As last month's trailer confirmed, the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special will introduce Kevin Bacon (Footloose, X-Men: First Class) as himself, and the actor has now commented on joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe under such unusual circumstances.
"I like to make fun of myself or play some heightened version of me," Bacon tells EW. "I don't get a chance to do things that are fun and silly that often. I'm often part of something more dramatic or some kind of darker, edgier stuff. So to go down and step into this world… I mean, they call it the Marvel Universe, but when you walk onto these sets, you really do feel like you're walking in another universe."
In the Special Presentation, Drax and Mantis make their way to Earth to find "legendary hero" Kevin Bacon and "give" him to Peter Quill as a Christmas present in an attempt to cheer him up after the loss of Gamora. The well-meaning, but woefully misguided duo were inspired to do this by the tall tales Star-Lord told of Bacon's adventures.
As it turns out, Bacon - who had previously worked with director James Gunn in Super - was completely unaware that his name was going to be dropped when he went to see the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie.
Bacon says he immediately called his wife Kyra Sedgwick - who makes a voice cameo in the Special - to invite her to see the movie again. "I called up Kyra, and I said, 'I want you to see this movie. First off, it's awesome. Second, there's something really crazy that happens in it, and I'm not going to tell you what it is.'"
Bacon has a bigger role in the special than you might expect, but we'll say no more!
The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is set to premiere on Disney+ this Friday.