Deadpool and Wolverine may be gearing up for a dynamic duo re-team, albeit in an unexpected way. As spotted in the Writers Guild of America’s directory, Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman are among the screenwriting credits for Avengers: Doomsday under the “additional literary materials” section.
While the former previously co-penned the script for Deadpool 2 and 2024’s Deadpool & Wolverine, the highly anticipated superhero outing will mark Jackman’s first contribution in the role. Marvel veteran Stephen McFeely and Loki creator Michael Waldron lead the charge, with the remaining names including Eric Pearson, Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers, Jeff Loveness, Andrew Lanham, and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and Spider-Man: Brand New Day helmer Destin Daniel Cretton, adding up to 10 scribes.
Cretton was originally tapped to direct the film when it was known as The Kang Dynasty, later reworked in the wake of Jonathan Majors’ firing after an assault verdict in 2023. Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom has since replaced Kang the Conqueror as the main villain, and the extent of both Reynold and Jackman’s appearances remains unclear. However, the Deadpool actor — in a very characteristic cheeky fashion — is playing into the speculation by responding to a post on Twitter/X with a clip from Deadpool & Wolverine, featuring Matthew Macfadyen’s Mr Paradox telling the foul-mouthed mercenary, “Oh, there’s no need for paperwork.” The latter replies, “Good! Not to brag, but I do not read.”
The official website also hints at involvement in writing dialogue for their respective characters, defining the additional literary material as “an official film credit introduced by the Writers Guild of America to recognise Guild-contracted writers who contributed writing services to a theatrical feature but did not qualify for a traditional primary writing credit.”
Wolverine won’t be the only mutant appearance in Avengers: Doomsday. Alongside the Fantastic Four and Thunderbolts (aka the New Avengers), it will reassemble Channing Tatum’s Gambit and the classic Fox X-Men cast that includes Patrick Stewart as Professor Charles Xavier, Ian McKellen as Magneto, James Marsden as Scott Summers / Cyclops, Kelsey Grammer as Beast, Alan Cumming as Nightcrawler, and Rebecca Romijn as Mystique. It releases on 18 December and is set to be the final on-screen role for the late Stewart, who died in October.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
Kevin Low
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