Deadpool 3 director Shawn Levy has spoken about how he was inspired by his love of Return of the Jedi when making the new movie, which will be part of the MCU. Production is currently paused due to the strikes, but everyone is keen to get back to making the movie which sees Ryan Reynolds’ Merc with the Mouth teaming up with Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine.
In a new interview, Shawn Levy, who is also a producer on Stranger Things, has talked about his love of a specific moment in the Star Wars movie Return of the Jedi. He says that he pays direct homage to the moment in Deadpool 3, and he’s looking forward to fans spotting it – and as we’re massive MCU and Star Wars nerds ourselves – we definitely will!
“I went to the theater again and again to see Return of the Jedi. I vividly remember the scene in which Luke Skywalker is hiding from Darth Vader in the Emperor’s room and Vader gives the speech that ends with ‘If you will not turn to the dark side, then perhaps your sister will.’ It was dead quiet. Pin-drop silence. Suddenly Vader has pushed the wrong button,” Levy told Esquire.
Levy continued; “Luke comes screaming out of the shadows and just goes to town in a lightsaber battle against Vader. The way that felt: The forty seconds of stillness from the audience, then the spectacle and emotion, is seared not just in my eyeballs, but in my heart.”
“For one key scene in [Deadpool 3], I said to my stunt and action team, ‘Guys, this is the Jedi moment.’ I pulled up that scene of Vader and Luke on my phone and restudied how it was photographed, how it was blocked, the framing, the tempo. The keen Star Wars fan will see the shot in my Deadpool movie that was inspired by a moment that I saw in a theater decades ago.”
We can now have some fun speculating who might be involved in the “Jedi moment,” as we know that Deadpool and Wolverine will definitely be fighting each other at some point in the movie. We’re guessing though that they’ll begin as enemies, before reluctantly teaming up against a greater Marvel villain – likely to be Emma Corrin’s character.
We’ve been told that much of the movie will be Deadpool and Wolverine on a road trip together, and we’re going to guess that they go from enemies to frenemies, to hopefully full-blown bromance by the end. It’s more likely that Levy’s “Jedi moment” involves Deadpool and Wolverine against whoever Corrin is playing, as it probably comes at the climax of the movie. Of course, there’s likely to be cameos from some of our favorite Marvel characters – so the scene could involve almost anyone from the MCU.
We definitely think that there’s no way that Deadpool 3 is making its May 2024 release date now, but we don’t yet have the new slot confirmed. One likelihood is that Captain America 4 (slated for July 2024) will move into Deadpool 3’s spot. But there’s not much chance of Deadpool 3 making July either, given how much post-production time MCU movies need.
While we wait to find out how much Deadpool 3 will be delayed by, check out our guides to The Marvels and Spider-Man 4. Find out more about all of the upcoming Marvel movies, and Marvel Phase 5 and Marvel Phase 6. You can start preparing now by watching all of the Marvel movies in order.