New Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 Concept Art Released! First Look At Mantis!

Marvel Studios has released (via EW) a new piece of concept art, illustrated by Andy Park, for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. It features (from left to right): Drax striking a powerful pose, a baby-sized Groot perched on the Destroyer’s shoulder, Yondu in mid-air clutching his Yaka Arrow, Star-Lord front-and-center wearing some sort of jetpack, Rocket soaring in the air with an explosion coming from behind him, Mantis revealing herself for the first time, Nebula striking a mechanical pose, and Gamora with her sword drawn.

As mentioned above, this is our first look at Mantis, who is being played by French actress, Pom Klementieff (Spike Lee’s Oldboy). Like her comic book counterpart, Mantis has a pair of antennae, but unlike her comic book counterpart, she doesn’t have green skin.

What can we expect from Mantis in the film? “She has never really experienced social interaction,” executive producer Jonathan Schwartz told EW. “Everything she learns about dealing with people, she learns from the Guardians of the Galaxy, which is a very weird group to learn your social intricacies from.”

In the comics, Mantis is a half-Vietnamese, half-German hero with psychic powers, martial arts skills, and ties to the Kree empire. She’s the daughter of the morally ambiguous character Libra and has been a member of both the Guardians and the Avengers.

Shortly after this image was released, writer/director James Gunn was asked if we can now assume that Yondu and Nebula are members of the Guardians, to which he replied, “Yondu for sure. With Nebula, well, you never know what’s up with that one.”

Make sure to right click on the image directly below and select “view image” to see it in all of its high-resolution glory.

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 (Slither). The film marks the return of the original Guardians, including Chris Pratt (Jurassic World) as Peter Quill/Star-Lord; Zoe Saldana (Star Trek Into Darkness) as Gamora; Dave Bautista (Spectre) as Drax; Vin Diesel (Furious 7) as the voice of Groot; Bradley Cooper (American Sniper) as the voice of Rocket; Michael Rooker (Jumper) as Yondu; Karen Gillan (The Big Short) as Nebula; and Sean Gunn (Gilmore Girls) as Kraglin. New cast members include Pom Klementieff (Oldboy), Elizabeth Debicki (The Great Gatsby, Everest), Chris Sullivan (The Knick, The Drop) and Kurt Russell (The Hateful Eight, The Thing).

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is scheduled to hit theaters on May 5, 2017.