Joss Whedon Asked James Gunn To Change One Thing About Guardians Of The Galaxy

These days, the public may know James Gunn best for his work with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, […]

September 5, 2017, 5:35pm

These days, the public may know James Gunn best for his work with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but the director had a comfortable career long before Groot. Films such as Slither and Super held directorial credits for the visionary before Marvel Studios got a hold of him. After being tasked to take on Guardians of the Galaxy, Gunn recently wrote that he sought advice about the film’s first draft from none other than Joss Whedon. And, apparently, the Avengers director suggested Gunn make a major change to the film.

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In a recently published essay for MovieMaker, Gunn confessed that Whedon had one critique of Guardians of the Galaxy. “When Joss Whedon read the first draft that I had written of Guardians of the Galaxy, he thought it wasn’t “James Gunn” enough. I had actually been holding back. I was afraid that to make a huge commercial movie, I had to make it like other movies,” Gunn wrote.

“Joss said, ‘I like the parts that are ‘James Gunn.’ Just make it more ‘James Gunn.” And that’s what I did. I was glad he gave me that vote of confidence.”

The sound advice gave Gunn the confidence to move forward with Guardians of the Galaxy, and the MCU has only benefitted from the director’s unique tone. Since Gunn signed onto the franchise, Marvel has continued to seek out other unorthodox directors for its films. Most recently, the studio brought in Taika Waititi to helm Thor: Ragnarok. The indie director found critical success with his feature Hunt for the Wilderpeople back in 2016, but fans were uncertain if Waititi’s quirky humor would suit Odin’s son. However, that fear soon dissipated when Marvel Studios finally released the first trailer for Thor: Ragnarok.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 currently has a 4.24 out of 5 ComicBook.com user anticipation rating, making it the third most anticipated upcoming comic book movie among ComicBook.com readers. Let us know how excited you are for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 by giving it your own ComicBook.com User Anticipation Rating below.

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 and stars Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Michael Rooker, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Elizabeth Debicki, Chris Sullivan, Sean Gunn, Sylvester Stallone and Kurt Russell.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 opens in theaters on May 5, 2017.