Currently focused on saving the MCU, Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool might have an exciting future with X-Men ’97.

X-Men ’97 concluded its debut season with a blast, leaving fans eager to know more about what comes next with Apocalypse in the scene. Meanwhile, to keep the hype alive, Marvel Studios Head of TV, Streaming, and Animation, Brad Winderbaum teased the possible appearance of Deadpool in the show’s season 2, after missing out on showing up in season 1.

Currently, with Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool making all the headlines surrounding MCU for his upcoming Deadpool & Wolverine movie, it seems like a great time to tease his character’s appearance in X-Men ’97 S2. As Reynolds undoubtedly saves Marvel Studios with his fan-favorite character, Brad Winderbaum believes Deadpool could have a future in the animated show, too.

Brad Winderbaum Teases Deadpool’s Appearance in X-Men ’97 S2

Reviving the beloved 90s show X-Men: The Animated Series, X-Men ’97 returned with similar aesthetics to serve as a sequel to the 1992 show and continue the adventures of the Marvel mutants. But surprisingly, while almost all X-Men characters appeared in the show, one missed the opportunity to be there. It’s none other than Wade Wilson, aka Deadpool.

But now, after the conclusion of X-Men ’97 S1, Marvel Studios Head of TV, Streaming, and Animation, Brad Winderbaum teased the possibility of Deadpool’s future with the popular series. In an exclusive interview with ScreenRant, Winderbaum claimed that the first season of the show was packed with a lot of characters, which made it challenging to get Deadpool in there. However, he later mentioned that the character might have a chance to appear in season 2.

I don’t know that it was like a hard and fast rule that we couldn’t use Deadpool. We would have had to have an insanely compelling reason to bring Deadpool in. Because we’re also developing the feature simultaneously. So, unless it was something that really was an undeniable creative idea, it seemed like, ‘Why would we do it?’

But also, I’ll say, the season is so chock-full of big, giant, amazing fulfilling ideas that throwing Deadpool in there almost feels like arbitrary at a certain point. Is there a potential for Deadpool to come in? Absolutely, he was in the original series, briefly as we all know, and certainly, we’re all fans, so we’ll see what happens.

Although, according to Brad Winderbaum, it would have been almost arbitrary to introduce Deadpool in X-Men ’97 S1, he teased that the character still can appear in the next season. Considering that Wade Wilson originally had a brief role in X-Men: The Animated Series, Winderbaum believes the character deserves an appearance in X-Men ’97 as well.

Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool is Pretty Much Saving the MCU at this Point

Following Brad Winderbaum’s comments on the future of Deadpool in X-Men ’97 S2, it seems Ryan Reynolds’ character is set to hover everywhere within the MCU. From his standalone movies to collaboration with Hugh Jackman‘s Wolverine in his upcoming Deadpool & Wolverine to pave the way for the X-Men in MCU, Reynolds’ Deadpool appears to have a packed schedule, now that even Winderbaum teased his potential appearance in the animated series.

Well, why not? In the wake of superhero fatigue that’s been plaguing blockbuster franchises like Marvel and DC, Ryan Reynolds‘ Deadpool seems to be the only character that people are excited about. Considering that MCU is no longer in its prime era, and is constantly witnessing a steady decline in box office performance with films like Ant-Man sequels and The Marvels, the Merc with the Mouth seems to be the only one who possesses the power to save the franchise.

Even director Matthew Vaughn believes that the upcoming Marvel tentpole will “save the whole” of MCU. Speaking on BroBible’s Post Credit podcast, Vaughn addressed how Marvel could use a bit of saving at the moment, and Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman are rightfully on the task of saving the franchise.

The few snippets that I know about ‘Deadpool vs. Wolverine’ — or ‘Wolverine vs. Deadpool,’ I’m sure that argument between Ryan and Hugh is happening as we speak — are unbelievable. That’s going to be the jolt… the Marvel universe is about to have a jolt of them and it’s going to bring that body back to life… I think Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman are about to save the whole Marvel Universe.

Considering Ryan Reynolds’ star power as well as his character’s popularity, it seems Deadpool is the only one who still possesses the ability to revive the MCU.

Deadpool & Wolverine is set to release on July 26, 2024. 

X-Men ’97 is available on Disney+.