The Deadpool actor wades in.

Ryan Reynolds has explained the context behind a Deadpool 3 joke, as seen in the film’s official trailer.

The Deadpool actor returns for the third instalment alongside Hugh Jackman – who makes his anticipated comeback as X-Men’s Wolverine – in the aptly titled Deadpool & Wolverine, coming to UK cinemas on July 25.

The film sees Wade Wilson (Reynolds) suit up again after retiring his anti-hero persona and convincing a reluctant Wolverine to help him fight for the survival of his homeland.

In the movie’s trailer, fans see Deadpool amusingly declare himself as the “Marvel Jesus” to a befuddled Mr Paradox (Succession‘s Matthew Macfadyen), with Reynolds clarifying the joke’s context at the film’s press conference attended by Digital Spy.

“I feel like we’ve been really lucky with timing,” he said. “On Deadpool 1, we were a great beneficiary of the cultural landscape changing quite rapidly, and we were very lucky to be in the right place at the right time.

“I feel like this movie is also that. Writing lines like Deadpool deliriously believing he’s the messiah or ‘Marvel Jesus’, these are things that were written before any analysis of the larger systemic storytelling issue that might be playing in the media.”

While not directly referencing the Marvel Comic Universe, the actor seems to be addressing the MCU’s recent struggles, including poor box-office results and a general critic consensus of “superhero fatigue”.

Deadpool 3 arrives later in cinemas than previously announced due to filming delays on account of last year’s SAG AFTRA strike.

Production began in May last year, but shooting was shut down in July to meet guidelines when the strike was announced. Deadpool 3 filming then resumed shortly after the strike ended on November 7.

As a result, Marvel ended up pushing Deadpool 3‘s release date back from May to July 2024, with audiences eager to see the threequel later this month.