Deadpool 3 Rumor Teases How Daniel Radcliffe Can Finally Play Wolverine

Without question, the multiverse concept has expanded comic book films from Marvel and DC in considerable ways. Thanks to the superheroes' abilities to hop to alternate timelines in different universes, fan-cast favorites like John Krasinski can pop up as "Fantastic Four" team member Dr. Reed Richards via the MCU multiverse in "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness." In addition, a previously unrealized version of Nicolas Cage in the canceled film "Superman Lives" made an unexpected appearance in DC's "The Flash."

So, thanks to endless opportunities that comic book multiverses present storytellers, the idea of casting "Harry Potter" star Daniel Radcliffe as "X-Men" stalwart Wolverine doesn't seem so far-fetched. In recent years, fans have been vocal about Radcliffe playing Wolverine in the "X-Men" universe, a character who of course was made popular by Hugh Jackman when he made his debut as the adamantium-clawed mutant in the 2000 blockbuster "X-Men." In addition, gorgeous fan art has been posted imagining Radcliffe as the next Wolverine.

And while Jackman is slated to reprise Wolverine opposite Ryan Reynolds for the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe adventure "Deadpool 3," rumors are beginning to swirl that Radcliffe will turn up in the film as well. According to @DeadpoolUpdate on Twitter, "Daniel Radcliffe has reportedly been cast in 'DEADPOOL 3' for a 'secret role.'" In addition, @Retro_Actual went so far as to tweet fan art for the film highlighting some Wolverine variants, which include Radcliffe in the mutant's original yellow spandex outfit.

While Daniel Radcliffe made his mark as the title character in eight "Harry Potter" films, which spanned from 2001 to 2011, the actor has shown his range since that point in several genres, including historical drama ("Kill Your Darlings"), offbeat comedy-drama ("Swiss Army Man"), horror ("The Woman in Black"), and adventure comedy ("The Lost City"). Most recently, Radcliffe turned to comedy satire to play the title role in "Weird: The Al Yankovic Story," which earned him his first-ever Primetime Emmy nomination, for outstanding lead actor in a limited or anthology series or movie. 

In an exclusive Looper interview with Radcliffe and Evan Rachel Wood to discuss how they channeled "Weird Al" Yankovic and Madonna for "Weird," Radcliffe said he thrives on being challenged by different roles. "I don't know if [what I'm doing] fits neatly into a 'This is the type of film [I want to do]' or 'This is how this fits with everything else,'" Radcliffe told Looper. "But there's a general spirit of, 'I think I'd be really bored in a lot of movies where people just stand around and talk to each other.' It's a movie, and it's fun to do stuff that's crazy as well."

If the rumors prove true and Radcliffe is cast as a Wolverine variant in "Deadpool 3," it wouldn't be the "Weird" star's first flirtation with the MCU. In an interview with the UK's Metro in 2016, Radcliffe said he'd wanted to play Spider-Man after the departure of Andrew Garfield from the role, but the coveted part had gone to Tom Holland.