Director James Gunn has stated previously that Thanos (Josh Brolin) was a last minute addition to Guardians of the Galaxy and that it was difficult to weave his scenes into the overall tapestry of the film. During yesterday's press conference for Avengers: Age of Ultron, director Joss Whedon and Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige disclosed that 'Guardians' was originally supposed to have even more Thanos. When asked which specific characters in Phase 2 needed to have offscreen adventures rather than featured roles, Feige and Whedon named Thanos, Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) and Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner).
Said Feige," As Phase 2 came together, Joss told me that Hulk and Hawkeye needed to have less exposure in the Phase films because he had specific ideas for what he wanted to do with them in [Avengers: Age of Ultron]."
Whedon added, "The only other character that falls into that category as well, is Thanos. [But] we felt we needed to thread him in more gently."
Feige concluded, "Yeah, there was originally more Thanos."
Avengers: Age of Ultron opens in US theaters on May 1.