No Nova For Guardians Of The Galaxy 2

It looks like James Gunn’s Guardians of The Galaxy is only big enough for one Earth-bound hero.

While many were hopeful that Nova, another cosmic Marvel favorite, would debut in Gunn’s 2017 sequel, SlashFilm notes  that the director wants to keep his spotlight solely on Peter Quill.

When asked if he planned to include Nova in Guardians of the Galaxy 2 by a Facebook fan, Gunn responded:

“I don’t want Nova right now because I think Quill being the only earthling is important. That serves the entire movie going audience and not just the handful of Nova fans… I have nothing against Nova in future movies, but it doesn’t serve the movie right this moment.”

While the Earth bound Nova, Rich Rider (or his current successor, Sam Alexander) may not appear in Guardians 2, his Nova Corp. brethren were heavily featured in this year’s Guardians of the Galaxy. As the sworn protectors of the planet Xandar, the Novas appeared as a cosmic police unit. With a presence throughout the entire galaxy, it’s likely that the Corps. will return in some supportive fashion in Guardians of the Galaxy 2.

That’s not to say Marvel won’t focus on a particular Nova Corp. member in the future. We wouldn’t see anything until after Marvel’s Phase Three, but there’s plenty of source material to support a solo Nova feature. In fact, an individual Nova was rumored to be involved in the first Guardians of the Galaxy film, but was reportedly cut early in the film’s planning. With the sequel still a ways off however, we’ll see if Gunn will actually stick to his guns.

Guardians of the Galaxy 2 hits theaters on May 5, 2017.