Gambit and DeadPool Movies to Follow "Wolverine"?

MTV’s Rick Marshall recently spoke with Jeff Katz, former 20th Century Fox exec and comics writer, about his experience on the set of “X-Men Origins: Wolverine.”

In addition to raving about Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, Katz also raved about Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool and Taylor Kitsch as Gambit. He also brought to light a few rumors, including the fact that a Deadpool movie has been in the works for more than five years.

Of Reynolds as Deadpool, Katz said, “He IS that character. I have to say it’s one of the proudest things I’ve done in my career, and it took me five extra years to do it, but to finally get him into that role and get it done is something I’m very proud of.”

More after the jump…

Of a Deadpool movie, Katz says, “All the way back to Ryan, David Goyer and I on ‘Blade: Trinity,’ we were trying to put together a deal at New Line for a ‘Deadpool’ movie. We thought the rights were clear and not part of the ‘X-Men’ universe, so Ryan could play the character and Goyer could write. I can’t remember why — I think they wanted to do a ‘Blade’ spin-off instead — but it didn’t come together. But Ryan, to his credit, has remained obsessed with the character.”

Of Kitsch’s turn as Gambit, Katz says, “There’s no question that I think Gambit’s going to play well. Put Taylor in a trenchcoat and give him a staff, and watch out. He’s a tough kid, and he did a lot of his own stuff — and he looked like a million bucks doing it.”

I agree. Taylor Kitsch, who plays Tim Riggins on “Friday Night Lights,” has always struck me as a guy who would go a long way in the biz.

With Marvel’s penchant for cross-promoting characters in movies, could there be movies in store for Deadpool and Gambit? Any thoughts on this?

Image: Ryan Reynolds, Adventureland, Miramax, 2009; Taylor Kitsch, Friday Night Lights, NBC Universal, 2007