How is Wolverine Alive in Deadpool & Wolverine?

Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine was one of the standout characters from the Fox X-Men universe, and Deadpool & Wolverine is bringing the hero back to life. Jackman played the mysterious mutant from X-Men (2000) to Logan (2017) and seemingly retired after Wolverine’s $600 million finale. He starred in multiple other X-Men movies, including Days of Future Past (2014), X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009), and The Wolverine (2013).

After Jackman’s retirement, it seemed his version of Wolverine would never reappear. Fox’s X-Men universe was swiftly ended after Disney purchased 21st Century Fox. With the Fox properties now in control of Marvel Studios, however, the Deadpool franchise could continue where Deadpool 2 (2018) left off. Surprisingly, Jackman’s Wolverine will be joining Deadpool on the coming adventure, but his involvement is baffling, consideringthat Wolverine died.

Wolverine Died in Logan

Wolverine’s death is an integral part of Logan and puts his clone daughter, Laura, in a position to honor her father’s legacy by protecting the world’s surviving mutants. In dying, Logan manages to save the lives of all the young mutants, while also offering a heroic sacrifice that honors X-Men history. His slow and tragic demise occurs throughout the movie and offers a perfect conclusion for the Fox X-Men timeline. While Dark Phoenix (2019) was released after it, Logan served as the true ending for the universe.

With Logan’s death, Hugh Jackman retired from the role and went on to other — vastly different — roles. He starred in The Greatest Showman, Koala Man, and Bad Education after his stint with Fox’s X-Men universe ended. Each was a massive departure from the claws-and-grit of Wolverine and offered Jackman a much-needed break. Now, however, Wolverine is somehow set to return.

Wolverine is Alive Again in Deadpool & Wolverine

After his apparent death in Logan, Deadpool is bringing Wolverine back to life.

Hugh Jackman began hinting at a return in 2021, but the official reveal came from a Ryan Reynolds tweeted video, which featured

Jackman seemingly agrees to play Wolverine one final time. Over the following months, the tweet was followed by set photos and leaks, which revealed Wolverine’s new comic-accurate costume. Jackman has described Wolverine’s Deadpool 3 return as a buddy comedy, which will feature Wolverine and Deadpool playing off of each other — which will likely mimic Reynolds’ announcement video.

The Deadpool & Wolverine trailer doesn’t offer much of Wolverine, but it features Logan standing over a prone Deadpool and flashing his claws. Wolverine is expected to wear his mask in the movie, but he appears to be much younger than the elderly version of the character from Logan. Jackman has also shaved his face to match Wolverine’s chops as well — something that Logan only did in the final act of the movie. That makes his return somewhat questionable and feels entirely outside of Logan‘s timeline.

Wolverine’s return has been shrouded in mystery for years, with many fans on the fence about Jackman returning to the role.

The cast and crew have been surprisingly open about Logan’s inclusion in Deadpool & Wolverine. Jackman previously mentioned that

he told Logan director James Mangold that “it took place before our movie“and that “I don’t have to screw with the Logan timeline“. Jackman also referenced the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s multiverse and its “moving around timelines” to explain Wolverine’s role. Those comments directly state that Wolverine will not rise from the grave. In another Ryan Reynolds tweet, Reynolds echoed that assertion, stating that “Logan takes place in 2029. Totally separate thing. Logan died in Logan. Not touching that.“ Deadpool and Wolverine director Shawn Levy also stated that “Logan is canon“.

While Logan will remain canon, Wolverine will be somewhat different. Jackman expects the new Wolverine to be “angrier, acerbic, grumpy” in the movie, “and he’s going to take a lot of free shots at Ryan Reynolds — physically, that is.” Mangold tried to consider the explanation for Wolverine’s return while assuring loyal viewers about the movie’s importance, regardless of whatever antics, be they “Multiverse or prequel, time warp or wormhole, canon or non-canon or even without rationale” appear in the movie.

Though it isn’t confirmed, there is also a rumor about several Wolverine and Deadpool variants starring in the movie. It is certainly a possibility, though no actors or crewmembers have confirmed it yet. Wolverine’s inclusion in Deadpool & Wolverine is well-reported, but many details about his return remain shrouded in secrecy. Even Deadpool’s creator, Rob Liefeld, claims that he “got the call” but is not allowed to discuss the movie.

Deadpool & Wolverine Will Use the Multiverse to Revive Wolverine

The Deadpool& Wolverine trailer already revealed Wolverine’s return, and it also revealed the involvement of Loki‘s TVA.

Thankfully, the Deadpool & Wolverine trailer revealed more than the cast and crew are contractually allowed to. The TVA, which first appeared in Loki, is present in the movie. Moreover, its agents are wielding pruning sticks, which means that the movie is likely set before the Loki season 2 finale, which completely upended the TVA’s methods for policing the multiverse. Matthew Macfadyen, who plays the TVA head Paradox, recruits Deadpool to the organization to serve as “a hero among heroes“. This status is not likely to last, as Deadpool can be seen fighting TVA agents at one point in the trailer.

Logan is set in 2029 and features an elderly Logan, who has been driven to the brink of death by Adamantium poisoning in a world that has abandoned and eliminated mutants. Considering that the MCU’s most recent movie, The Marvels, is set in 2026, that timeline does not particularly work well with Logan‘s timing. Unless Deadpool & Wolverine completely ignore the timeline, it cannot simply be a case of time travel. Instead, alternate universes will need to be involved.

In many ways, appealing to the multiverse works well with Logan‘s ending. After all, it never particularly fit well with Fox’s scattered X-Men timeline. The movie has many inconsistencies with the rest of the Fox movies, as Days of Future Past featured Xavier’s school filled with students in 2024. Five years can bring devastation, but the sheer state of the fall of the X-Men happening in just five years is unlikely. It’s much more internally consistent if Logan takes place in another timeline, wherein the anti-mutant forces led a successful attack in an alternate Days of Future Past situation.

If it is another timeline, the creators of Deadpool & Wolverine have two main choices: A Wolverine plucked from the Logan timeline or another Wolverine entirely. Regardless of the choice, Logan will remain as the canon endpoint for that universe’s Wolverine. At the same time, it allows Deadpool to have his “buddy comedy” with Wolverine, while a more gruff Wolverine goes on adventures with him.

Whatever the choice that the Deadpool & Wolverine crew makes, the movie will heavily involve the TVA, meaning that both time travel and multiversal shenanigans are possible. Deadpool 2 featured the time-traveling Cable, which only makes some form of time travel more likely. However the movie proceeds, it will feature a living version of Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine and will not infringe on the canon of Logan at all.