James Gunn on Marvel & DC: “The World Won’t End If You Love Both”

James Gunn is known for helming some huge comic book projects, including the Guardians of the Galaxy movies for Marvel and The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker for DC. Last month, it was announced that Gunn and Peter Safran have been tapped as the co-chairs and co-CEOs of DC Studios, a new entity formed to replace the ailing DC Films. However, Gunn still has two Marvel projects in the works. The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is hitting Disney+ next week and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. is hitting theatres next year. While these are likely to be Gunn’s final Marvel projects now that he’s got a bigger role over at DC, some DC fans aren’t happy that the director is still plugging Marvel.

Gunn shared a behind-the-scenes photo from The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special on Twitter and someone commented, “You are of DC, NO Marvel!!!” Gunn replied, “As was made clear in all press, until May I am both DC & Marvel. I’ve dedicated the majority of the past 10 years of my life to the Guardians trilogy, & I’m not abandoning them or the thousands of people who worked on them at the 11th hour. The world won’t end if you love both.” You can check out the post below: 

As was made clear in all press, until May I am both DC & Marvel. I've dedicated the majority of the past 10 years of my life to the Guardians trilogy, & I'm not abandoning them or the thousands of people who worked on them at the 11th hour. The world won't end if you love both. https://t.co/MBc5mPBmvL

— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) November 18, 2022

Do You Have To Watch The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special Before Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3?

During a recent interview with ComicBook.com‘s Phase Zero host, Brandon Davis, Gunn was asked if the holiday special is required viewing before the movie.

“Well, I’m always trying to be balanced with these things, so I think it’s wonderful,” Gunn explained. “People should see the Holiday Special. You’re obviously gonna learn a lot about where the Guardians have been in the past few years. You know, you’re gonna see how they now inhabit Knowhere. They’ve got a new ship called the Bowie. They’ve got a dog [who] is part of their crew now who has telekinesis named Cosmo. So where you get to learn all that, and then there’s a couple of bigger pieces of spoiler-y lore. You’re gonna learn all of those things. In a way, the Holiday Special was a Trojan Horse for me to sneak in stuff that becomes important in Volume 3, so I don’t have to spend a lot of time at the beginning of that movie explaining it.”

The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special hits Disney+ on November 25th. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3. is set to be released in theatres on May 23, 2023.