One of Marvel Studios’ newest directors just teased what fans should expect to see in the MCU’s first-ever R-rated movie, Deadpool 3.
For the first time in MCU history, Marvel Studios is about to dive into R-rated content in theaters and on Disney+, taking a diversion from its usual PG-13-rated antics. Along with Marvel Zombies in the streaming sphere, this will be seen most prominently from director Shawn Levy on Deadpool 3, which is preceded by two of the three highest-grossing R-rated movies ever made.
Considering Marvel Studios’ history of only releasing projects with a PG-13 rating (none of them have even dropped an F-bomb yet), many are worried that Deadpool 3 won’t go hard enough with the R-rating to make the character’s MCU debut worthwhile.
Now, director Shawn Levy has taken the opportunity to clear fans’ minds on the matter, indicating just how far Marvel Studios intends to go down that route.
Deadpool 3 Hyped for R-Rated Marvel Content
Deadpool 3 director Shawn Levy spoke with Collider about how hard he and his team are working to develop the upcoming threequel, specifically touching on its status as the MCU’s first R-rated film.
Working with screenwriters Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, Levy celebrated Hugh Jackman’s comeback as Wolverine and noted that in the script “the violence is in your face and hardcore:”
“We are writing, rewriting, developing, prepping ‘Deadpool’ every day now. It is such a blast to laugh every day. It is so delicious to hear and write and come up with these scenes where people are just talking foul. And the violence is in your face and hardcore, and it’s very much a ‘Deadpool’ movie. And it has Logan in it. And it has Wolverine in it. It’s too fun.
Although Marvel is still a ways out from shooting the movie, Levy highlighted how fun it is to work on something that’s “so filled with self-awareness” on top of its rating, making it very exciting with the uniqueness of Deadpool as a character:
“I’m having so much fun, and I haven’t even hit the shooting floor yet. […] I have to say, developing a Deadpool movie is one of the most fun creative experiences of my life because it’s not just that it’s rated R. It’s that it’s so filled with self-awareness, and that makes in-writing very, very fun in a way that is unique to that franchise.”
Levy also looked back to his work on The Internship, which he cut from being an R-rated movie to a PG-13 movie. He called that “one of the few regrets” of his directing career, making it clear that he would not make that mistake again this time around:
“One of the few regrets in my career is that I got strong-armed into recutting The Internship from an R to a PG-13. I still regret it because the R-rated version of Vince [Vaughn] and Owen [Wilson] in ‘The Internship’ was way better. And the me of today would not have succumbed like the me of 20, whatever, 12 years ago.”
Levy Holding No R-Rated Madness Back
The Walt Disney Company isn’t usually known for producing R-rated content as one of the more family-friendly studios in the business, which made it especially shocking when Deadpool came over to the company in the deal with Fox. And while fans have had their concerns about whether the character could be his crass, cursing, violent self that he’s been in the comics and past movies, all signs point to no issues of any kind keeping Deadpool from his R-rated nature.
Since filming hasn’t begun yet, it’s unclear exactly what kind of R-rated shenanigans will ensue in Deadpool 3, although the first two movies had more than their fair share of gore, F-bombs, sex romps, and other assorted hilarity.
Hugh Jackman also teased that he’ll get to be the same old Wolverine that fans saw in his past movies, especially with him getting to be more violent and aggressive than ever in 2017’s Logan. And even though Marvel Studios hasn’t tackled anything this adult-oriented yet, it appears that Deadpool 3 will only be the start of a change in that arena.
Deadpool 3 will debut in theaters on November 8, 2024.
