It’s been a long road for director James Gunn over the past year. He was let go by Disney from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Then, right after signing on for Warner Bros.’ The Suicide Squad, Disney’s Al Horn reinstated him. Gunn broke his silence on these events in a new interview with Deadline. He also spoke about what he hopes to do with the crew’s latest adventure.
“When you asked me what was saddest for me when I thought it was gone — and anybody at Marvel can tell you — it’s this very strange and attached relationship to Rocket,” said Gunn. “Rocket is me, he really is, even if that sounds narcissistic. Groot is like my dog. I love Groot in a completely different way. I relate to Rocket and I feel compassion for Rocket, but I also feel like his story has not been completed.”
“He has an arc that started in the first movie, continued into the second and goes through Infinity War and Endgame, and then I was set to really finish that arc in Guardians 3,” continued Gunn. “That was a big loss to me — not being able to finish that story — though I was comforted by the fact that they were still planning to use my script.”
Related: Chris Pratt is Excited For James Gunn’s Guardians Return
Gunn also expressed gratitude for those that gave him enough support to return for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
“From my girlfriend Jen; my producer and my agents; Chris Pratt calling me and freaking out; Zoe Saldana and Karen Gillan, all calling and crying. Sylvester Stallone FaceTime-ing me. And, of course, Dave Bautista, who came out so strong. That amount of love that I felt from my friends, my family, and the people in the community was absolutely overwhelming,” he explained.
You can read the full interview here, which goes more in-depth about how he felt about his firing, and his reinstatement.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 doesn’t currently have a release date, but it will go into production once The Suicide Squad wraps.
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