As the long-awaited sequel is finally gaining steam with another man at the helm, Deadpool 2 director David Leitch shares why he isn't returning for Deadpool 3. After originally making a name for himself as a stuntman and coordinator, Leitch stepped into the director's chair with Chad Stahelski for the first John Wick movie before making his solo feature directorial debut with 2017's Atomic Blonde. Leitch would take over as director on Deadpool 2, his second solo effort, after previous director Tim Miller departed over creative differences with star/co-writer Ryan Reynolds.

With Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick still in the writer's chairs alongside Reynolds, Deadpool 2 proved to be a critical and commercial hit, scoring nearly the same level of acclaim as its predecessor and outgrossing the first film with a $785 million box office haul. In spite of its success, development on Deadpool 3 floundered as Fox struggled to determine the proper path for its X-Men franchise, with plans for an X-Force film and Reynolds' increasingly busy schedule reportedly delaying efforts to bring the Merc with a Mouth back to the big screen. A few years after Disney acquired 21st Century Fox, Deadpool 3 is making headway with plans to introduce the character to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, though without one creative at the helm.

While speaking with Uproxx for his upcoming action-thriller Bullet Train, David Leitch opened up about why he's not returning for Deadpool 3. The Deadpool 2 director confirmed there were talks about having him get back at the helm for the threequel, but that the timing ultimately never worked out for his return. See what Leitch said below:

"It’s probably more of what I’m doing and some circumstance. I love all of those worlds, and they’re all precious to me. Starting with John Wick. Chad has taken over that franchise and executed it beautifully. And Deadpool is amazing. And Atomic Blonde, I would love to go back. When I look back, I would love to go back to those worlds, but I think the way it’s worked out for me, or fate has brought me to this place, is that I get new opportunities and they’re really awesome, interesting, as well. Now moving on and doing The Fall Guy with Gosling, we’re prepping right now. No. Look, we had conversations about Deadpool 3, but I just was … I had things in the pipeline, too. And it was never, 'Hey, do you want to do it or not want to do it?' or whatever. I think it was more we knew our dance cards were kind of full on both sides. And we have a window. And Marvel has calendars."

As Leitch notes, his dance card has grown rapidly since helping launch the John Wick franchise with current director Chad Stahelski and receiving strong reviews for his work on Atomic Blonde and Deadpool 3. The filmmaker has gone on to helm the first Fast & Furious spin-off movie Hobbs & Shaw, which similarly saw positive reviews and a strong box office haul, as well as the upcoming Brad Pitt-led thriller Bullet Train, which is receiving mixed-to-positive early reviews. Leitch is also set to direct the stuntman drama The Fall Guy with Ryan Gosling leading, a TV series based on Virgin founder Richard Branson with Andrew Garfield starring and an adaptation of Tomm Coker and Daniel Freedman's Undying Love comic book series, making his future schedule largely crowded.

Though Deadpool 2's Leitch may not be back for Deadpool 3, anticipation has only grown with recent announcements in the film's development. Reynolds is set to reunite with director/producer Shawn Levy on the MCU threequel, with the two having scored favorable reviews on Free Guy and The Adam Project, while original writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick were also confirmed to be returning this past March, leaving many hopeful it can recapture the success of the first two films. While audiences await more details on the next film, they can revisit the first two Deadpool movies now streaming on Disney+.