While Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is still a ways off from release, it's not stopping director James Gunn from being as vocal as he can about the upcoming sequel, debunking scoops, and most importantly, interacting with fans. In a recent Q&A on his official Facebook page, Gunn offered fans some insight into his corner of the MCU.
One thing Gunn is aiming for is more Gamora merchandise for the sequels marketing push. "I had a big conversation about [Gamora merchandising] yesterday with one of my producers at Marvel about trying to make sure, especially that Gamora is represented more in stuff and all the 'Guardians' toys, but especially all the clothing and bed sheets and all that stuff," he explained. "I think it's really important -- that often times it's something Marvel is concerned with, as I am. It's frustrating and stuff and so it bums me out." Being the only female member of the team (thus far), it's good to see that Gunn cares so much about her importance to the team, along with the general public's awareness of the character.
According to Gunn, he had a few character choices he would've loved to see in the upcoming film, but they didn't quite make the cut with Marvel, including a certain Alien insect overlord. "I would probably pick Rom. I also was unhappy to not have Annihilus in the 'Guardians' Marvel MCU." One fan suggested to Gunn that anyone could perform the voice of Groot, to which he had a rather heated response. "That's bullshit, and I know because I did the voice of Groot, I had other people doing the voice for Groot, we had all sorts of people doing the voice for Groot and Groot did not come alive until Vin Diesel did his voice. Vin is amazing as Groot. I'll argue to the death with anyone who says he doesn't make a difference or that it's a small role. It's huge what he does for us."
Gunn also teased some casting direction, along with the possible return of a familiar face from the first film. "I try to have a good balance of different ethnicities in my movies, as much as possible. I'm not going to comment yet on John C. Reilly, but I will say we just exchanged e-mails mere seconds ago. I like John C. Reilly."
Of course, you can't talk Marvel without talking about the Civil War trailer, and Gunn was quizzed about what side he is on. "I guess Iron Man. I like Iron Man. I felt sorry for him in the trailer; didn't you? When he said, 'I thought we were friends.' That made me sad."
Starring Chris Pratt (Star-Lord), Zoe Saldana (Gamora), Dave Bautista (Drax), Vin Diesel (Groot), Sean Gunn (Kraglin), Michael Rooker (Yondu), Karen Gillan (Nebula), with Bradley Cooper (Rocket), and Pom Klementieff (Mantis) Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 2 releases May 5, 2017