With Deadpool 3 still a ways off from its May 2024 release (which will most likely be pushed even further back as the SAG-AFTRA strike continues), director Shawn Levy has been opening up about the highly-anticipated film that will officially see Ryan Reynolds‘ Merc with a Mouth join the MCU and bring Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine along for the ride.
In a new essay for Esquire, Levy revealed how he’s been looking back to the mother of all trilogy cappers for inspiration: Return of the Jedi. Levy reflected on seeing the film when it first arrived in theaters, and how he’s never forgotten the emotional reaction to one particular moment:
I vividly remember the scene in which Luke is hiding from Vader in the Emperor’s room and Vader gives the speech that ends with “If you will not turn to the dark side, then perhaps your sister will.” It was dead quiet. Pin-drop silence. Suddenly Vader has pushed the wrong button. Luke comes screaming out of the shadows and just goes to town in a light saber battle against Vader. The way that felt: The forty seconds of stillness from the audience, then the spectacle and emotion, is seared not just in my eyeballs but in my heart.
“That’s the essence of the blockbuster,” Levy continued. “When the tone is singular, when the themes are resonant, when the experience is connective, when the audience is reminded that the world is far bigger than ourselves, it creates a forever memory. I think that’s beautiful.”
According to Levy, there’s a key scene in Deadpool 3 where he made sure everyone was on board with how this was the film’s big Return of the Jedi moment.
“I pulled up that scene of Vader and Luke on my phone and restudied how it was photographed, how it was blocked, the framing, the tempo,” Levy said about addressing his stunt and action team. “The keen Star Wars fan will see the shot in my Deadpool movie that was inspired by a moment that I saw in a theater decades ago. That’s a forever memory. And that’s a treasure.”
Of course, it should be noted that Levy is developing a Star Wars movie of his own for Lucasfilm, and he’s definitely getting in some practice if he’s having Deadpool recreate scenes from the classic trilogy.
Deadpool 3 will slice into theaters on May 3, 2024.
(Via Esquire)