Credit: Marvel StudiosGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023) is only days away!
For some, with early screening tickets, even less, and fans’ excitement is palpable. Arguably one of the most popular franchises in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Guardians of the Galaxy are ending their tenure, and people already can’t stop talking about the film, director James Gunn included!
Related: Miley Cyrus Booted From the MCU, Replaced by ‘Loki’ Actress In ‘Guardians 3’
The very first outing for the team, Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), introduced a whole new style of comic book movie. Here were heroes that didn’t take themselves too seriously; Star-Lord/Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) made his entrance dancing to classic tunes, after all. They had realistic motivation: Rocket (Bradley Cooper) was persuaded to save the galaxy because he was reminded that was where he lived! Overall it was a fun ride, with a lot of emotion as well.
The second volume wasn’t one step behind. Kurt Russel brought Ego to life in a very surreal way, and fans learned more about the leader of the Guardians before the team was torn apart by the events of Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019), making Star-Lord (Pratt) a little less popular in the eyes of the fandom.
Nevertheless, fans are still very excited about this weekend and the opportunity to see this last adventure, and though they’ve faced many of the worst villains in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to date, James Gunn says that this new villain will be a whole new ballgame. The Direct recently reported on comments made by the director about the film’s new villain, the High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji).
In speaking of the villain, Gunn said that the Evolutionary (Iwuji) is “the cruelest MCU villain we’ll ever see.” Taking into account the villains fans have already seen, that’s a pretty bold claim: Loki (Tom Hiddleston) almost conquered Earth, decimating Manhattan, Ultron (James Spader) destroyed an entire city and almost caused a mass extinction, Thanos (Josh Brolin) wiped out half of all life in the universe, killing many permanently. So, if the Evolutionary (Iwuji) is indeed the cruelest…what does that hold in store for the Guardians?
Related: ‘Guardians of the Galaxy 3’ Director Teases Romance Between Nebula and Peter Quill
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 comes to theaters on May 5, 2023, and stars Chris Pratt as Peter Quill/Star-Lord, Bradley Cooper as Rocket, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Dave Bautista as Drax, Karen Gillan as Nebula, Pom Klementieff as Mantis, Vin Diesel as Groot, Sean Gunn as Kraglin, Chukwudi Iwuji as the High Evolutionary, and Will Poulter as Adam Warlock. The last entry into the Guardians franchise will see the team rally to protect Rocket (Cooper) on their most perilous mission yet.
What do you think of Gunn’s statement? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments below!