Deadpool & Wolverine Trailer Confirms Return of Beloved Logan Character

“You’ve got the wrong guy,” sneers Wolverine in the latest and final trailer for Deadpool & Wolverine.

“You were always the wrong guy,” comes the rejoinder, which would have been powerful said by anyone, but gets all the more cutting because of who delivered it: Laura aka X-23, once again played by Dafne Keen.

Ever since Hugh Jackman announced his return to the world of superheroes as Wolverine, fans have worried about the sanctity of his last outing, Logan. In addition to fully embracing the themes of regret and violence that have always driven Wolverine, Logan gave the hero a moving and well-deserved ending that seemed permanent when Jackman announced his retirement from the character.

The newest and final trailer for Deadpool & Wolverine goes to great lengths to assure viewers that Logan remains unsullied. Throughout the surprisingly sober teaser, Wolverine distinguishes himself as a multiversal variant of those seen in previous X-Men movies, including Logan.

But the most effective nod comes with the return of Keen as Laura from Logan. A daughter born out of cloned genetic material from the old man, Laura offers Logan a chance at redemption. He takes it by saving her from Donald Pierce (Boyd Holbrook) and the Reavers and taking her to a refuge called Eden on the right side of the Canadian border. Logan sacrificed himself to give Laura the life he never had, free from the constant fear that he’s nothing more than a beast.

Although she first debuted in the animated series X-Men: Evolution, X-23 has received a lot of development in the comics (after, of course, a terrible introduction as a sex worker in the series NYX). Thanks to writers such as Marjorie Liu and Tom Taylor, Laura has developed her own personality and friend group, even as she takes on the code-name Wolverine.

In fact, Laura’s popularity and superhero moniker have made her a popular candidate for inclusion in the MCU X-Men when they eventually arrive. Obviously, the X-Men can’t go without their most popular character Wolverine. But Jackman’s performance looms so large in the popular imagination, especially after Deadpool & Wolverine, that it will be hard for anyone to follow him, even if Kevin Feige casts a more comics accurate short hairy guy.

Laura’s Wolverine might allow the MCU to keep a claw-popping hero with a bad attitude without invoking Jackman too soon. But while Keen has been busy, most recently appearing in Star Wars: The Acolyte, she had not confirmed any plans to return to the role.

The trailer only gives a few hints on what Laura will do in Deadpool & Wolverine, and she may not have more than one or two scenes. After all, Deadpool & Wolverine will be stuffed with cameos, many of whom show up in this trailer, including a full body shot of Lady Deadpool (masked, however, so we don’t know if it’s Ryan Reynolds in a wig or Blake Lively) and more of baddie Cassandra Nova.

But if rumors are true and Deadpool & Wolverine will debut the MCU X-Men, Keen’s return as X-23 may be more than just a wink to the fans.

Deadpool & Wolverine arrives in theaters on July 26, 2024.