James Gunn

Warning: Spoilers(?) follow.

This past weekend’s Comic-Con saw the big reveal that Kurt Russell is playing Ego the Living Planet, the father of Star-Lord.

Apparently some fans are upset that James Gunn and Marvel announced the news as they consider it a big spoiler.

Now James Gunn has taken to Facebook to explain why they announced the news, and also why the revelation is not that big of a spoiler.

For comparison, the Guardians of the Galaxy 2 story is not like Empire Strikes Back with Darth Vader telling Luke Skywalker, “I am your father,” it’s that – per Gunn’s words below –  “Ego [is] the emotional center” of the film. Gunn previously said in a video posted to Facebook that Guardians of the Galaxy 2 is more about family, how Ego felt lonely, etc. 

Gunn also says that Kurt Russell/Ego is a big part of the movie, so it would be near impossible to not reveal the role.

Personally, I don’t mind the reveal because now we don’t have to focus on who exactly Star-Lord’s father is, but other questions surrounding the character: How did Ego achieve human form? Why did Ego achieve human form? How will Star-Lord (and the rest of the Guardians) react to the news? Is Ego even a good guy? Does Ego have powers (in human form)? Could someone or something be after Ego because of something he did as the Livng Planet, and now that he is in human form, he’s more vulnerable? Does Ego even have a planet form?

You can read what Gunn had to say below.

“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” has a May 5, 2017 release starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Michael Rooker and Sean Gunn. New cast members include Pom Klementieff as Mantis, Elizabeth Debicki as Ayesha, Chris Sullivan as Taserface and Kurt Russell as Ego the Living Planet.

Synopsis:

Set to the all-new sonic backdrop of Awesome Mixtape #2, “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” continues the team’s adventures as they unravel the mystery of Peter Quill’s true parentage.

Via Facebook:

WHY THE IDENTITY OF STAR-LORD’S FATHER ISN’T A SPOILER.

Don’t read any further if you don’t want to know who he is.

Also you might want to stay off the internet until May and definitely unfollow me and don’t watch our trailers or other ads…

Anyway, people have been particularly excited, confused, and supportive of keeping Marvel Cosmic truly cosmic with the reveal of Peter Quill’s father’s identity. However, there have been a minority of folks who have questioned, and even been angry, that I and Marvel would reveal something so major months before the film comes out.

I get it. If we lived in a perfect world, I wouldn’t tell you ANYTHING before you walked in to see Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. I wouldn’t tell you Groot was now Baby Groot, I wouldn’t tell you Mantis was in the movie, I wouldn’t say that Ayesha and Taserface are our antagonists, that Yondu and Nebula have incredibly important roles in the film, nor would I tell you that Quill’s father is Ego the Living Planet.

However, the world is imperfect.

Firstly, we have to advertise our film. And it will be impossible to show you very much of Vol. 2 since Ego is very much a part of all of it. We just don’t have a way around it.

Secondly, there are journalists online who love giving you scoops about characters and plot twists in upcoming films. Ego is such a big part of the movie, this was going to come out soon, as much as we’ve tried to hide it (when our online press day happened on set, Kurt Russell sat in a chair that read “J’son,” and all of our script pages and artwork featuring him used the same name). Frankly, I would rather be in control of the announcement myself than have it come out on SpoilersRUs.com in a few weeks.

That said, knowing who Quill’s father is will not diminish your enjoyment of the film in any way. The story is not built to be a shocking twist in the same way Luke’s father was Darth, Soylent Green was people, Rosebud was a sled, or that that pretty woman from Crying Game had a penis (I guess I should have said spoilers before all that). Ego the emotional center of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 from the beginning to the end, and is not a twist.

And believe me – there are many, many more surprises we still have in store for you from Vol. 2 – hopefully the biggest of which is how much you’ll love the movie itself. Because, to me, that’s the only twist that matters.

james

The Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 panel at Comic-Con saw The Ravagers take stage and harass James Gunn and the cast of the movie (watch the video here).

Now Gunn has taken to Instagram to reveal the names of The Ravagers.

“Ravagers R Us, starting at the top left, around in a circle: Brahl, Oblo, Scrote, Narblik, Gef the Ravager, Kraglin, Wretch, Half-Nut, Taserface,” Gunn posted.

Gunn also discussed the Ravagers on Facebook and named the actors.

“Thank you,” Gunn responded to a fan mentioning that the Ravagers coming up on stage at Comic-Con was pure genius. “That was a lot of fun to have those guys. It was kind of like a wrestling match at the beginning with the Ravagers coming up and heckling us,” Gunn laughed. “We had a lot of new roles revealed. We had Steven Blackheart as Brahl. Of course everyone knows my brother Sean Gunn plays Kraglin and is an important part. We had Chris Sullivan as Taserface. We had Evan Jones as Wretch. Jimmy Urine as Half-Nut. Joe Fria, who you might recognize from a PG Porn episode, who plays Oblo. So really all those guys that are Ravagers are all my good friends, and it was a great way to have those guys on set with me all the time hanging out. We had a great time shooting those scenes, and they’re great in the movie. Steve Agee as Gef the Ravager is particularly hilarious. We had a great time doing that.”

