When I Am Groot Takes Place in MCU Timeline Revealed

I Am Groot is set to drop its five-episode run on Disney+ in August, following everybody’s talking little tree on short adventures in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Unlike other animated projects from Marvel Studios, the I Am Groot series is set in the main timeline and universe of the Infinity Saga. With Groot having appeared in five Marvel titles so far (Guardians of the Galaxy, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, and Thor: Love and Thunder), the window of time where he was Baby Groot with untold stories is where the team found an opportunity to for these short films.

“It’s a narrow window, right? It takes place actually between the end of Guardians 2 and before the tag scene in Guardians 2. So, it’s in this narrow window where Groot in that kind of post toddler stage of development,” Marvel Studios Head of Streaming Brad Winderbaum told ComicBook.com in an exclusive interview. “And it was something that really excited, James [Gunn] and also, James also knew Kirsten’s work and was excited about working with her as well.” The full interview with Winderbaum and I Am Groot’s writer, director, and executive producer Kirsten Lepore is available on the Phase Zero channel.

Lepore was tasked not only with finding a window where stories for Baby Groot can be told but also had to hone in the character of Groot and how to convey the emotion, humor, and heart in the new animated series. This called not only for top-notch animation but also collaboration with Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn. 

“I had great meetings with James at several points in the process,” Lepore said. “The most pivotal one being like our initial kickoff meeting, where we basically just discussed this amazing character that he created, just, you know, just to make sure we could do Baby Groot the way we’re supposed to. And I remember him telling me like, ‘Oh yeah, he’s a bad baby. And also he’s like an emoji guy,’ which cracked me up. And I kept like repeating that in meetings. I was like, we gotta make sure that we’re just nailing these poses and facial expressions because all he has is two eyes in a mouth. He doesn’t even have a nose, it’s a very limited face. So it’s like just like an emoji, nails and emotion and expression. We had to do that with Groot, as well.”

Are you excited for the I Am Groot series? All five short films from I Am Groot arrive on Disney+ on August 10. Share your thoughts in the comment section or send them my way on Twitter! Subscribe to the Phase Zero channel for more updates.