James Gunn Reveals Only One of The Guardians Members Was Played By The First Actor of His Choice

James Gunn Reveals Only One of The Guardians Members Was Played By The First Actor of His Choice

In a recent interview, James Gunn confirms that only member of the Guardians of The Galaxy group was played by the initial actor he wanted them to play

By JonathanDan - Sep 20, 2023 03:09 PM EST
Source: The Direct

At first with fans showing sheer skepticism toward another group of unknown superheroes entering the MCU so soon upon the success of The Avengers, James Gunn's Guardians of The Galaxy films are currently some of the best Marvel Cinematic Universe films to date.

With having earned far over a righteous one-billion dollars cumulative in the box office for all three films, James Gunn has left a very proud legacy for his reign over at Marvel Studio's, as he is ready to conquer the world of the DC Universe.

However, if you were to ask James Gunn which actor's he forsaw playing each of the roles of the Guardians of The Galaxy, his response would feature only one of the actor's that has played one of the intergalactic defenders.

In the Marvel Studio's: Assembled documentary for Guardians of The Galaxy Vol. 3, Gunn initially had a much different cast in mind to assemble the ragtag group of misfits:

"When I first went to Marvel and I pitched 'Guardians of the Galaxy,' I brought a little book. I had worked very hard trying to put this little book together of all the little pictures and photo references, and all that stuff. And in that book, there were all the characters listed and who I thought should play those characters.”  

“And of course, none of those actors who were in that book ended up playing the characters, except for Zoe Saldaña, who I met and loved from the beginning.”

It is bizzare to project an idea of how different Gunn's Guardians of The Galaxy film would have turned out, had the director assembled his dream cast to play their respective parts.

Surely, there is no doubt that all the actor's who landed their roles as each of the Guardians could ever be replaced, for Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, and Bradley Cooper, are all definitively our Guardians of The Galaxy.

Who would you have liked to play as a member of The Guardians of The Galaxy?

Guardians of the Galaxy (retroactively referred to as Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1) is a 2014 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics superhero team of the same name. Produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is the 10th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Directed by James Gunn, who wrote the screenplay with Nicole Perlman.

It features an ensemble cast including Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldaña, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, and Bradley Cooper as the titular Guardians, along with Lee Pace, Michael Rooker, Karen Gillan, Djimon Hounsou, John C. Reilly, Glenn Close, and Benicio del Toro. In the film, Peter Quill and a group of extraterrestrial criminals go on the run after stealing a powerful artifact.

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Saga
Saga - 9/20/2023, 3:36 PM
Didnt Amanda Seyfried turn down the role? Or was it Olivia Wilde
santoanderson
santoanderson - 9/20/2023, 3:41 PM
@Saga - It was Seyfreid. She said she thought the movie would flop, and she didn’t want to play a part that would require her to be “painted blue”.

I’m guessing she was Gunn’s first pick for Nebula.
dracula
dracula - 9/20/2023, 3:44 PM
Well we all know Jason Momoa was the first pick for Drax

But got to wonder who the others were

Considering Nathan Fillion is in the movies, obviously he was not the pick for Star Lord

Groot really could have been anyone considering his line. Just depends how Gunn wanted him to sound like.

Not sure who could have been rocket
CerealKiller1
CerealKiller1 - 9/20/2023, 5:29 PM
@dracula - Glenn Howerton, the actor for Dennis on ‘It’s Always Sunny’ was his top pick for Star Lord I believe
dracula
dracula - 9/20/2023, 5:46 PM
@CerealKiller1 - really cant see that
Tpo81
Tpo81 - 9/21/2023, 6:11 PM
@CerealKiller1 - he auditioned but I've never read that he was James top choice otherwise he probably would've been Starlord as I've heard him say he almost got it
Tpo81
Tpo81 - 9/21/2023, 6:15 PM
@Tpo81 - Adam Brody was on James Gunn's short list to play Starlord.
Origame
Origame - 9/22/2023, 7:06 AM
@CerealKiller1 - really puts into perspective that scene in the first movie where there's an alien woman in his ship while he's exploring.

?si=v0tewrYu_WkvNmkc
newhire13
newhire13 - 9/20/2023, 3:44 PM
I vaguely remember Adam Sandler being a front runner for Rocket and, I think, he wanted Glenn Howerton for Star Lord.
McMurdo
McMurdo - 9/20/2023, 3:47 PM
@newhire13 - nah cuz Glen actually read for the part. So he wasn't the guy he had in mind if that's the case.
ShimmyShimmyYA
ShimmyShimmyYA - 9/20/2023, 5:19 PM
@McMurdo - could’ve wanted him and then dude didn’t fit the role after auditioning
McMurdo
McMurdo - 9/21/2023, 2:41 PM
@ShimmyShimmyYA - quite possible indeed
Forthas
Forthas - 9/20/2023, 4:09 PM
I don't believe anything he says anymore. This is probably some publicity stunt to make it seem like he does not hand pick his friends and family members.

Try harder!
DocSpock
DocSpock - 9/20/2023, 4:10 PM


Gunn deserves a ton of cred from the GotG movies. While I am VERY concerned about MANY of the decisions made by Gunn/the new DCU, I am going to remain optimistic about Superman Legacy.

If that movie is great, I will be ecstatic. If he crams in too many characters, yields to DEI, and drops a Superman honker, I will have to go back in time to now and bump him off after I finish off baby Hitler.

ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 9/20/2023, 4:25 PM
@DocSpock - First thing any time traveller does is kill Hitler (second is bone Cleopatra). There must be a bazillion timelines where Hitler was killed as a baby.

Thing is, they do it to fix the problem, but the problem has already been fixed a bazillion times before them. But they don't know it because they come from the original timeline where he wasn't killed. So everyone from the future of this timeline still thinks the problem needs fixing and goes back and does the poor widdle baby in.

And they all bone Cleo. Who gets a crazy amount of STDs from every era.

And probably gives birth to a tyrant who will become Pharoah and kill all the minorities. Who then kills all the Avengers and beats up his girlfriend. Shit I'm out of weed, hold on...
DocSpock
DocSpock - 9/20/2023, 4:31 PM
@ObserverIO -

You know, as I sit here guzzling tequila and scarfing peanut butter cookies, I started to kind of worry about exactly what you just said.

I may have to rethink this, but still think I need to bone Cleo whatever the consequences. I'll let you know how it works out.

EskimoJ
EskimoJ - 9/20/2023, 4:47 PM
@ObserverIO - Which is especially funny because Cleopatra was ugly as shit.

Good to see y'all aren't shallow. 😊
ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 9/20/2023, 7:27 PM
@EskimoJ -
Yike!

I guess it's like the Sydney Sweeney effect though, right? Nobody actually looks at her face.
(what were you saying about being shallow?)

I'd still eat her peanut butter cookies, even looking like that. (man, I really want peanut butter cookies now).
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