Chris Pratt promises ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ is even darker than you think

Its source material may flirt with taboos from time to time, but the Marvel Cinematic Universe has done a fairly good job of keeping its content family-friendly — even its more mature outliers like Moon Knight, Werewolf by Night, and WandaVision still have that blockbuster DNA most audiences can safely consume.

But while we certainly weren’t expecting Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 to be the happiest story we’ve ever seen, this is one trilogy capper that might still catch us by surprise, if Star-Lord himself is to be believed. In an interview with GamesRadar, Chris Pratt predicted shocked audiences in the future of Vol. 3 by way of its surprisingly heavy subject matter.

“I think it will be surprising for some folks how far James [Gunn] is willing to go. And how much he’s put into his backstory – it really shows that Rocket has been the heart of this group all along.”

The actor would go on to reveal that the film’s darkness is a byproduct of incisively delving into the past of a Guardian (in Vol. 3‘s case, Rocket), noting how each member carries marked traumatic baggage — a trait that plays a pivotal role in strengthening their bonds as teammates and friends.

“I think if you were to take the lives of any of the characters and take a deep dive into it, you’d see that it was pretty traumatic. Certainly we’ve already been able to see that with Peter Quill, but now we’re seeing that with Rocket. We see it a bit with Nebula and Gamora as well but if we were to go into Drax’s backstory losing his family or any of the other characters… they’ve been through a lot.”

Indeed, we’re all well aware by now that exploring Rocket’s past, and watching how it informs the events of Vol. 3, will be no easy task in the emotions department. But what makes Pratt’s remarks especially interesting is the fact that Vol. 3 is a feature film being released to cinemas — a battleground that Marvel Studios have historically played safer in than Disney Plus, which is home to most all of the studio’s more curious, creative liberties.

We’ll just have to see how far Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 strays from the path when it releases to theaters on May 5.