Speculation has been running rampant for the past 24 hours about the “key role” Oldboy actress Pom Klementieff is playing in James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2,, and if you guessed Mantis, you were right!
Considering the fact that Mantis is of Asian descent – something Marvel were specifically looking for while casting this role – this always seemed like the obvious choice, and it’s safe to assume that she’s the one new member of the Guardians of the Galaxy that Gunn has alluded to being added to the team in previous interviews.
Mantis has a very muddled origin story (she’s half-Vietnamese and half-German, but has some links to the Kree), so don’t be surprised if Gunn retools that for the sequel. Despite being introduced in the pages of Avengers #112 way back in 1973, the character didn’t actually become involved with the Guardians of the Galaxy until 2007. Since then, Mantis has played a key role in many of their adventures and even has some significant links to Thanos.
Klementieff joins a cast which so far only officially includes returning members Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel. Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 is set to be released on May 5th, 2017.
