Just when you thought the release date domino effect was finally beginning to settle down after two and a half years of constant uncertainty, Marvel Studios made a number of changes to its upcoming schedule. Blade was unsurprisingly pushed back, and so was Fantastic Four and Avengers: Secret Wars, but at least Deadpool 3 got off pretty lightly.
The Merc with a Mouth’s long-awaited Marvel Cinematic Universe debut had been riding an unstoppable wave of momentum since the internet broke in half at the news Hugh Jackman would be strapping on the claws one more time to return as Wolverine, so all things considered it’s not too bad that Shawn Levy’s threequel has been moved from September 6 to November 8 of 2024.
In an interesting caveat, which is made somewhat ironic by the fact it feels as though we’ve been waiting forever to see the franchise’s first R-rated installment, the two-month shift will see Reynolds tie a record for being the oldest superhero to have their name and their name alone in the title of a standalone MCU blockbuster.
The current record belongs to Robert Downey Jr., who was 48 years and 29 days old when Iron Man 3 hit theaters on May 3, 2013. Reynolds turns the same age on October 23, 2024 – so while RDJ will technically still retain the benchmark by a mere 18 days, the gin magnate, soccer team owner, and marketing executive will become only the second 48 year-old to have their costumed alter-ego take center stage in a solo MCU movie.
Before you say it, we know that Paul Rudd was 49 when Ant-Man and the Wasp was unleashed in the summer of 2019, and he’ll be 53 when Quantumania drops – but Evangeline Lilly shares headline status for those team-ups, and she’s reminded us that the upcoming epic isn’t Ant-Man 3, but Ant-Man and the Wasp 2.
Of course, they won’t come close to the overall record unless something drastic changes, with 73 year-old Samuel L. Jackson poised to headline Disney Plus series Secret Invasion – which we’re all expecting to land before he turns 74 on December 21 of next year.
