‘John Wick’s’ David Leitch Confirmed to Direct ‘Deadpool 2’

“John Wick” director David Leitch has closed his deal to helm “Deadpool 2,” less than a month after Tim Miller dropped out due to creative differences with star Ryan Reynolds.

Leitch, who also directed the Charlize Theron thriller “The Coldest City,” had emerged as the leading candidate to direct the sequel after Miller departed on Oct. 22. Miller’s exit came as a surprise as he had been in the process of developing the script and was widely expected to return.

Fox had announced at CinemaCon in April that Reynolds would be back, as well as Miller. “Deadpool” gave Fox its biggest hit of 2016 after opening on Valentine’s Day. It wound up with $782.6 million worldwide, to become the highest-grossing R-rated film in history.

Most of the creative team had been set to return for “Deadpool 2,” with Fox Film chief Stacey Snider also confirming at CinemaCon that screenwriters Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick would be back to handle script duties. Fox has not set a release date for “Deadpool 2.”

Leitch made his directorial debut co-helming “John Wick” with Chad Stahelski. He and Stahelski had worked as stunt coordinators and second unit directors.

It’s believed that Fox has also started development work on a third “Deadpool” movie, but has not yet found a filmmaker. Fox had no comment.

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