Deadpool 3 is getting the entire band back together

On Thursday, Deadline reported that actresses Brianna Hildebrand and Shioli Kutsuna are the latest additions to the increasingly expansive cast of Deadpool 3, reprising their characters from the previous movies. Hildebrand joins the MCU as Negasonic Teenage Warhead, while Kutsuna returns as her girlfriend, the Japanese ninja mutant Yukio.

The Multiverse Saga needs Deadpool 3

They join a cast that includes a bunch of familiar faces from Deadpool and Deadpool 2, including Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool, Karan Soni as the cab driver Dopinder, Leslie Uggams as Blind Al, Morena Baccarin as Vanessa, Stefan Kapicic as Colossus, and Rob Delaney as the powerless X-Force member Peter. That’s a team that rivals the Avengers in my book.

Power levels aside, that cast list is why Deadpool 3 is my most anticipated Marvel movie of the current saga. What both Deadpool movies seem to understand better than recent MCU movies (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 excepted) is that we’re more invested in these characters than we are in the overarching plot about Infinity Stones, rings, or multiverses.

If we didn’t have a meaningful connection to Groot, Nick Fury, or Peter Parker by the time Infinity War rolled around, we wouldn’t care whether or not Thanos snapped them out of existence. That is why I’m confident that Deadpool 3 will be a success.

As irreverent as the previous two movies were, they cared deeply about their characters — even the minor ones. I would’ve been genuinely disappointed if Negasonic Teenage Warhead was not a part of this story, even if she has no impact on the future of the MCU or Kang’s rise to power. I just love that character and Hildebrand’s aloof portrayal.

Reynolds’ commitment to bringing back as many actors as he can is also evidence that Marvel might be staying out of his way. Guardians Vol. 3 worked as well as it did because Marvel didn’t put writer/director James Gunn in a box. I am hoping the same is true for Ryan Reynolds, who is not the credited writer or director on Deadpool 3, but has played a significant role in the creation of his version of the character and the scripts of the movies.

There are still a few notable absences, such as Zazie Beetz’s Domino, Josh Brolin’s Cable, and Julian Dennison’s Firefist, but the movie isn’t set to release until November 8, 2024. Given the writers have a place for their characters, there’s still time to make a few more deals. That said, even if Deadpool 3 doesn’t bring absolutely everyone back, we also have some newbies to meet, such as Emma Corrin and Matthew Macfadyen. Oh, and then there’s the small matter of Hugh Jackman reprising Wolverine for the first time since 2017’s Logan.