Following Disney having fired James Gunn last month over resurfaced tweets joking about rape and pedophilia, it’s now reported that Guardians of the Galaxy 3 is on hold.
It’s said that the film was supposed to start pre-production in the Fall, but Marvel has told the small crew they have been dismissed and can look for new work.
Guardians of the Galaxy 3 was originally going to start filming February 2019 and get released some time in 2020.
However, Disney never gave the film an official release date, so it’s not like Guardians of the Galaxy 3 is canceled, just that the filming has been pushed back and placed on a temporary hold until things get sorted out, which includes a new director and script.
Guardians of the Galaxy 3
Regarding a new director, apparently Thor: Ragnarok‘s Taika Waititi – a fan-favorite choice to replace Gunn – had taken a meeting with Marvel Studios recently, but it’s not known what for.
Prior to getting fired, James Gunn did hand in the script for Guardians of the Galaxy 3, but it’s thought with a new director coming on board, that the script may need to get tweaked, which could add to the delay.
Interestingly enough, a rumor hit this past week offering Marvel is moving ahead with Doctor Strange 2 in the Spring, which has fueled speculation that it is replacing Guardians of the Galaxy 3 on Marvel’s release schedule. The report mentioned that Benedict Cumberbatch got a huge raise, and it’s guessed Benedict Cumberbatch and Doctor Strange will take on the “Robert Downey Jr. and Iron Man” stature for Marvel’s Phase 4 plans, which have been said to be going cosmic in a big way.
James Gunn
Getting back to James Gunn, it has been said he recently had a meeting with Disney, but that it didn’t change things, meaning Gunn is definitely gone, and that Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige supports the decision.
The Guardians cast also came out in support of their director and released a lengthy statement asking Gunn to be rehired, with it reported Disney realized the cast stopped short of quitting; however, it was noted they are contractually obligated to do Guardians of the Galaxy 3, otherwise they could face legal repercussions.
Dave Bautista, who has been the most vocal of the cast, blasted Disney for firing James Gunn and threatened to quit as he said they could recast the character of Drax if Gunn’s script isn’t used for the third movie in the franchise. Bautista also slammed the “cyber nazis” responsible for getting Gunn fired.
James Gunn was fired over tweets that resurfaced from ten years ago in response to his political stance on Twitter, as right-wing bloggers and websites dug up Gunn’s old tweets and blog posts.
Gunn has since apologized for his tweets from years ago and has done so many times since then:
“My words of nearly a decade ago were, at the time, totally failed and unfortunate efforts to be provocative. I have regretted them for many years since — not just because they were stupid, not at all funny, wildly insensitive, and certainly not provocative like I had hoped, but also because they don’t reflect the person I am today or have been for some time.”
“Regardless of how much time has passed, I understand and accept the business decisions taken today. Even these many years later, I take full responsibility for the way I conducted myself then. All I can do now, beyond offering my sincere and heartfelt regret, is to be the best human being I can be: accepting, understanding, committed to equality, and far more thoughtful about my public statements and my obligations to our public discourse. To everyone inside my industry and beyond, I again offer my deepest apologies. Love to all.”
