Deadpool 3 is set for a surprise Christmas release, it has been announced.

Fans will be treated to two outings with Ryan Reynolds ' lovable anti-hero in one year when the third film in the franchise lands in December.

Following on from the success of 2016's Deadpool, Ryan returned earlier this year as Wade Wilson - and now he'll be back on the big screen in just a matter of months.

But the surprise release does mean the push back of some other movies.

(Image: FOX)

(Image: Getty Images Europe)

Hollywood Reporter says 20th Century Fox will now delay the releases of Alita: Battle Angel and Dark Phoenix.

With Deadpool due to hit cinemas on December 21, Robert Rodriguez's Alita will move from that date to February 14, next year.

Dark Phoenix, the latest instalment in the X-Men franchise, which stars Game Of Thrones' Sophie Turner as a young Jean Grey, will move from February 14 to June 7, next year.

The studio is said to have also moved its X-Men spin-off Gambit from June 7, 2019, to March 13, 2020.

(Image: Youtube)

Reports have suggested that the untitled Deadpool movie could be a child-friendly re-release of Deadpool 2.

The movie will go head-to-head with two huge blockbusters on the day it's released - Warner Bros' Aquaman and Paramount's Bumblebee.

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The change in the release date comes as the Disney/Fox merger is expected to close at the end of the year.

It will give Disney's Marvel Studios the rights to the X-Men franchise.