James Gunn Says Rocket Will Be a Big Part of the Guardians of the Galaxy’s Future

Over the past decade, the Guardians of the Galaxy have gone from lesser-known comic characters to a hugely-popular franchise, thanks to the team’s colorful introduction into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Ever since the first Guardians of the Galaxy debuted, characters like Rocket Raccoon and Groot have captured fans’ hearts — and it sounds like that will continue in the franchise’s next installment. During ComicBook.com’s recent Quarantine Watch Party of Guardians of the Galaxy, franchise writer-director James Gunn was asked if Rocket’s origin story will factor into the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. As Gunn put it, Rocket is “a big part of what’s happening in the future”, and some of the Easter eggs hinting at his tragic past will be acknowledged again.

In the comics, Rocket is created as an animal companion for a patient on the planet Halfworld, and is eventually the subject of torture experiments by a set of robot orderlies. While it’s been unclear exactly how that will be adapted into the MCU – outside of rumors suggesting that the High Evolutionary could be involved – it’s certainly a tragic thing to deal with — something that Gunn has been hoping to bring full-circle.

“When you asked me what was saddest for me when I thought it was gone—and anybody at Marvel can tell you—it’s this very strange and attached relationship to Rocket,” Gunn said in an interview last year. “Rocket is me, he really is, even if that sounds narcissistic. Groot is like my dog. I love Groot in a completely different way. I relate to Rocket and I feel compassion for Rocket, but I also feel like his story has not been completed. He has an arc that started in the first movie, continued into the second and goes through Infinity War and Endgame, and then I was set to really finish that arc in Guardians 3. That was a big loss to me—not being able to finish that story—though I was comforted by the fact that they were still planning to use my script.”

Are you excited to see Rocket Raccoon’s origin story explored further in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!