What is Deadpool and Wolverine’s relationship in the comics?

Fans of both Deadpool and Wolverine have been feeling all the feels recently. Hugh Jackman was announced to be returning to his iconic role as Wolverine for Deadpool 3. Jackman has now been playing the part for over 20 years. The announcement was made by stars Ryan Reynolds and Jackman, who posted two videos on social media announcing the actor’s involvement in the film while assuaging and poking fun at fans. 

Jackman and Reynolds, who of course plays Deadpool, have one of the most iconic celebrity relationships, constantly poking fun at each other, usually for an advertisement of some kind. This is going to be the first time the two will play main characters in the same movie, not counting X-Men Origins: Wolverine. It seems like the pair will have a lot of fun making Deadpool 3, but what about the characters that they’re playing? How will Deadpool and Wolverine interact in the new movie?

What is Deadpool and Wolverine’s relationship in Marvel Comics?

The two characters have appeared together in the comic books quite often, so there are more than enough examples of the pair’s relationship to determine what route they take for Deadpool 3. Firstly, they are both experimented upon in the Weapon X program, with Wolverine coming first and Deadpool later. Weapon X gave Wolverine his adamantium skeleton, while it gave Deadpool all of his abilities. When the pair first meet in Wolverine, vol. 2, #88 by Larry Hama, Adam Kubert, and Fabio Laguna, Deadpool is still the unlikeable character he was at the beginning of his publication history, not the likable merc with a mouth that we have come to love.

In their first appearance together, they were antagonistic, and Deadpool left Wolverine for dead. However over the years, especially when the two share a common foe, they work together and often get the job done. The two share many physical similarities as their healing powers are alike, but their differing personalities are usually what causes the most tension between them. That’s mostly because Deadpool annoys Wolverine. It’s not because he’s excessively violent or anything, but because Wolverine is the gruff loner we all know him to be. 

Over the course of their time together in the comics, Deadpool has grown to respect the X-Men and Wolverine, striving to be more of a hero, while still being annoying. At times, Wolverine has seen that Deadpool is making a real attempt at turning over a new leaf and grows to respect him a little bit more. Ultimately, the two characters famously do not get along, or at least Wolverine doesn’t get along with Deadpool.

Even in alternate versions of the characters, they still have the same chemistry. Take Deadpool vs. Old Man Logan by Declan Shalvey and Mike Henderson. While Logan is older, he is still the same with an even shorter temper. The pair spend what amounts to the entire book fighting only to realize that they both want to save the same girl. Still they fight anyway, but that was the point of the book. In the Deadpool video game developed by High Moon Studios, which was released in 2013, you could play out this relationship with Wolverine. You could actually wake Wolverine after he passed out from a Blackbird crash by slapping him over 100 times to absolutely comedic results. You can check out the video for that segment of the game below.

You can imagine how this relationship might fit the Reynolds/Jackman relationship like a formfitting spandex costume, especially considering how well they play their characters. We will probably get a gruff Wolverine in Deadpool 3 with Deadpool undoubtedly chewing his ear off with references, snide remarks, and funny jokes. It would also not be too surprising if the characters fought more than once in the movie, as the pair do have healing factors. It would make their multiple bouts interesting as there would be no consequences for either of their actions. We will find out more about the MCU’s version of Deadpool and Wolverine’s relationship when Deadpool 3 releases in 2024.