Avengers: Endgame Cut a Touching Tribute to Groot From Rocket

There was a lot going on in Avengers: Endgame. A lot of characters, a lot of storylines, a lot of things to tie up after a decade of movies and more than 20 films leading up to this one, conclusive narrative. And of course, when you have that much content that has to be fitted into a single film — even a long one that’s part two of an even-longer two-parter — some things are bound to get cut, even if they are pretty cool. Or, in this case, maybe “some things are bound to get pruned” is a bit more appropriate, because we’re here to talk about Groot.

In the new Avengers: Endgame – The Art of the Movie, concept artist Jackson Sze shared some early images for how Rocket Raccoon might have appeared in the flm. And while he admits that the idea did not get very long, an early notion would have had Rocket wearing a bracelet made up from twigs that Groot had left behind during his final battle in Avengers: Infinity War.

“I did a really subtle thing where on Rocket’s arm I did a tiny Groot bracelet just for Rocket to remember him by — not that he’s ever going to forget,” Sze says. “I know that Groot turned into ash after Infinity War, but I imagined that he might have left some twigs around. It was just something that Rocket wears. It was a touch that didn’t get very far.”

The young Groot is back now, but for the five years in between Infinity War and Endgame, he would have been the second Groot that Rocket had lost in a not-very-long stretch of time — and the heartbreak of the first loss was likely still fresh even by the time the second one happened.

Avengers: Endgame is now available wherever movies are sold and to stream on Disney+. Avengers: Endgame – The Art of the Movie is out now, and can be ordered here.

Other upcoming Marvel Studios projects include Black Widow on May 1, 2020, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier in Fall 2020, The Eternals on November 6, 2020, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings on February 12, 2021, WandaVision in Spring 2021, Loki in Spring 2021, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness on May 7, 2021, Spider-Man 3 on July 16, 2021, What If…? in Summer 2021, Hawkeye in Fall 2021, and Thor: Love and Thunder on November 5, 2021, and Black Panther 2 on May 6, 2022. Disney+ series without release dates include Ms. Marvel, Moon Knight, and She-Hulk. Ant-Man 3 and Blade are also without theatrical release dates.