Donald Glover had time to write a Deadpool animated series for FX. That's what he tweeted Wednesday morning after FX announced that Glover would no longer be working on an animated version of the Marvel comic for the network.
"for the record: i wasnt too busy to work on deadpool," Glover wrote. He then tweeted a 15-page script for the Deadpool finale. The script contains references to pop culture from the past few days — there's a Beyoncé face-biter joke, as well as references to the ongoing Facebook data disaster.
The statement from FX regarding the split cited "creative differences" between Glover and FX.
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"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," the statement, which was released Saturday, read.
FX picked up the Deadpool animated series in May, ordering 10 episodes. Glover and his brother, Stephen, were to work on the project. In August, as per The Hollywood Reporter, FX president John Landgraf explained that Stephen and Donald were writing the show in the U.K. while Glover filmed Solo: A Star Wars Story. That was the last we heard of the series before last weekend.
Did he have time? It seems he did, judging by the 15-page script all of Twitter read this morning. So, like FX said, the separation must have been because of creative differences. This seems clear from Glover's weaponized script. The script uses the character of Deadpool to spin a meta narrative about writing for big companies like Marvel and Disney. (This is a technique characteristic of the Deadpool comics, as well as the Deadpool movie. There's precedent here.)
"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," Deadpool tells a rhino named Sudan. In the episode, Deadpool is aware that his show's been cancelled.
"Do you think they cancelled the show... cause of racism?" he wonders aloud.
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It gets even more meta. Later, Deadpool, who's been hired to protect the rhino by the episode's villain, grumbles, "Why'd you even hire me for this if you're the bad guy? Why pay me to protect this dinosaur?" Why pay Glover to pen the script for Deadpool when maybe the network didn't want Glover to write it after all?
Read Glover's full script, below.
for the record: i wasnt too busy to work on deadpool.
— donald (@donaldglover) March 28, 2018