“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” has a May 5, 2017 release starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Michael Rooker and Sean Gunn. New cast members include Pom Klementieff, Elizabeth Debicki, Chris Sullivan and Kurt Russell.

Not sure where James Gunn is going with this one, but at least he isn’t following the crap Bendis did.

Saturday at Comic-Con saw James Gunn reveal that Kurt Russell is indeed playing the father to Star-Lord in Guardians of the Galaxy 2 — but Kurt Russell is not playing Jason of Spartax — Russell is playing Ego (as in The Living Planet).

I’ve been traversing the internet and saw a bit of fan outrage on the matter as it differs a lot from the comics, but guess what? So did the first movie. I’ve pretty much come to accept that what Gunn is doing is not an adaptation at all of the Abnett and Lanning’s 2008 Guardians of the Galaxy or any of the Marvel comics.

That said, Gunn did offer a bit about Ego at the SDCC:

This is the biggie, I guess. And, yes, as many people guessed, or assumed, Kurt Russell is playing Peter Quill’s father. And Peter Quill’s father is (as almost no one has guessed)…

EGO.

Known in the comics as Ego the Living Planet.

Yeah, his dad is a planet. Sort of. It will all be explained in the film..

But to me, this is the absolute center of Vol. 2, and one of the reasons I’ve been so excited about it. When Marvel first approached me with the first movie, I thought, “Wait a second? A talking raccoon? Isn’t that a rather ridiculous idea to base a movie around?”

It was then that I took a step back and asked myself: Okay, if a raccoon could talk, and shoot a machine gun, how could that be? And answering that question ended up being the entire foundation of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1. There was a sadness in the answer. Rocket was an animal experimented upon, torn apart and put back together, without compassion. He was the only being of his type, had never known any hint of kindness, and was utterly and completely alone until he met his fellow Guardians. And, one of them in particular – Groot – thought it was worth sacrificing his life for his sake. This melancholy and beautiful undercurrent helped to ground the character for me. He had far more in common with Frankenstein’s monster than he did Bugs Bunny. And I related to him, greatly, and I hoped other folks who felt like outsiders would as well.

Ego seemed, in many ways, like an even more ridiculous character. But I asked myself, if a planet was alive, how could that be? And how could it father a child?

The answers to those questions took me to a far deeper place that I expected. I don’t want to give away too many answers at this time. But what Nova Prime said about Peter’s father at the end of Vol. 1 is certainly true – he is something ancient and unknown. And, as we will discover, being a cosmic being, alone for eons, is perhaps even more lonely than being the universe’s sole talking raccoon.

I can’t wait for you guys to see Kurt Russell bring this character to life onscreen. It has been a rapturous experience creating Ego with him. We have both pushed ourselves as far as we can go in making him real, and grounded, and emotionally centered.

We can speculate based on what Gunn had to say that at some point, the actual Ego The Living Planet decided to take human form and met Star-Lord’s mother, and the two had a relationship, which is how we got Peter Quill. It’s also possible at some point we may see the actual comic version of Ego, which would be a hoot on screen.

Marvel also revealed video of Kurt Russell’s Ego costume from the movie at Comic-Con:

“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” has a May 5, 2017 release starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Michael Rooker and Sean Gunn. New cast members include Pom Klementieff, Elizabeth Debicki, Chris Sullivan and Kurt Russell.

Ahead of next week’s Comic-Con, Marvel Studios and James Gunn have revealed a piece of Guardians of the Galaxy 2 concept art by artist Andy Park.

The image features members of the Guardians of the Galaxy including a first look at Mantis, played by Pom Klementieff. We also see the return of Groot, though per the image apparently as a sprung (i.e. baby Groot).

James Gunn also offered on Facebook that it remains to be seen whether or not Karen Gillan’s Nebula is a member of the Guardians of the Galaxy, but did confirm Michael Rooker’s Yondu has joined the squad.

“Yondu for sure. With Nebula, well, you never know what’s up with that one,” Gunn said.

Guardians of the Galxy 2 executive producer Jonathan Schwartz also offered the following to EW.com about Mantis and Groot:

“She has never really experienced social interaction,” Schwartz aid. “Everything she learns about dealing with people, she learns from the Guardians of the Galaxy, which is a very weird group to learn your social intricacies from.

“He doesn’t have the wisdom and experience of that Groot,” Schwartz said. “He’s a younger Groot and a more rambunctious Groot. The question is, is he the same Groot, just smaller? Or is he a different Groot that’s sprung up from the seed of the first Groot?”

