain or overhaul the Multiverse Saga's entire plot, so it's hard to pinpoint where things could go next. Heck, Deadpool and Wolverine might have undergone narrative revisions in light of Majors' departure and have an open-ended finale that gives Marvel some wriggle room as it reworks its forthcoming line-up.
Feige has seemingly began to peel back the layers of what that revised blueprint might look like, too. Speaking on the Official Marvel Podcast, the comic titan's president said this film will cross over with other MCU projects aside from Loki, before adding (via Gizmodo) that Deadpool and Wolverine be an "eight" (out of 10, with Avengers: Endgame being a 10 out of 10) in terms of its overall MCU impact. He's also admitted that every project post-Deadpool and Wolverine will be based on the MCU's Mutant Era (per The Playlist), which poses exciting questions about what comes next.
As for how the flick could affect the story for the next two Avengers films, Reynolds, Jackman, and Levy – the latter of whom has been touted to direct Avengers 5 among others – did their best to sidestep a Variety question about Wolverine and Deadpool's potential appearances as part of the superteam's future roster. We'd be amazed if they don't show up for Avengers: Secret Wars, at the very least, so let's hope some form of confirmation comes before Deadpool 3's end credits roll or its potential post-credits scene is shown.
For more Marvel-based coverage, find out how to watch the Marvel movies in order. Alternatively, see which MCU TV shows and films made it onto our best Disney Plus shows and best Disney Plus movies lists. Lastly, read our guide on X-Men 97 season 2.
