A little over a month has passed since The Hangover star Bradley Cooper was announced as the voice behind Rocket Raccoon, who's been described as the “heart” of Guardians of the Galaxy. It was assumed the Oscar-nominated actor's contribution would come into play in post-production, which the Marvel film is just a week shy of entering, but director James Gunn has clarified that “Yes, [Bradley has already started work on Guardians]. He's awesome,” via his Formspring.
Meanwhile, Karen Gillan has talked more about playing Nebula with The Scotsman and hinted at the character's relationship with Zoe Saldana's Gamora and Thanos in Guardians of the Galaxy. “She’s bald in the novels, Zoe’s character has hair. So their look was predefined and my hair had to go,” says the Scottish actress of being the only one required to shave her head daily. “Not very much [I can reveal], I’m afraid. It’s all very hush-hush. But I do have a lot of sibling rivalry with Zoe's Gamora” Gamora is Thanos' adopted daughter in Guardians, but Nebula claims to be the Mad Titan's granddaughter in the comics. We'll finally get a catfight in a Marvel Studios film!
With Glenn Close playing Nova Prime, the “chief police of the galaxy,” and John C. Reilly as Rhomann Dey, it's no secret that the Nova Corps will play a major role in Guardians of the Galaxy. But while the task force is exceptionally powerful in the comics, some Nova Corpsmen in the film were spotted at San Diego Comic-Con and during filming in London; appearing that Marvel has minimized their abilities in the film to make the Guardians more superior. That may not be the case.
Like any police/military force, the Marvel Comics had different ranks within the Nova Corps - there's the Nova Corpsman, Millenian, Denarian and Centurion. And based on some things I've stumbled across, those rankings will play out in Guardians of the Galaxy. An actor named Ian James Seale has listed “Denarian” as his role in the James Gunn-directed movie. How distinctive these ranks will be in the movie remains to be seen, but their emblematic variation has been glimpsed via set photos.
“Guardians of the Galaxy,” the next epic adventure from Marvel Studios, is directed by James Gunn from his screenplay, with a story by Nicole Perlman and Gunn, and the film will introduce audiences to a whole new side of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The all-star cast includes Chris Pratt as Peter Quill aka Star-Lord, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer, Lee Pace as Ronan the Accuser, Michael Rooker as Yondu, Karen Gillan as Nebula, two-time Academy Award nominee Djimon Hounsou as Korath, Academy Award® winner Benicio del Toro as The Collector, Academy Award nominee John C. Reilly as Rhomann Dey, and six-time Academy Award nominee Glenn Close as Nova Prime. Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy” is slated for August 1, 2014!