At long last, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is finally about to arrive in theaters, bringing a close to the story of the cosmic superhero team that began a decade ago when James Gunn was hired to bring the then-obscure comic book property to the screen by Marvel Studios. The fact that many had never heard of Star-Lord and his gang before the 2014 movie came out allowed the writer/director a lot of freedom to carve out his own corner of the MCU, and that apparently includes establishing some long-term plans right from the off.
Gunn gave fans a new taste at the incoming threequel this week by sharing a fresh image of Cosmo the Spacedog on Instagram. The telepathic canine astronaut (as voiced by Borat 2‘s Maria Bakalova) was recently featured in The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special ahead of her big Vol. 3 role, but this wasn’t the character’s debut in the franchise as Cosmo previously turned up for a small silent cameo in the first Guardians film.
In the comments to this post, one fan asked Gunn if he ever thought “Cosmo of all characters would get a substantial role” in future movies. The filmmaker responded with a surprising affirmative answer. “Yes, for sure,” Gunn said, thereby confirming that he always intended to bring Cosmo back in a big way after that initial cameo.
What is less clear, however, is if Gunn always intended to reimagine Cosmo as female as opposed to the male comic book version or if this was a case of — and this phrase has never been used so literally before — the tail wagging the dog once Bakalova was decided as the best person for the part.
Seeing as how Cosmo is a beloved member of the Guardians in the comics, let’s be glad Gunn’s master plan to make use of the character finally came to fruition. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 opens in cinemas this May 5.