Skip to main content

Joe Carnahan to direct ‘X-Force’ movie, co-write it with Ryan Reynolds

x force joe carnahan ryan reynolds marvel
Marvel
While we still don’t know much about a release date, the upcoming X-Force movie has a director. Multiple sources say Joe Carnahan has been tapped to both write the screenplay and direct the movie. But perhaps more telling about the movie’s eventual plot is a rumor from Comicbook.com claiming Deadpool star Ryan Reynolds is also signing on to help write the film.

Carnahan has several high-profile film successes under his belt, including Narc, Smokin’ Aces, The A-Team, and The Grey. Reynolds is currently working on Deadpool 2, and will star alongside Jake Gyllenhaal in the science-fiction horror film Life, which debuts March 24.

Reynolds helping to write X-Force does make some sense: Deadpool 2 will also feature Cable, the first leader of X-Force in Marvel’s comic book series. At one point in the serie,s Deadpool appeared in the X-Force comics, so it’s not entirely out of the question that Deadpool makes some kind of appearance in the new movie.

Which Marvel characters may appear is anyone’s guess — nearly three dozen characters have appeared over the comic’s several runs, including Cyclops, Psylocke, Wolverine, Storm, and Colossus.

X-Force is the brainchild of Deadpool creator Rob Liefeld, and made its first appearance in 1991 in New Mutants No. 100. For those not familiar, the X-Force can be thought of as a more militant version of the X-Men — so it’s also likely that the movie itself will follow the lead of Logan and Deadpool and sport an R rating.

Reynolds is on record expressing his interest in being involved with an X-Force movie, as well as a more grittier film than traditional Marvel franchise blockbusters. However, this was before Deadpool’s stunning success, and with Deadpool 2 a priority for 20th Century Fox, X-Force is probably several years off.

Editors' Recommendations

Ed Oswald
For fifteen years, Ed has written about the latest and greatest in gadgets and technology trends. At Digital Trends, he's…
20 reasons why X2: X-Men United still rules 20 years later
The X-Men stand and pose in "X2: X-Men United."

Before the MCU was a gleam in Kevin Feige's eye, the only true cinematic universe comic book fans had was the X-Men universe. In the 2000s, 20th Century Fox mined the Marvel Comics property for all of its worth, creating a trilogy of movies, plus one really bad Wolverine film, that existed in the same world and referenced one another.

The best of the bunch was X2: X-Men United. Released in the first week of May 2003, it did what sequels are supposed to do: be bigger and better than their predecessor, while still setting up future installments so fans will keep coming back for more. X2 excelled at just about everything: characterization, action, humor, worldbuilding, you name it. X2 did it -- and did it well. In honor of its 20th anniversary, here are 20 reasons why X2: X-Men United still holds up all these years later as one of the best comic book movies ever made.
1. It improved on the first movie in every way

Read more
10 X-Men who need to be in the Marvel Cinematic Universe
The X-Men gather for a group photo on a Marvel comic book.

One of the biggest questions that has been on every Marvel fan's mind is: "When are we getting the X-Men?" Though the classic animated series from the '90s is supposed to hit Disney+ in the near future, many fans are still hoping to see the iconic team of heroes appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe alongside the powerful Avengers.

While we wait for that to happen, here's a list of X-Men who should be brought into the MCU (excluding the members with confirmed appearances, such as Professor X, Wolverine, Deadpool, and Colossus).
Psylocke

Read more
10 most powerful X-Men villains, ranked from weakest to strongest
Magneto uses his power in X-Men: Apocalypse.

The world of Marvel's X-Men has presented some of the most powerful villains in comic book history. Many superpowered mutants have wielded a variety of godlike abilities, making them formidable adversaries to Professor X's team of heroes.

The X-Men have also fought against primordial entities, ancient aliens, magical warriors, and malevolent machines that have made their wars about more than just maintaining peace between humans and mutants. With that in mind, here is the list of the most powerful villains that the X-Men ever faced.
10. Shadow King

Read more