James Gunn and the cast of the Guardians of the Galaxy 2 will also be at Comic-Con, with a teaser being released exclusive to the SDCC.

“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” has a May 5, 2017 release starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Michael Rooker and Sean Gunn. New cast members include Pom Klementieff, Elizabeth Debicki, Chris Sullivan and Kurt Russell.

Good news for fans of the Marvel Comics’ Mantis as it looks as if the character will retain her classic look in the Guardians of the Galaxy 2 movie.

James Gunn shared a storyboard featuring Mantis where her antennae can be seen.

Update: Gunn offered the following on Facebook, which may hint the character look may be different (or not):

It’s already ‪#‎WhatWeShotWednesday‬. We’ve had an amazing week on‪#‎GotGVol2‬ – in fact I’d say the past two weeks may have been some of the most fruitful of my life. @pomin8r and Kurt Russell have been bringing it hard, and our DP Henry Braham has been killing it as well. It’s wonderful having a great cast and crew, all one hundred percent committed to the cause. Today we shot this little piece. A certain new character may be somewhat obvious, the others not quite so much (and, I should add, please don’t mistake my storyboard character shorthand for actual character design – another character in the film is presented throughout with a stovetop hat just so I know who he is!) 

In the popular Abnett and Lanning Guardians of the Galaxy comics that inspired the movie, Mantis has telepathic and precognitive abilities. Star-Lord also used Mantis psy skills to form the team.

Pom Klementieff is playing Mantis in the film.

“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” has a May 5, 2017 release starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Michael Rooker and Sean Gunn. New cast members include Pom Klementieff, Elizabeth Debicki, Chris Sullivan and Kurt Russell.

While filming Guardians of the Galaxy 2 in Atlanta, director James Gunn was presented with a gift in the form of a deleted scene image involving Groot from the first movie.

Dave Bautista as Drax is also featured in the scene.

Gunn offered on Facebook:

Groot’s Last Supper. This was a shot from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1 that got cut from the movie and was never finished. The great artists over at Framestore finished a frame and just gave it to me as a gift. Thanks, guys! — with Dave Bautista (Batista).

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James Gunn posted a new behind-the-scenes image from Guardians of the Galaxy 2 offering insights as to how the movie-making process gets done.

The pic features script supervisor Marty Kitrosser who is responsible for all the continuity from scene to scene.

“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” has a May 5, 2017 release starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Michael Rooker and Sean Gunn. New cast members include Pom Klementieff, Elizabeth Debicki, Chris Sullivan and Kurt Russell.

Behind the scenes on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. There are a lot of folks who are as responsible for the outcome of a film as the actors or department heads. Here I am with Marty Kitrosser, our script supervisor. The script supervisor – or ‘scriptie’ – is an important role on a film. They make sure continuity matches throughout the film – if your lead actress’s hair is sticking up in the first shot, it’s up to them to remind us to have it sticking up in the second. Sounds simple, right? No. There are hundreds of elements in every scene they need to keep an eye on. They’re also responsible for giving notes to the editor (I tell Marty which takes I want to use and which ones I don’t) and for keeping track of what screen direction actors should be looking. Also important is that, as a director, a script supervisor is by your side for the entire movie. So you have to make sure you won’t want to kill him or her by the end.

Marty is an awesome dude and fun to hang with, so that works out for me. He’s had a long career, script supervised all of Tarantino’s films, script supervised the first Friday the 13th and wrote Friday the 13th Part III. As someone who loves the behind-the-scenes history of film, I’m constantly grilling him on his experiences.

Oh yeah – and Happy Leap Year.

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Following Karen Gillan teasing Nebula, now director James Gunn has teased Star-Lord and the Ravagers for Guardians of the Galaxy 2.

Gunn posted the following image on Facebook which is the insigina/logo of the space pirate group, the Ravagers, of which Star-Lord belongs/ed to as well as Yondu and Gunn’s brother, Sean Gunn, Kraglin.

Similar to Nebula, it’s also been said Yondu joins the Guardians of the Galaxy team this time around.

“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” has a May 5, 2017 release also starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Michael Rooker and Sean Gunn. New cast members include Pom Klementieff, Elizabeth Debicki, Chris Sullivan and Kurt Russell.

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Marvel and James Gunn have announced that filming has started on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 as well as announced the cast.

Info:

Marvel Studios has begun principal photography at Pinewood Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, on Marvel’s “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2,” which is slated to hit U.S. theaters on May 5, 2017. The production will shoot at Atlanta’s Pinewood Studios. 

