How Hugh Jackman Saved the ‘Deadpool’ Franchise With One Phone Call
Despite the astounding success of the first two films in the franchise, there was a time when it looked like Deadpool 3 was dead in the water.
Following the acquisition of 20th Century Fox by Disney, Marvel Studios decided that it wanted to take a crack at creating its own Deadpool movie. With Disney agreeing that it would not neuter the distinctly R-rated franchise and frequent Ryan Reynolds collaborator Shawn Levy signed on to direct, the Deadpool team began work on a third film.
Photo: Variety
For months, Levy, Reynolds, and a group of writers labored away, trying to craft a new Deadpool story. Still, nothing was solidifying.
Jackman’s Involvement Changed Everything
Just as the team was beginning to come to grips with the idea that Deadpool 3 might never materialize, they were thrown a lifeline by Hugh Jackman, who had finally convinced himself that his story as Wolverine could continue.
Photo: People
With one phone call between Jackman and Reynolds, Deadpool & Wolverine was born.
“We frankly struggled to find a story that felt original and non-derivative of the other two Deadpool movies. It had to be deserving of the first Deadpool entry into the MCU, but also feel grounded because this is an earthbound, gritty, realistic superhero franchise,” Levy recalled.
Source: screenrant.com
“We had fits and starts. And Ryan and I were right at the edge of saying to Kevin, ‘You know what? Maybe now is not the right moment because we’re not coming up with a story.’ And that is the moment when Ryan’s phone rang and it was Hugh calling from his car. And I’ll let Hugh tell that chapter of this story.”
The Pivotal Moment
“I was sitting on a beach, not a care in the world, and for some reason, the thought came into my head: What do you want to do? And the first two things had nothing to do with work—then literally, I thought: Deadpool-Wolverine,” Jackman recalled.
Photo: Hugh Jackman on Instagram
“I want to do that movie. That’s what I want.”
Driving back from the beach that day, Jackman made the now infamous call to Reynolds.
Photo: The Hollywood Reporter
“I rang straight away, because for some reason I’m like, I can’t wait 20 minutes. Normally, 20 minutes isn’t going to matter, but weirdly, it sort of did. I said, ‘I want to do this movie, I know it in my bones. I know it in my gut.’ And Ryan said, ‘I can’t believe the timing because we were about to have a meeting and I’m not sure where we’re at.’ You guys should probably pick up from there.”
The Timing Was Perfect
The timing of Jackman’s decision could not have been more perfect. It just so happened that Reynolds had a Zoom meeting with Marvel head Kevin Feige that same day.
“On the Zoom with Kevin, we just cut right to the [freaking] chase. We said, ‘Look, this call just came in. I feel like we’d be idiots to look this gift horse in the mouth and ignore it. This is a one in a billion chance. I really feel like this is what we’ve been looking for,'” Reynolds recounted.
With Jackman on board, the film fell into place, and the Deadpool franchise was saved.
With Deadpool & Wolverine heading towards a record-breaking opening weekend and looking like it will be the biggest film of 2024, Marvel has been thrown a lifeline.
Photo: Marvel
And to think, none of this would have happened without one fateful phone call.
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