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Deadpool and Wolverine isn’t going to be like the average MCU movie

This could be the best Marvel movie we've seen in a good few years

29 April 2024

Deadpool and Wolverine is the MCU’s big box office hope for the summer and, judging by what director Shawn Levy says, it’s not going to be your average Marvel movie.

In the post-Thanos Marvel era, that the MCU films are all so linked has become more of a burden than a strength. But this isn’t what Deadpool and Wolverine is about.

“I was a good student in school. I’ll do my homework as an adult. But I am definitely not looking to do homework when I go to the movies,” Levy told the AP.

“I very much made this film with certainly a healthy respect and gratitude towards the rabid fan base that has peak fluency in the mythology and lore of these characters and this world. But I didn’t want to presume that. This movie is built for entertainment, with no obligation to come prepared with prior research.”

It helps, of course, that the lead characters aren’t as integral a part of the MCU films as others, to date.

The X-Men are only just being introduced to the MCU, and (like X-Men) the older Deadpool movies were part of the 20th Century Fox stable, not Disney’s. Of course, they’re all part of the same team now. Disney acquired 20th Century Fox in a deal that completed in 2019.

Deadpool and Wolverine is likely to feel quite different to, say, The Marvels. But that does not mean it won’t feel familiar.

Levy says the film will retain the distinct flavour we grew to love in the first two Deadpool films.

“There was no way I was going to reinvent a wheel, a tonal wheel, that works so beautifully… Both Disney and Marvel, up and down the food chain, empowered Ryan and I to make this movie exactly as we dreamed.”

You can expect sass, swearing and plenty of Deadpool making meta references.

There are even some fourth wall-breaking bits in the trailer, released last week:

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We know the two superheroes team up, but the rest of the story remains blessedly unspoiled for now.

Deadpool and Wolverine is out on July 26, and the Disney and Marvel bosses will no doubt be quaking in their boots about its opening weekend.

Marvel movies are not doing well these days, The Marvels only reportedly recouping $206 million globally from a $270 million production budget, while both Deadpool movies made upwards of $780 million each.