Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind Features a Nova Easter Egg

Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind opened its doors to some members of the press and a batch of influencers to get ready for its launch later this month. This meant a couple hundred content creators and reporters had the World of Xandar to themselves, experiencing everything the Imagineers cooked up while bring a portion of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to Disney World’s EPCOT park. Marvel fans are going to love the new indoor coaster which is loaded with Easter eggs and just enough thrills for all. Among those Easter eggs is a key word which should get some Marvel fans riled up: “Worldmind.”

After entering the queue for Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, park guests enter into a space referred to as the Galaxarium. A planetarium-like space offers projections of the galaxy and other Marvel references on the curved ceiling, with music and other ambient noises setting the tone for the experience. At one point, a voice chimes in. “I am Worldmind, the Xandarian supercomputer,” the voice explains. “My purpose is to preserve the knowledge and history of Xandar. Your scholar, Peter Quill, has been teaching me about your world. He has suggested that if I want to start my journey of understanding the complex and intricate Terran mind, I should look no further than the sage words of a great Terran classic, ‘Hooked on a Feeling.’”

This, of course, references the popular song used in the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie but also calls out a major character from the pages of Marvel Comics. The Marvel Cinematic Universe’s movies and shows have not made mention of the Xandarian Worldmind. Cosmic Rewind is loosely tied to the MCU, featuring differences like Groot having grown back into his fully formed self from the first Guardians movie after the Xander-Kree battle where he sacrificed himself. However, given the collaboration with Marvel Studios and filmmakers like Kevin Feige and James Gunn, it is interesting to hear the Worldmind concept be introduced.

On the pages of Marvel Comics, the Worldmind is just as described in Cosmic Rewind’s queue line. However, it becomes important when Xandar is destroyed. The entire power of the Nova CORPS and the Xandarian Worldmind are bestowed upon the Last Centurion, Richard Rider. Richard Rider becomes the Marvel hero known as Nova, with the Worldmind constantly advising him about each decision like who he can or cannot save, for example. Richard Rider does not always listen to the Worldmind, with the Worldmind’s top priority being the preservation of Xandar’s history which requires the survival of Richard Rider.

Richard Rider has not yet been introduced in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, though the first step of his origin story (the destruction of Xandar) was revealed verbally in Avengers: Infinity War. The character was cut from a draft of 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy and almost had a key role in 2018’s Avengers: Infinity War. Recent reports indicate Marvel Studios is working on a project centered around Nova, though which version of the character remains to be revealed as there have been multiple characters operating with the Nova identity and headlined their own comics.

Are you hoping to see Nova in the Marvel Cinematic Universe? Share your thoughts in the comment section! Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind opens up at Disney’s EPCOT park on May 27.