Donald Glover Script Suggests ‘Racism’ Reason for Canceled ‘Deadpool’ Series

Deadpool, the “merc with a mouth,” fired shots at Marvel in a 15-page script released by Donald Glover after his exit from the ill-fated FX project.

“Do you think they canceled the show because of racism?!” Deadpool asks in the script Glover released on Twitter after leaving the project. Marvel’s infamously snarky antihero confesses his doubts: “Yeah, all the writers were black. The references were pretty black, too. I heard they went over lunch budget ordering Jamaican food at least once a week.”

The cancellation of the planned animated series was sudden and remarkably vague, as well as more than a little surprising. Deadpool is one of Marvel’s strongest potential properties. His live-action big screen debut was a huge hit with audiences, and an animated action comedy with FX seemed like an easy win. All we know for certain is that Glover “wasn’t too busy” to work on the project, according to his tweets.

The script, posted in part to Twitter itself, makes no attempt at subtlety in expressing Glover’s discontent with both the handling of this specific project and the situation at large. Deadpool eventually opines: “It just feels like everyone wants something different, but no one wants to do anything different to get it. Doesn’t Marvel have enough feel-good minority shows everyone supports but doesn’t watch? I mean, I think our show woulda been funny. I just wanted a place to be honest. And I guess that place is Freeform.”

Disney, Marvel, and FX have remained silent, except for this statement released with the announcement of the show’s cancellation on Saturday, March 24:

Due to creative differences, FX, Donald Glover, Stephen Glover and Marvel Television have agreed to part ways on Marvel’s Deadpool animated series. FX will no longer be involved with the project. FX and Marvel have an ongoing relationship through our partnership on Legion, which will continue.

Whatever the specific reason, the show is dead in the water. Perhaps it is for the best, according to Glover, whose version of Deadpool wondered whether it was the best time to have a “violent, gun loving white man ranting on TV.”