James McAvoy explains why he didn’t make a cameo in Deadpool & Wolverine

McAvoy has portrayed Professor X since 20th Century Studio’s 2011 reboot of ‘X-Men: First Class’

*Warning, minor ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ and ‘Logan’ spoilers to follow*

James McAvoy has confirmed he was never approached about making a cameo in the new Deadpool & Wolverine.

The 45-year-old Scottish actor, who’s portrayed Professor X, the founder of the X-Men, since 20th Century Studio’s reboot of X-Men: First Class, was included in a surprise end-credit montage of behind-the-scenes footage from non-Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) films. However, that was it.

Speaking to Variety over the weekend at Comic-Con, McAvoy admitted he hadn’t seen the movie yet, but said he was aware that he was going to appear in clips at the end of the film, which marks Ryan Reynolds’s sarcastic superhero’s first foray into the MCU following Disney’s acquisition of Fox in 2019.

But, when asked if there had ever been plans for him to make an official cameo in Deadpool & Wolverine, McAvoy said: “No, no, no, no. Not this one. I don’t think so. If there was a world, they clearly threw that idea out the window before calling me, so no.”

He did say, though, that he’s “always going to be interested” in playing the professor again.

“I’ve always said, if there’s a good role, if there’s a good opportunity to tell a good story, I’m always going to be interested in it, no matter whether it’s something I’ve done before or something completely brand new,” McAvoy said. “If there’s good material, I’m always ready to respond. I’m always ready. Ever ready! Actor ready! It’s got to be good, and they’ve got to want to do that, so it’s all hypotheticals.”

Deadpool & Wolverine sees the return of Hugh Jackman’s bearded mutant, who died in 2017’s Logan. The movie sees the two superheroes team up to protect the multiverse and save the world from existential threat.

While the movie credits roll, Green Day’s 1997 track “Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)” plays over a montage of clips and behind-the-scenes footage from 20th Century Fox superhero films, including Daredevil (2003), the original Fantastic Four (2005) and Elektra (2005).

Hugh Jackman returns in the new ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ (© 2024 20th Century Studios / © and ™ 2024 MARVEL.)

The montage finally ends with an image of the iconic logo of 20th Century Fox, which has since been rebranded to 20th Century Studios.

Despite reviews for the third Deadpool movie being mixed, it still managed to break box office records for the largest global opening for an R-rated film ever, making an estimated $444.1m worldwide.

Deadpool & Wolverine is in theaters now.