‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ Actor And James Gunn’s Brother Delivers Passionate Defense Of The Director

Sean Gunn, James Gunn‘s younger brother and a Guardians of the Galaxy actor, issued a long statement on Twitter to defend the director after he was fired Friday afternoon due to old offensive tweets.

“I hope it goes without saying that I love and support my brother James. And I’m quite proud of how kind, generous, and compassionate he is with the people in his life, whether they are friends, family, colleagues, fans, or strangers,” Gunn wrote. “Since he was a kid, it was clear he had a desire (maybe destiny) to be an artist, tell stories, find his voice through comics, films, his band. The struggle to find that voice was sometimes clunky, misguided, or downright stupid, and sometimes wonderful, moving, and hilarious.”

Gunn, who plays Kraglin in the two Guardians of the Galaxy movies and appeared in his brother’s breakout 2010 film Super, said he has seen his brother “transform from the guy who made up things to shock people” to someone who realized his “edge” was not “as useful a tool as he thought it was.”

“In many respects this change in my brother was reflected in the change that the Guardians go through. I’ve heard my brother say many times that when Quill rallies the team with ‘this is our chance to give a s–’–to care–that it’s the pep talk he himself needed to hear,” the Gilmore Girls actor continued.

“It’s part of what made working on the Guardians movies such a rewarding experience for the cast, myself included. We managed to find ourselves involved in a big-budget superhero movie that was, at its core, deeply personal. That’s a gift. And that’s why it’s good.”

Gunn also reminded fans that the tweets are not new. James Gunn did apologize for other offensive jokes in 2012, after news broke that he would be making Guardians for Disney.

“So I guess my hope is that fans continue to watch and appreciate the Guardians movies, not despite the fact that the filmmaker used to be kind of a jacka–, but because of it. They are, after all, movies about discovering your best self,” Gunn wrote. “Working on those movies made my brother a better person, and they made me one too. I’m proud of that. Peace.”

James Gunn was fired on Friday afternoon, after conservative Twitter users dug up old Tweets from 2009 to 2011, in which Gunn made offensive jokes about pedophilia and rape. Gunn posted a long apology before he was fired, and issued another statement after Disney cut ties with him.

“Even these many years later, I take full responsibility for the way I conducted myself then,” James Gunn wrote Friday night. “All I can do now, beyond offering my sincere and heartfelt regret, is to be the best human being I can be: accepting, understanding, committed to equality, and far more thoughtful about my public statements and my obligations to our public discourse. To everyone inside my industry and beyond, I again offer my deepest apologies. Love to all.”

Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3 was expected to hit theaters in 2020, but Disney has not said if the film will be delayed. Marvel Studios did not have a panel at San Diego Comic-Con 2018.

Outside the Guardians movies, Gunn is known for his role as Kirk Gleason on Gilmore Girls, a role he reprised for the Netflix revival Golden Girls: A Year in the Life. He also appeared in episodes of Bunheads, Bones and Glee. Although Kraglin did not appear in Avengers: Infinity War, Gunn reprised his other MCU role – playing Rocket Raccoon’s on-set stand-in.

Photo credit: Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney