Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 director James Gunn isn’t worrying about the superhero team’s next lineup.
During an interview with IGN, the 55-year-old filmmaker confirmed once more that this current version of the Guardians of the Galaxy won’t be together for much longer.
“This iteration of the team is done after this [movie],” he said. But it looks as though he’s too bothered about who comes next right now.
“I never said there was a new team,” he explained. “I don’t care about the new team. All I care about is what this team is and being really true to the story of these characters, and finishing the story in an honorable way, and telling Rocket’s story fully, and telling Nebula’s story fully, and telling Quill’s story fully, and really getting into what this is now.”
It’s no surprise that the Guardians of the Galaxy could shift their line-up. After all, heroes come and go throughout comic book history, so a new roster for the MCU’s version of the Guardians of the Galaxy would be an interesting change.
But Gunn isn’t thinking that far ahead. And it seems he’s not really as into the interconnectedness of working within a cinematic universe as he is telling his own stories within it.
“I’m not into everything going off here, and this is to set up this, and this is to set up… I don’t care,” he said. “I never have cared about any of that. All I care about is the story here and now, moving an audience, sharing our love for the material and our love for each other, with the audience. That’s what matters.”
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 wrapped filming just a few months ago and will debut early next year as part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s upcoming Phase 5.
Guardians of the Galaxy 3 stars Chris Pratt as Peter Quill, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Dave Bautista as Drax, Bradley Cooper as Rocket, and Vin Diesel as Groot. They’re joined by Karen Gillan, Elizabeth Debicki, Chukwudi Iwuji, and Will Poulter.
James Gunn both wrote and directed the movie based on characters created by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning.
Want to find out more about Marvel’s upcoming slate? Check out everything that was announced at Marvel’s SDCC panel, and find out why the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 trailer still isn’t online.
Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.