Deadpool & Wolverine featured major ties to Disney+'s Loki, sparking theories Marvel Studios may be building the groundwork for its Season 3 comeback.
Marvel Studios introduced the world to the Time Variance Authority (TVA) on Disney+ in Loki as a Multiversal police with ties to Kang the Conqueror.
But after two seasons of Loki, the TVA has expanded its MCU horizons with a starring role as a major antagonist in Deadpool & Wolverine.
Deadpool & Wolverine Teases the TVA & Loki's Future
The TVA made its first MCU appearance outside of Loki in Deadpool & Wolverine as Agent Paradox pulled Deadpool from his timeline. This came as Paradox (Matthew Macfadyen) warned Wade Wilson of the incoming end of his reality following the death of its Anchor Being - Hugh Jackman's Wolverine.
The news sent Deadpool on a mission to recruit a new Wolverine to save his world while Paradox set about to use a Time Ripper to destroy Earth-10005.
Deadpool & Wolverine established a new status quo for the TVA in which Hunter B-15 appeared to be taking a leading role. Following Loki's events, the TVA now monitors all universes along with The Void, not just the Sacred Timeline.
The change in mission may have stemmed from the TVA's new endeavor of tracking Kang Variants after Loki Season 2, monitoring the entire Multiverse to keep tabs on their lives, plans, and motivations.
Having once set out to prune every Earth outside the Sacred Timeline, the TVA is seemingly focused on maintaining all the timelines, functioning more as Multiversal police than ever before.
With the TVA on a new path, opening the doors to plenty of fresh stories, could Marvel Studios return to where it began to continue its saga in Loki Season 3?
[ Deadpool 3's Alioth Cameo Explained: Loki Connection Revealed ]
Is Loki Season 3 Happening After Deadpool & Wolverine?
In December 2023, producer Kevin Wright was broached on Loki's future by TVLine and suggested the team wouldn't "want to rush into a Season 3 if there's not a good story to tell:"
"For two seasons, I’ve loved working with this team… I would love to keep telling those stories with them, in this world. I don’t think any of us would ever want to rush into a Season 3 if there’s not a good story to tell."
Wright did ponder a spin-off surrounding the TVA, suggesting a series that could be their "Better Call Saul to Loki's Breaking Bad:"
"But I think this team could go off and tell other stories. Maybe it’s not 'Loki' Season 3. Maybe there’s something we can continue to do at the TVA, and it’s like our 'Better Call Saul' to 'Loki's' 'Breaking Bad.' That would be cool, to me."
The producer also spoke with the Phase Zero podcast in November 2023 to discuss how Loki Season 2 was developed as "a closing of the book" to "finish the story," indicating the first two seasons were always framed as a two-part affair:
"I will say this: I said it and I know [head writer] Eric Martin kind of repeated it… We did treat this like a closing of the book. Season 1, one chapter. Season 2, another chapter. And that was kind of a challenge from Owen [Wilson] after Season 1. He’s like, ‘Nobody ever has the courage to close the book. Like, let’s close the book. Let’s finish the story.’ And it felt right."
Nonetheless, he expressed his affection for the Loki world, adding how he would "love to keep telling characters with Sylvie and the TVA:"
"I would say this: I love this world. I love these characters. I would to keep telling characters with Sylvie and the TVA. Obviously, I would love to tell more Loki stories if that becomes a possibility. Right now, I don’t see how it is with what he’s doing."
In another interview with Variety in October 2023, Wright noted how Loki was left "open-ended" but with no specific plans for Season 3. That said, the producer was clear there are "many, many, many more stories" still to be told in this world:
"I think it’s open-ended. We certainly did not develop this season going, 'We have to tee up Season 3' — in the way that we did with Season 1, where there was a very specific, 'Hey, we’re coming back.' But I also think that where this show goes, there certainly can be many, many, many more stories told with Loki in the 'Loki' world, and in other worlds connected to Loki, the character."
As the Multiverse Saga has under three years to go until it concludes with Secret Wars, it would be surprising to see Loki Season 3 before then. If the Disney+ series were to return, Marvel Studios might save it until the next saga to deal with the aftermath of the Avengers blockbusters or other tales with the God of Mischief.
What Comes Next for the TVA After Deadpool & Wolverine?
During San Diego Comic-Con, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige and Marvel Comics Editor-in-Chief C.B. Cebulski collectively announced TVA as a five-issue comic series written by Loki writer Katharyn Blair.
Blair was an executive story editor on Loki Season 2 and co-wrote Episode 4, "Heart of the TVA," alongside showrunner Eric Martin.
The premise (via Marvel) teased how the TVA will "recruit a new band of heroes" who will travel the Multiverse on "vital missions to repair wild temporal anomalies and keep reality itself from shattering:"
"The mysterious all-knowing entity who keeps the TVA ticking like clockwork will recruit a new band of heroes charged with monitoring and regulating all realities and timelines. Join Ghost-Spider and other universe-displaced entities including Captain Carter, a heartbroken Remy LeBeau, and more as they’re sent throughout the Multiverse on vital missions to repair wild temporal anomalies and keep reality itself from shattering!"
As the TVA is an organization that monitors the whole Multiverse, one would assume the comic series will feature the same version fans are familiar with from the MCU and even the familiar Hunter B-15.
With the tales of the TVA expanding into the comics, fans may see them continue taking a major role in the Multiverse Saga going forward, even as Marvel Studios leaves Kang behind in favor of a pivot to Doctor Doom.
[ Jonathan Majors’ Kang Replacement Plans Revealed For Avengers 5 ]
Since Loki Season 3 doesn't appear on the horizon, it's hard to tell when the TVA will next appear on screens. Par for a surprise appearance in The Fantastic Four: First Steps or What If...? Season 3, the TVA will likely next appear in 2026 with Avengers: Doomsday, provided they aren't abandoned alongside Kang.
The TVA characters who could return are Hunter B-15, Agent Mobius (Owen Wilson), Ouroboros (Ke Huy Quan), and Miss Minutes, along with other major Loki players such as Loki and Sylvie.
Deadpool & Wolverine is now playing in theaters, and both seasons of Loki are streaming on Disney+.
Read more about Loki and Deadpool & Wolverine:
Deadpool & Wolverine Breaks 10 Box Office Records So Far
Loki Season 3 Could Solve Marvel Studios' Kang Problem Perfectly
Ryan Reynolds Hints at Deadpool 3 Scene "I know why Thor was crying"
