Hunt For the Wilderpeople, Taika Waititi’s cracking New Zealand adventure of one man’s (Sam Neill) attempts to connect with his estranged foster son, is a beautifully charming and poignant pic that is, quite frankly, one of the more memorable movies of 2016.
Much of its success stems from the brilliant, heart-warming chemistry between Sam Neill’s Uncle Hec and Ricky Baker, the irreverent, street-smart city kid who soon becomes the fish out of water when he’s forced to move to the New Zealand countryside in order to find a new foster home. It’s a stereotype that has been portrayed by countless actors in the past, but none quite like Julian Dennison.
Since his breakout performance in Hunt For the Wilderpeople, the New Zealand teen has been on the up and up, and Ryan Reynolds’ ever-active Instagram feed brings word of Dennison’s biggest gig yet: Deadpool 2.
Filming on 20th Century Fox’s 2018 sequel is officially underway in Vancouver, Canada, and the prying eyes of the Internet have already snapped Reynolds back in action as the irreverent Merc With a Mouth. Now, it seems Deadpool has met his match in the form of Julian Dennison, though there’s currently no mention of who the young star will be playing.
Per Instagram, Reynolds’ post came bearing the caption: “Giving Julian Dennison a warm ??L welcome as we stare off into our beautiful future together. #RickyBakerPool #NZ”
Dennison is likely on board as some form of ally to Reynolds’ titular anti-hero, one who is perhaps involved in the birthday party that Deadpool happens to crash. Because let’s face it, Deadpool 2 hasn’t been left wanting for potential adversaries now that the David Leitch-directed sequel has added Josh Brolin (Cable) and Zazie Beetz (Domino). Rounding out the cast list are Leslie Uggams (Blind Al), T.J. Miller (Weasel), and Dopinder (Karan Son).
Deadpool 2 has been slated for release on June 1st, 2018. It’ll be joined on Fox’s slate by New Mutants and Simon Kinberg’s X-Men: Dark Phoenix, both of which are also due to launch next year.