James Gunn is no stranger to casting legendary veteran actors in his Guardians of the Galaxy movies, with seven-time Academy Award nominee Glenn Close making a rare blockbuster appearance in the first installment as Nova Prime, while both halves of Tango & Cash appeared in the sequel without sharing any scenes together. Kurt Russell’s Ego may not have made it out alive, but based on the end credits, Sylvester Stallone’s Stakar seems poised to return in the team’s third outing.
With the movie industry on lockdown much like the rest of us, and Gunn still needing to put the finishing touches on The Suicide Squad once the restrictions are lifted, it could be a while yet before we see Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Marvel’s next available release date isn’t until October 2022, but that seems more likely to be taken by Ant-Man 3 rather than everyone’s favorite intergalactic misfits.
Plot specifics are thin on the ground, too, but Gunn has admitted that Rocket looks set to be the driving force of the story. Not only that, but we’ve also heard that the filmmaker is looking to add yet another big screen icon to the ensemble, and he might be playing a role that’s linked directly to the anthropomorphic raccoon’s arc.
According to our sources – the same ones who told us that the Guardians will cameo in Thor: Love and Thunder and Now You See Me 3 is in development, both of which have since been confirmed – Harrison Ford is reportedly wanted for a villainous part in the film. It’s unclear exactly which one it could be at the moment, but one possibility is the High Evolutionary, a role that his former Star Wars co-star Mark Hamill has been linked to in the past. In certain canon, the character has a hand in the creation and subsequent experiments on Rocket, which ties into the vague plot details that we know so far.
While Hamill has reportedly had talks for the part, he’s not locked in just yet and if he passes, the role could go to Ford. If not, then Gunn apparently has another character in mind for him. Although, whether Harrison Ford would be willing to sign on to another Disney-branded sci-fi franchise is a different question entirely, especially when he still seems determined to make another Indiana Jones movie despite pushing 80 years old. Still, fans would no doubt go wild for even a brief cameo from the actor in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
