James Gunn Prepares Fans for ‘Much More Mature’ Guardians of the Galaxy 3

Recently, fans were able to hear about the first footage for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, thanks to an exclusive trailer screened for attendees. The teaser included a look at Gamora’s new Ravager status, a baby Rocket Raccoon, Star-Lord and Groot making a stand, and much more.

It’s already been stated that fans should expect the final entry in Gunn’s trilogy to be an emotional one. Several actors who have read the script were vocal about the story affecting them—needless to say, there were tears.

With how impactful the story seems to be, how much will it differ from previous entries? In a new interview, Gunn talked about the movie, where he revealed that it would be a more mature tale than his previous two outings.

A More Mature Guardians Story

Marvel

While speaking in several interviews, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 director James Gunn discussed his upcoming movie, how it will differ from the previous two, and what the future may hold.

While speaking with GameSpot, Gunn talked about how the upcoming third adventure is “more mature than the other Guardian stories,” also adding that “it’s an incredibly emotional story:”

“It’s an incredibly emotional story… more mature than the other Guardian stories in a way because, you know, we started making these movies that were 10, 11 years old when they saw the first one, and now they’re 20, 21 years old. The movie has grown up with them.”

In a discussion with The Hollywood Reporter, Gunn confirmed that not only is Vol. 3 “much more emotional,” but it’s also “a longer movie than the other two:”

“This is a much bigger movie than the other two movies, and it’s a much more emotional movie than the other two movies… and it’s a longer movie than the other two movies — it’s bigger in every way.”

The director joked that the actors have “gotten better at their jobs” and admitted how he’s “really pushing [himself] and trying to create something completely different from what came before it:”

“It was really comfortable, actually … I’m really familiar with the actors, so I know what they have to do. They’ve gotten better at their jobs so that I don’t have to bash them around so much… in a lot of ways, it was really easy — it’s really natural for me. I understand this. But I’m also really pushing myself and trying to create something completely different from what came before it, but that also honors what came before it.”

Gunn confirmed to IGN that “this generation of the team is done after this [movie],” but that all he cares about is “this team and being really true to the story of these characters:”

“Yeah, this generation of the team is done after this, yeah… I never said there’s a new team. 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, you know? I mean, I’m not into… ‘Oh, you know everything going off here, and this is to set up this, and this to set up…’ I don’t care. I never have cared about any of that. All I care… about is a 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.”

The Guardians Get a Serious Exit

Don’t let James Gunn’s comments fool you; there’ll likely still be plenty of jokes to go around. But, at the end of the day, the overall story could end up going to some dark places.

This makes perfect sense. For one, the movie will be going over Rocket’s origin story, which will surely be a dark affair—seeing as he was torn apart and experimented on.

Then there’s Star-Lord, who has to deal with the love of his life being alive again but not remembering anything about their life together. That’s a heavy weight for anyone to carry, so exploring those ideas could cause Quill to fall to some low places.

While Gunn may be done with the group after this third outing, that doesn’t mean it’s the last time the world will see the Guardians. There will almost certainly be another team, it’s just a matter of who ends up staying by the time the credits roll.

Fingers crossed that somehow Rocket Raccoon can make it out of the movie alive; odds seem to be against him given how heavily focused the film is on everyone’s favorite trash panda.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 hits theaters on May 5, 2023.