Shawn Levy Reveals What Made Him Want to Direct ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’

With less than three months until the premiere of Marvel Studios‘ feature project in 2024, one of the creative minds involved opened up about everything that led to this moment. In an exclusive interview with Empire Magazine, Deadpool & Wolverine director Shawn Levy said that making the film was a no-brainer to amend a previous career mistake. Levy worked with Wolverine actor Hugh Jackman on the film Real Steel and revealed that Jackman asked him if he was interested in directing a Wolverine movie. He talked about his reasoning for declining, and how it led to him signing on to direct Deadpool & Wolverine:

“When we were making Real Steel, Hugh was looking to do The Wolverine and he asked me if I wanted to do it, and like a moron, I said ‘No.’ Because I was thinking at that time, ‘Well, it’s your fifth time playing the character, I’m doing original films, et cetera.’ And I regretted it deeply for years. And so, when the opportunity came around again, thank God I was older and wiser enough to jump at the opportunity.”

While Levy did miss out on a chance to make his version of The Wolverine, it appears everything worked out for the best with him being offered the chance to direct his pal Ryan Reynolds‘ MCU debut as the Merc with a Mouth alongside Jackman’s Wolverine. James Mangold went on to direct The Wolverine, which found success at the box office, amassing a worldwide total of more than $400 million on a $120 million budget, and is featured with mostly positive reviews on the aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes, currently boasting a 71% critics score and 69% audience score.

Levy Reveals When Reynolds First Asked Him About Directing ‘Deadpool 3’

In addition to pouring out his regret, Levy also talked about when talks of him taking on the role of director for Deadpool & Wolverine began. He previously worked with Reynolds on The Adam Project, which also stars Percy Jackson actor Walker Scobell, and Levy said it was here when Reynolds first mentioned Deadpool 3 to him:

“On the set of The Adam Project, Ryan asked me if I would consider doing Deadpool 3, and I remember him saying, ‘I know you’re gonna say no, but I’m really going to try and talk you into it.’ And my response was ‘I’m not gonna fucking say no, are you kidding? It’s a hard and immediate yes, sir!'”

It’s been a long and winding road to get to this point, but all signs point to Levy, Reynolds, and Jackman being a match made in heaven for Deadpool and Wolverine’s MCU debut. Everyone involved with the project has spoken candidly about making something different that truly stands out, and with more than six months passed since the most recent MCU film, Marvel fans only have to wait for a few months longer.

Deadpool & Wolverine premieres exclusively in theaters July 26. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates and coverage of the film.

Deadpool & Wolverine

Wolverine joins the “merc with a mouth” in the third installment of the Deadpool film franchise.

Release Date

July 26, 2024

Writers

Rob Liefeld , Fabian Nicieza , Paul Wernick , Wendy Molyneux , Lizzie Molyneux-Logelin