Why Thanos Is Not In Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2

02/06/2017 12:00 pm EST

The big bad of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is coming ever closer to open conflict with the Avengers and other Marvel Studios heroes.

Thanos will wage war on Earth in Avengers: Infinity War in 2018, but first his "daughters," Gamora (Zoe Saldana) and Nebula (Karen Gillan) will return for more cosmic adventure in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. In the case of both Gamora and Nebula, it has been teased that audiences will learn more about their relationship with their "father." If that is the case, then why not include Thanos in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 as well?

"First of all, it's about two sisters," director James Gunn clarified during an on-set interview. "It's not about the sisters and their father. It's about two sisters and what were the sisters' problems with each other. And yeah, some of those things were caused by being raised by the ultimate abusive father, but it really isn't about Thanos, and frankly I just wasn't inspired to put him in the movie.

"I kind of go with my gut on these things and it just wasn't what I wanted to do," Gunn continued explaining. "It wasn't the most fun part of the movie last time for me, and I just didn't really want to do it this time. And again, the relationship with Thanos has nothing to do with it. It's not about their relationship with Thanos. It's about their relationship to each other. That was interesting to me and I thought that was important to our story, and that was important to our characters. There's a lot of stuff that happened in the past that affects our characters presently."

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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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