‘I loved working with Hugh’: An X-Men icon hints at a surprise Marvel return as he lets Ryan Reynolds know what he really thinks of him

Deadpool & Wolverine left the multiversal portal wide open when it comes to other stars from Fox’s X-Men universe returning in the MCU, and it sounds like one former franchise lead is open to the idea.

The Merc with the Mouth’s grand Marvel Studios debut squeezed in as many X-Men icons as it could, with Ryan Reynolds‘ Wade Wilson and Hugh Jackman’s Logan being joined by a myriad mutants including Channing Tatum’s Gambit and Dafne Keen’s X-23. Even so, there was a distinct feeling that Marvel might’ve been holding some back for future movies. Countless iconic characters we expected to see — including Cyclops, Jean Grey, and Storm — never appeared.

The same goes for the Master of Magnetism himself, Erik Lensherr, as neither Sir Ian McKellen nor Michael Fassbender dropped by for Deadpool & Wolverine. One of them would love to get to work with Reynolds, however, as it turns out they are secret super-fan.

Magneto star would love to make an MCU comeback to appear opposite “favorite” Marvel character Deadpool

You had a 50/50 chance, but did you guess correctly? Out of the two Magnetos, Michael Fassbender is the one who’s a surprise Deadpool diehard — yes, I know, I was really hoping it was McKellen, too. The X-Men veteran was asked whether he’s interested in following both Reynolds and Jackman’s footsteps and crossing over to the MCU in a new interview, and he confirmed that he’s certainly open to the idea — because he can’t gush about those two enough.

“Well, you know, I loved working with Hugh [Jackman]. You know, he’s an absolute gentleman; he’s so talented,” Fassbender told Collider. “I’m a big fan of Ryan [Reynolds] and what he’s done with the Deadpool series.”

Fassbender went on to add that Deadpool is probably his “favorite” Marvel character ever, so he’s not ruling out the opportunity to share the screen with his idol. That said, the German-Irish actor admitted that he’s both focusing on his family and committed to his new Paramount Plus series, The Agency, right now so it’s not something that’s in his immediate future.

“I’ve got two little boys. I want to be available to them and be around,” the star explained, speaking of his children with Tomb Raider actress Alicia Vikander. “So right now, my focus and energy is really going to be on The Agency, but you never say never.”

Well, if Fassbender is genuinely tempted to don Erik’s metal helmet again then he’s sure chosen a smart tactic — buttering up the one man who can make it happen. Reynolds has already single-handedly granted Tatum his dream of playing Gambit on the big screen, so he could no doubt pull some strings to get Magneto back in the game for, say, Avengers: Secret Wars if he wanted to. The ultra-serious Lensherr being paired with the goof-monster that is Wade is an irresistible comic dynamic, and Fassbender himself has great comedic chops that he could show off in a more light-hearted appearance as his character. Do your thing, Ryan.