‘Ant-Man’ Director Peyton Reed Welcomes James Gunn Back to Marvel

Ant-Man director Peyton Reed welcomed Guardians of the Galaxy writer-director James Gunn back to [...]

By Cameron Bonomolo

Ant-Man director Peyton Reed welcomed Guardians of the Galaxy writer-director James Gunn back to the Marvel Cinematic Universe after the filmmaker was fired, and then rehired, by studio Disney. Gunn, who was officially reinstated as director on the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 on Friday, has since earned sentiments of support from fellow Marvel directors Taika Waititi (Thor: Ragnarok) and Scott Derrickson (Doctor Strange).

"I am tremendously grateful to every person out there who has supported me over the past few months," Gunn tweeted Friday. "I am always learning and will continue to work at being the best human being I can be. I deeply appreciate Disney's decision and I am excited to continue making films that investigate the ties of love that bind us all. I have been, and continue to be incredibly humbled by your love and support. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. Love to you all."

Gunn will first write and direct The Suicide Squad for Warner Bros.' DC Extended Universe franchise before returning to Guardians, concluding the trilogy he launched in 2014 under producer Kevin Feige. The situation between the two studios was "all handled incredibly elegantly, and everybody knows on both sides that Suicide Squad is the priority today and he'll finish that movie and then everybody knows that his next film will be Guardians," DC producer Peter Safran told Jo Blo. "It's the best of all possible both worlds, I think, for fans and for James Gunn himself."

According to a Friday report from The Hollywood Reporter, Disney never sought meetings with replacement directors after Gunn's widely publicized firing in July. Instead, the studio reportedly quietly negotiated with Gunn behind-the-scenes.

Deadline, in its own report, claimed Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn — who fired Gunn and condemned the "indefensible" tweets published by the filmmaker — was swayed to reverse course on his decision by Gunn's public apology and his graceful handling of the ensuing fallout. Gunn quickly drew support from his Guardians cast — most notably Drax star Dave Bautista — who issued a signed joint statement declaring their "full support" for the ousted director.

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