Peacemaker: James Gunn Didn’t Realize He Cast Former Guardians of the Galaxy Actor

James Gunn is known for working with a lot of the same actors on multiple projects, especially his brother Sean Gunn and Michael Rooker, who are both in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies as well as The Suicide Squad. However, using the same actors in both the MCU and DECU doesn’t always happen on purpose. Last night, Gunn was joined by some of the Peacemaker cast for a Twitter watch party about the fifth episode, “Monkey Dory,” and he revealed that he cast Elizabeth Ludlow as Leota Adebayo’s (Danielle Brooks) wife, Keeya, without realizing she was also in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. 

“Appreciation tweet for @ElizabethLudlow. She played an alien in GotG Vol 2 but she wore makeup so I didn’t recognize her until after I cast her as Keeya,” Gunn shared. In the comments, one fan pointed out which alien Ludlow played in the Marvel sequel. “She was that alien mother running with her child from the expansion, right?” Gunn replied and confrmed. You can check out his post below:

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Another Peacemaker star will soon be making their MCU debut in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and that’s Chukwudi Iwuji. It’s unclear who Iwuji is playing in the upcoming movie, but the actor has opened up about how much he enjoys working with Gunn. In a recent interview with Rotten Tomatoes, Iwuji shared the story of Gunn asking him to be in the third Guardians movie while on the set of Peacemaker. 

“When we were filming that opening dance sequence, we did a take and James came up to me and said, ‘Do you want to come see the take and can I have a word with you in a second?’” Iwuji joked that he thought he was about to be replaced by Chiwetel Ejiofor, but it was just the opposite. Gunn offered him the role in Guardians. The video also features Gunn, who adds, “I can tell you he’s been fantastic and everyone has been blown away by how good he is in Guardians 3.” 

Gunn previously teased that some stars from The Suicide Squad could be popping up in the new Guardians. While the director could just be alluding to their returns (although, he has no plans to resurrect Rooker’s Yondu), fans are hoping there will be some unexpected cameos in the threequel. This wouldn’t be too shocking considering Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 star, Pom Klementieff, made a surprise appearance in The Suicide Squad. 

Peacemaker’s first five episodes are now streaming on HBO Max. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is due to hit theaters on May 5, 2023.