Even though the two Fox movies earned over $1.5 billion combined at the box office and turned a character that wasn’t particularly well-known among general audiences into one of the most popular superheroes on the planet, now that they finally have the rights to Deadpool under their control, Marvel Studios are under no obligation whatsoever to acknowledge the Fox films at all.
Ryan Reynolds is currently the only talent officially attached to Deadpool 3 in any sort of capacity, and while several core members of the Merc with a Mouth’s supporting cast have been rumored to return, there’s every chance that Marvel could simply choose to wipe the slate clean and have Wade Wilson himself as the only familiar face in his brand new sandbox.
Despite playing the main love interest in both of Fox’s Deadpool movies, Morena Baccarin’s Vanessa wasn’t given a great deal to do outside of acting as the typical damsel in distress, before being killed off in the second installment. While it looked like some time travel shenanigans would have seen her return in Fox’s Deadpool 3, the MCU’s version now looks unlikely to pick up any of those dangling plot threads.
That being said, Vanessa has been linked to a role in the MCU (likely debuting in Deadpool 4), although it’s never been made clear whether or not Baccarin would end up getting recast. And while we’re still waiting for an official announcement about that, we’ve now heard from our sources – the same ones who told us John Wick: Chapter 5 is happening and a Witcher prequel series is in the works, both of which were correct – that not only are Marvel “very likely” to hire a new actress to play Vanessa, but also that they’re reportedly looking for an A-list name for the role.
While it isn’t a guarantee that Baccarin will get the boot, this is said to be the direction Marvel are currently leaning in. Although, it remains to be seen if any actress near the top of the Hollywood food chain would be interested in playing an MCU love interest in a new Deadpool movie after seeing how little the likes of Rachel McAdams, Liv Tyler and initially Natalie Portman enjoyed occupying similar territory.