'Guardians of the Galaxy's Chris Pratt Explains His Theory on if Groot Is Dead

Is Groot really dead? This is a question fans have been debating since Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn revealed that baby/toddler/teen Groot since in the first film's final act the original's son, meaning that when Groot sacrificed himself he truly did die. Now, Chris Pratt has his own theory about original Groot's fate.

In a recent interview with FOX 5 DC, Pratt was asked what he thought about Gunn's assertion that original Groot was dead, and the Star-Lord actor had a very thoughtful and downright intellectual response, revealing that he thinks that original Groot is both dead and living on in young Groot.

"It's a little like this, how I look at it and of course James would be the guy to ask, but how I've always seen it and I think it falls in line with that is I am a father," Pratt explained. "I have a son. I can be gone one day, but my flesh will still live on. It'll live on through my son. Granted, I share genetics with my son's mom, but with Groot he's like an asexual being so he continues to move on, but it is its own life defined by a birth and a death of its own."

It's a little bit of a mind-blowing concept, that Groot is both the same being, but has completely different experiences. Co-star Zoe Saldana, who plays Gamora, suggested that it's like reincarnation but Pratt elaborated that it's different by using the example of apple trees.

"It's a little bit like an apple tree," he said. "If an apple tree drops a seed and it grows another apple tree technically it is that first apple tree still because it was grown from that apple tree and continues to grow on but it's life is defined by the moment it became a seedling to the moment it gets cut down."

For those who have either never seen the Guardians of the Galaxy films or need a refresher on the whole Groot situation, here's a primer. Groot is a sentient tree-like creature who can walk, talk, and manipulate his body to create a variety of shapes and configurations. He is also very loyal so when, in Guardians of the Galaxy, his friends' lives were in danger during a crash landing, so Groot extended his body to protect them. The act taxed Groot's body well beyond previously seen limits and, as a result, he appeared to die. However, at the end of the film Rocket takes a small piece of Groot and potted it with a growing baby Groot seen in the final moments of the film.

That appearance of baby Groot led many fans to assume that Groot had survived, though Gunn explained last year that that is simply not the case.

"I also mentioned to folks who...kept throwing the Groot revival in my face, that the example doesn't really work because Groot is dead," Gunn wrote on Facebook. "Although I don't necessarily thin it's obvious in Vol. 1, it's important to say that if you exploded and a little glob of you started growing into a baby, I would not assume that baby was you."

Groot's status aside, though, there was one thing that everyone can agree on and that's that Vin Diesel is perfect as Groot.

"Oh, he's Groot," Pratt asserted. "Vin is Groot."

What is your opinion on the Groot situation? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

Avengers: Infinity War hits theaters on April 27.