“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” is written and directed by James Gunn (“Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Slither”). The film marks the return of the original Guardians, including Chris Pratt (“Jurassic World,” “Guardians of the Galaxy”) as Peter Quill/Star-Lord; Zoe Saldana (“Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Star Trek Into Darkness”) as Gamora; Dave Bautista (“Spectre,” “Guardians of the Galaxy”) as Drax; Vin Diesel (“Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Furious 7”) as the voice of Groot; Bradley Cooper (“Joy,” “American Sniper”) as the voice of Rocket; Michael Rooker (“Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Jumper”) as Yondu; Karen Gillan (“Guardians of the Galaxy,” “The Big Short”) as Nebula; and Sean Gunn (“Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Gilmore Girls”) as Kraglin. New cast members include Pom Klementieff (“Oldboy”), Elizabeth Debicki (“The Great Gatsby,” “Everest”), Chris Sullivan (“The Knick,” “The Drop”) and Kurt Russell (“The Hateful Eight,” “Furious 7”). 

Set to the all-new sonic backdrop of Awesome Mixtape #2, “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” continues the team’s adventures as they unravel the mystery of Peter Quill’s true parentage. 

“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” is produced by Marvel Studios’ president, Kevin Feige, with Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Jonathan Schwartz, Nik Korda and Stan Lee serving as executive producers. 

Director James Gunn’s creative team also includes director of photography Henry Braham (“The Legend of Tarzan,” “The Golden Compass”); production designer Scott Chambliss (“Star Trek,” “Tomorrowland”); editors Fred Raskin (“The Hateful Eight,” “Guardians of the Galaxy”) and Craig Wood (“Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End”); composer Tyler Bates (“Guardians of the Galaxy,” “John Wick”); three time Oscar®-nominated costume designer Judianna Makovsky (“Captain America: Civil War,” “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”); Oscar®-nominated visual effects supervisor Chris Townsend (“Avengers: Age of Ultron,” “Iron Man 3”); stunt coordinator Tommy Harper (“Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales,” “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” ); co-producer / first assistant director Lars Winther (“Captain America: Civil War,” “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”); and six-time Oscar® nominee, special effects supervisor Dan Sudick (“Captain America: Civil War,”  “The Avengers”).

The original “Guardians of the Galaxy” was a hit with critics and audiences alike, earning over $770 million at the worldwide box-office, and holds the record as the most successful debut film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In addition, the film’s soundtrack went platinum and was nominated for a Grammy®. 

Based on the Marvel comic characters first published in 1969, “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 ” continues the lineage of epic big-screen adventures chronicled in “Iron Man,” “The Incredible Hulk,” “Iron Man 2,” “Thor,” “Captain America: The First Avenger,” “The Avengers,” “Iron Man 3,” “Thor: The Dark World,” “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “Guardians of the Galaxy,” “Avengers: Age of Ultron,” “Ant-Man,” and the upcoming release schedule, which includes “Captain America: Civil War” on May 6, 2016; “Doctor Strange,” November 4, 2016; “Spider-Man,” July 7, 2017; and “Thor: Ragnarok” on November 3, 2017. 

Marvel Studios continued its unprecedented success in 2015 with the release of “Avengers: Age of Ultron.” At the time of release, the film recorded the second biggest opening weekend of all time with a $191.3 million box office. It has also been the #1 release in every country where it has opened and has grossed over $1.4 billion in global box office. The studio also successfully launched another franchise with “Ant-Man,” starring Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas and Evangeline Lilly. The film opened #1 at the box office on July 17 and went on to gross more than $519 million at the worldwide box office. The film propelled the Marvel brands’ #1 domestic box-office opening streak to a record-breaking 12 consecutive films.

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It’s official.

James Gunn has started filming Guardians of the Galaxy 2.

Gunn took to Facebook to post the following pic of a Guardians of the Galaxy 2 director’s chair.

“To quote the great poet David Coverdale, Here I Go Again.” Gunn added to the post.

Plot details are not known about Guardians of the Galaxy 2, but Gunn recently offered in a Q&A the sequel won’t be about the Infinity Stones.

“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” has a May 5, 2017 release starring Chris Pratt as Star-Lord, Zoe Salana as Gamora, Dave Bautista as Drax, with Vin Diesel as the voice of Groot, Bradley Cooper as the voice of Rocket Racoon, Michael Rooker as Yondu and Karen Gillan as Nebula.

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With the Guardians of the Galaxy sequel due to start filming any day now, it’s learned a post-credit scene for the movie is already planned out.

James Gunn answered questions on Twitter confirming the Guardians of the Galaxy 2 post-credit scene is written.

A fan asked: “JamesGunn is the post-credit scene already scripted or will you think about it later?”

“Scripted,” Gunn replied.

The first Guardians of the Galaxy movie featured a post-credit scene with Howard The Duck.  Check it out below.

Maybe the Guardians of the Galaxy 2 post-credit scene will be related somehow to Avengers: Infinity War. Or better yet, how about Richard Rider Nova?

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 has a May 5, 2017 release.