There’s a lot of hype surrounding Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 right now, and understandably so. The first film was a smashing success for Marvel, both critically and commercially, and so far, the sequel looks to be even better. Test screening scores have been through the roof and box office analysts are predicting one of the biggest openings of all-time. So, it seems like a no brainer then that director James Gunn would want to return for the recently confirmed Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, right? Well, maybe not.
Talking to Fandango in anticipation of the film’s release, he said that fans need to calm down a bit in regards to the threequel, as Vol. 2 hasn’t even been released yet and the focus should be on “what we have right now,” not “what’s in the future.”
“People are obsessed about the third one and they haven’t even seen the second one yet! What if they all hate the second one? Then they’re not going to be so obsessed anymore. It’s all about what’s in the future; it’s never about what we have right now. I think if anything, this Guardians is about what they are in this moment – and I think that’s what it’s been like for me working on the movie. It really isn’t about thinking down the road and how can we make something great someday – it’s how can we make something great right now in this moment that will affect people’s lives for the better. That’s what Vol. 2 is.”
When asked the all-important question, if he’d return to direct a third instalment, Gunn continued to play coy, refusing to commit to the project:
“Listen, we’re figuring it all out. We’ll know soon. Let me take a couple of breaths before I say what I’m going to do next.”
While it may be hard for fans to see why the director would want to part ways with such a wildly successful franchise, one that he was instrumental in bringing to the big screen, Gunn’s hesitation is certainly understandable. It’s not an easy job making big blockbusters like the ones Marvel puts out, and after working on two of them now for the studio, it’s easy to imagine that he may be getting a bit tired.
After all, the director’s roots are in more independent films, so there’s probably a bit of an urge in him to return to that scene. At least for a little while. Make no mistake about it, we’d love to see James Gunn back at the helm for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, but given his comments on the matter up to this point, it just doesn’t seem too likely that it’ll happen.