Paradox: Deadpool 3's Rumored New Character Has An Intriguing She-Hulk Connection

At long last, fans are primed to see Deadpool enter the Marvel Cinematic Universe with his newest movie, "Deadpool 3." While much of the film is being kept under wraps, we have gotten a few new little tidbits; one is that we can expect the third installment of the franchise to be Rated-R, despite being a Disney/Marvel production. And two is the return of Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, finally sharing the screen with Ryan Reynolds. Thanks to Twitter user @CanWeGetSomeToast, we have a leak that may show Mr. Paradox's introduction and his connection to She-Hulk in the comics as he sat as the judge on the bench for her time trial in She-Hulk Vol 2 #3, "The Time of Her Life."

In the tweet, @CanWeGetSomeToast writes, "My source on the set of #Deadpool3 has confirmed with me that Matthew Macfadyen will be playing a character named Paradox. He's an agent working for the TVA." Of course, we'll have to wait for more information before we know for sure what this means, but it does give us an idea of what could be going on with the storyline in "Deadpool 3."

Macfadyen is known for his television roles as Tom Wambsgams in "Succession" and as Detective Inspector Edmund Reid in "Ripper Street." His film credits include the role of Oblonsky in 2012's "Anna Karenina," Athos in 2011's "The Three Musketeers," and the Sheriff of Nottingham opposite Russell Crowe's titular character in "Robin Hood" in 2010. While he is definitely the right kind of actor for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there may be more than meets the eye with his character.

In his one and only appearance in the comics, Mr. Paradox served as one of the judges on the bench of She-Hulk's time trial. After Scarlet Witch killed Hawkeye in "Avengers Vol 1" #502, "Avengers Disassembled: Chaos Part III," She-Hulk goes back in time to try and save him, getting her in hot water with the Time Variance Authority. She is eventually put on trial and comes to the conclusion herself that she should be erased from history to avoid a brutal war she inadvertently causes. She is judged by Justices Peace, Love, and Goodwill, along with Mr. Mobius, Mr. Ouroboros, and Mr. Paradox, who sentence her to be erased with the Retro-Active Cannon.

Before the court can enact her sentence, Clockwise takes control of the cannon and attempts to erase everyone in the courtroom, randomly taking shots around the court. She-Hulk stops him by standing in front of the cannon, telling him that it was her sentence anyway but reminding him that if she didn't exist, he never would have gotten into the courtroom to take control of the cannon. While She-Hulk saved the day and was ultimately spared because her legal work as Jennifer Walters was too important, Mr. Paradox was one of the characters who died in the battle.

While this could be a one-off appearance for Matthew Macfadyen to play a character that has a fun throwback to the comics, there could also be much more behind the character than meets the eye. He seems too big of a name for a simple cameo, leading us to believe there is more of a connection between "Deadpool 3" and beyond.

At the end of "Deadpool 2," Wade Wilson takes Cable's (Josh Brolin) time-traveling device and travels back to save Vanessa (Morena Baccarin) and also right a few wrongs, including shooting Ryan Reynolds while he is reading the "Green Lantern" script. Now that we know about the TVA, this kind of reckless behavior can't be tolerated. So it is likely that we see Mobius (Owen Wilson) step in to stop Deadpool from damaging the timeline.

If Matthew Macfadyen's Mr. Paradox is the judge who sits on the bench for the trial of Wade Wilson for messing with the timeline, then that leaves us with a few possibilities. First, this storyline in "Deadpool" will mirror the "She-Hulk" comic storyline and use Deadpool instead of her to tell the story of the Retro-Active Cannon and Clockwise. The second is this is simply the first time we are seeing Mr. Paradox sit on the bench, and we will likely see more of him down the line. It could even be possible that She-Hulk (Tatiana Maslany) will stand trial herself in Season 2 of "She-Hulk: Attorney at Law."

Macfadyen is a relatively big name in the industry. While he isn't big enough to rule out the idea of a small bit part in a one-off appearance for a fun Easter egg, he also isn't small enough to assume that his casting isn't signaling something bigger on the horizon for either Deadpool or She-Hulk.