Each chapter in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has offered audiences various thematic narratives, with one of the more obvious themes in the Guardians of the Galaxy films being about choosing our families and developing strong emotional connections, no matter what has happened in our pasts. Elaborating on that fact further, director James Gunn confirmed that the films specifically explore the themes of adults who were abused as children uniting together with fellow survivors.
When a fan linked Gunn to a piece about the thematic the cycles of abuse in his films, Gunn echoed, “Thanks. Guardians of the Galaxy is, to me, more than anything else, about adults who were abused as children starting to heal, uneasily and in fits and starts, by building relationships with other adults who were abused as children.”
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In a follow-up tweet, Gunn also confirmed that this would be a similar theme in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 as well.
The most obvious example of this abuse is seen in Gamora, who regularly explains the torture that Thanos put her through on her journey to becoming an intergalactic assassin. Not only did she suffer direct abuse, but was also regularly thrown into combat with Nebula, with Thanos subjecting Nebula to painful “upgrades” every time she was bested in combat.
Similar to Nebula’s upgrades, Rocket was also regularly subjected to physical pain when he was young, despite these scientific experiments not being carried out by his own family.
Gunn went on to point out that, while it wasn’t as regularly referenced, Peter Quill was dealt a pretty hefty amount of abuse by the Ravagers and Yondu while growing up, adding to the emotional abuse of the abandonment of his father.
While Quill’s conflicts with his real father resulted in major altercations in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, the film offered some resolution between Quill and his surrogate father Yondu. Gunn confirmed that the scene between the two was his favorite in the whole movie.
“There were a few of them,” Gunn revealed last year during a Facebook Live Q&A, “but I’d say that the final scene in space – not giving away too many spoilers – between Michael Rooker and Chris Pratt. Yondu and Peter Quill. Their final scene together was probably my favorite scene to film.”
The Guardians of the Galaxy will next be seen in Avengers: Infinity War, which hits theaters on April 27th.
Black Panther is now in theaters. Other upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe movies include Ant-Man and the Wasp on July 6th, Captain Marvel on March 8, 2019, the fourth Avengers movie on May 3, 2019, the sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming on July 5, 2019, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 in 2020.
Which member of the Guardians of the Galaxy do you most connect with? Let us know in the comments!
