Shawn Levy did not want to rely on green screens for 'Deadpool 3'.

The 55-year-old director is helming the latest film in the superhero franchise and says it is worth having photos from the set leaked if it means that the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) flick doesn't use green screen trickery.

Shawn told Total Film magazine: "It bums me out that photos have leaked online. But this is the price we pay for committing to real locations.

"I made a decision very early in prep that even though 'Deadpool' is now in the MCU, I didn't want another Marvel movie shot on a green screen stage with digital set extensions."

'Deadpool 3' – which is slated for release in May 2024 – sees Ryan Reynolds return as the 'merc with a mouth' and Hugh Jackman reprising the role of Wolverine. It will be the first picture in the series set in the MCU but Shawn will not be forgetting the franchise's Fox roots.

The 'Night at the Museum' filmmaker explained: "Deadpool and Wolverine are iconic Marvel characters; more specifically, iconic Marvel-of-the-Fox era characters.

"We're not going to pretend: 'Oh, we snap our fingers, and suddenly that Fox legacy doesn't exist, and it shaped a lot of what we now know as the MCU.'

"Fox also shaped Ryan's career, Hugh's career and my career. So there's a lot of history there, and there's a lot of Marvel history at Fox. And certainly that's a part of our storytelling."

Production on 'Deadpool 3' has been put on hold due to Hollywood's striking writers and actors and Levy hopes a resolution can be agreed to get the movie back on track.

He told Deadline: "Well, like the rest of our industry, or at least a large swathe of it, we’re paused. We’re halfway through filming 'Deadpool', co-starring Wolverine. It was a joy every day and that chemistry is as relentless as we all hoped it would be.

"Our crew and the rest of us are awaiting a fair and equitable deal that ends these strikes and puts this industry, inclusive of our movie, back at work."