Guardians of the Galaxy fans who have seen the trailers and other promotional materials for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 will notice that Groot has gone through some changes.
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At the end of Guardians of the Galaxy, Groot sacrificed himself to protect his friends. He survived as a tiny, sapling “baby Groot.” Groot hasn’t regained his full stature yet, but as of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, he’s at least large enough to leave his pot and walk on his own two feet.
Despite his decreased physical stature, director James Gunn feels like Groot is a more fully-formed character in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.
“A lot of times on the first movie we were like ‘are we even putting Groot in this movie?’ Because Sean [Gunn] plays Rocket on set, and he’s so present as Rocket that you’re very aware of Rocket as a character,” Gunn explains. “The guy playing Groot was a stand-in on the last movie and so we just kind of always forgot he was there. He doesn’t talk very much, so you’re doing all these scenes and when we have the scenes in the movie where they turn to Groot and Groot’s like, ‘Why are you forgetting me?’ That’s really what we felt like while we were shooting the first film.
“I think also, the whole personality of Groot and who he was, it was there on the page and then you forget about it while you were shooting the first movie,” Gunn continues. “But now everyone knows Groot so well that we have much larger awareness, me and the cast, of a baby Groot being there at all times. And him being one of the members in the scene…I think he’s a better-written character than the first Groot in some ways. Not that he was poorly written at all, but I think he’s just more complete character.”
Set to the backdrop of ‘Awesome Mixtape #2,’ Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 continues the team’s adventures as they traverse the outer reaches of the cosmos. The Guardians must fight to keep their newfound family together as they unravel the mysteries of Peter Quill’s true parentage. Old foes become new allies and fan-favorite characters from the classic comics will come to our heroes’ aid as the Marvel cinematic universe continues to expand.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is written and directed by James Gunn (Slither). The film marks the return of the original Guardians, including Chris Pratt (Jurassic World) as Peter Quill/Star-Lord; Zoe Saldana (Star Trek Into Darkness) as Gamora; Dave Bautista (Spectre) as Drax; Vin Diesel (Furious 7) as the voice of Groot; Bradley Cooper (American Sniper) as the voice of Rocket; Michael Rooker (Jumper) as Yondu; Karen Gillan (The Big Short) as Nebula; and Sean Gunn (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, The Thing).
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is scheduled to hit theaters on May 5, 2017.
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