Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 Director Hypes Up New Villain Actor's Marvel Debut

By Adam Barnhardt

James Gunn is one of Chukwudi Iwuji's biggest supporters and he isn't afraid to show it. The Guardians of the Galaxy helmer and upcoming actor first worked together on HBO Max's Peacemaker before reuniting on Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which is now in post-production. According to Gunn, Iwuji's performance in the Guardians threequel is nothing short of dynamite.

"Wait till you see Chuk murder it in #GotGVol3 with a truly explosive performance," the filmmaker tweeted Monday.

Iwuji's character has yet to be revealed, though there's increasing speculation he'll play the High Evolutionary, a cosmic villain that completes various experiments on humans and animals alike. Previous set photos of the Guardians 3 set showed actors in human-animal hybrid makeup.

"The production is so big. James and I, we're picking up where we left off," Iwuji previously told Variety of his time with Marvel. "[The character] is very different from Murn. It requires different stuff from me. The way James works with me is pretty much the same, which is he trusts my choices – but at the same time when I give him a choice, he's ready to push it further. He's making me push myself. This character needs an extremism that I didn't need to really tap into in Peacemaker that I'm tapping into here. Our relationship remains the same, one of enjoyment, mutual love and trust."

"It's a lot different. Murn is a very contained guy with bursts of anger and emotion. What I'm dealing with is a completely different guy, who, let's just say, is the extreme opposite of Murn in many ways," the actor added. "It's a different kind of world and universe."

The first two Guardians of the Galaxy movies are now streaming on Disney+ while Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is due to hit theaters May 5, 2023. I Am Groot and the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special have yet to receive release dates.

What members of the Guardians would you like to see spin-off shows of? Let us know your thoughts either in the comments section or by hitting our writer @AdamBarnhardt up on Twitter to chat all things MCU!

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