GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3 Will Use James Gunn's Script, But His Influence Likely Won't Be Felt In Phase 4
Kevin Feige has reaffirmed Chris Pratt's comments about Marvel still using James Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 script, but it looks like his influence won't necessarily resonate through Phase 4.
Based on the information available, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 was initially expected to be one of Phase 4's first titles and likely would've hit theaters on May 1, 2020; however, after Disney terminated James Gunn's contract last summer, all those plans were thrown out the window and the status of Guardians 3 was left up in the air as the film no longer had a director.
Fortunately, the film did have a completed script from Gunn, but rushing a film into production isn't Marvel Studios' M.O., so the project has been essentially stuck in development hell for the past few months as producers work on finding a director to tackle the threequel.
Considering the circumstances of Gunn's controversial departure, it's been a hot button topic whether or not the studio would still utilize his script or if they'd start anew. Well, thankfully, Chris Pratt (Peter Quill/Star-Lord) did essentially confirm a few weeks ago that the studio did have plans to still use Gunn's screenplay, and now, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has weighed in, reaffirming Pratt's comments and adding that Gunn's influence will still very much be felt in GOTG 3.
While that's a promising update, Feige also tells CinemaBlend that while his influence will be felt in Guardians 3, it doesn't necessarily mean his voice will resonate throughout the rest of Phase 4 as the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues to introduce new cosmic entities.
"His influence was Guardians. It was Guardians. It was his input on Guardians and the Avengers films, as you've seen in Infinity War, and on the Guardians 3 script, which we’re still using. So you'll see that influence. I think online, sort of the notion of ‘architect across multiple cosmic things’ was slightly blown out of proportion."