The Deadpool 2 release date is becoming less of a rumor, according to an announcement by producer Simon Kinberg. With the runaway success of Ryan Reynolds’ comeback as the merc with a mouth, its end credits scene was apparently more prophetic than it was a spoof on a certain Matthew Broderick film.

A fact which many Deadpool fans would like to forget is that Reynolds’ first appearance as the character was actually almost unrecognizable. His first time in the role was X-Men Origins: Wolverine, the result of a barrage of bad choices. This film named Wolverine after a nursery rhyme, actually re-shot footage which could have easily been pulled from X-Men 2, and gave us about ten minutes total of Gambit. One of the worst choices was what they’d done with Deadpool, turning him into a mute with swords coming out of his arms, and giving him eye lasers.

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Around that time, Ryan Reynolds had filmed a scene which wouldn’t be seen until an infamous internet leak years later. When that scene hit the public, it looked so much more like the Deadpool fans knew that Reynolds and the crew actually raised money the hard way to make the film we wanted to see. In February, the risk was proven worth it as the film broke box office records and practically guaranteed a Deadpool 2 release date.

Deadpool 2 is the Next Marvel Film From FOX After Wolverine 3 | https://t.co/6YkQjPyPzr pic.twitter.com/ShJ6TuQUxC — Geek Outpost News (@GeekOutpost) July 12, 2016

During the 2016 Saturn Awards, writer and producer Simon Kinberg almost confirmed the Deadpool 2 release date, stating that “We’re figuring [the next X-Men] out now. The first thing up, we’re shooting the Wolverine movie right now and we start shooting Deadpool 2 at the beginning of next year, then I sit down and start writing the next of the mainline X-Men movies.”

RT looper: Ryan Reynolds just posted this fan made Deadpool 2 poster to his Instagram! pic.twitter.com/hE7y8qW2B5 — WORDS (@OhRealFeelings) July 10, 2016

Fans have also been wondering if there will ever be a Deadpool and X-Men cross-over movie, ever since we saw a fully CG Colossus playing opposite the merc with a mouth and newcomer Negasonic Teenage Warhead (Brianna Hildebrand). The fact that there was only one classic X-Men member in the film was even a source of humor in the film itself, and added to Deadpool’s appeal.

Bryan Singer has said that the tone is so different between X-Men and Deadpool that it would be a tricky undertaking to combine the two.

“If you take a character as irreverent and meta as Deadpool and connect him to something as grounded and serious as X-Men, you have to do it carefully and gently. When you drop them all in together it can be a disaster. That has to be done delicately, but there’s plenty of room to do it.”

Having created one of the first successful ensemble superhero films in history, Bryan Singer has some experience on the subject. It could still be a while before it happens though, as the schedule at 20th Century Fox looks to be packed for a few years. There might even be a crossover with the Avengers after that, thanks to the cooperation of Sony to bring Spider-Man into the MCU.

Before we see any crossovers, we will probably see the Deadpool 2 release date in March of 2018.

[Image via 20th Century Fox]