Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy, a ragtag crew of misfits and outlaws seeking redemption and other shiny trinkets scattered throughout the universe, have officially voiced their solidarity with James Gunn, the ousted director who was initially expected to close out his Guardians trilogy in 2020 before everything went to hell in a handcart.
Long story short: a number of disturbing tweets posted between the years of 2008 and 2011 resurfaced just over a week ago, calling James Gunn’s reputation into question. To his credit, the filmmaker had already apologized for what he now considers to be gross and inflammatory content, and did so again once the insensitive material was dragged into the public eye once more.
But Disney acted swiftly, and relieved James Gunn of his duties on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. The fallout, as you can imagine, has been fast and furious. Not only is Vol. 3 the cinematic equivalent of a rudderless ship, but aggrieved comic book fans have launched a petition in support of Gunn, even going so far as to suggest that he deserves to have his old job back.
And though it may feel like a pipe dream at this point, sources close to Variety claim otherwise…
As spotted by CBM, Variety’s coverage of that aforementioned open letter makes note of the fact that there is now a “growing feeling” that James Gunn could be instated, after all, as the Mouse House has been “unusually radio-silent” when it comes to seeking out a replacement director.
Karen Gillan and Thor: Ragnarok‘s Taika Waititi are among those who have been linked with the vacant (?) gig, though Variety is now reporting that the hot-tipped favorite is actually… James Gunn.
Sources say there has been a growing feeling that Gunn could be reinstated, especially because Marvel and Disney have been unusually radio-silent on who could replace him since the firing. Production is slated to start at the top of 2019, and following Gunn’s removal from the film, it was thought that Marvel and Disney would need to move quickly to replace him, since the replacement would likely have to do some work on the script.
It’s also worth pointing out that last night’s open letter was backed (and indeed signed) by Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Sean Gunn, Pom Klementieff, Michael Rooker, and Karen Gillan, without whom Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 wouldn’t be possible. Your move, Disney…
Published: Jul 31, 2018 08:24 am