While everyone is riding the wave of the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special trailer, Zoe Saldaña is reminiscing on her “bittersweet” time on set of Vol. 3.
Although it is uncertain whether or not Saldaña’s Gamora will show her face around the Christmas Special, the actress has seemingly implied the upcoming third-part of the Guardians trilogy will be her last outing as the green-skinned warrior.
“[Filming] started bitter in the beginning cause obviously you’re anticipating the end,” she told Entertainment Weekly while promoting her new television series From Scratch. “I’m just so happy that once again I got to work with great people,” she added.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 director James Gunn has confirmed that the movie will be the last time audiences will get to see this team as they know it. Considering his recently announced promotion at Warner Bros. Discovery as co-head of DC Studios, he won’t be returning to Marvel for a while.
For Saldaña, it was very rewarding to witness the evolution of her character, as well as “[her] director” and “[her] cast.” Ever since appearing as Gamora in 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy, the actress has appeared in three other films, including Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame.
The last time audiences saw Gamora was at the end of Endgame as the lone survivor of Thanos’ army. However, this was a past version of the character who traveled to the present, seeing as Thanos sacrificed the original timeline’s Gamora for the Soul Stone in Infinity War.
This basically means that all the progress made by Gamora in the first two Guardians movies, which are set after the point from which she traveled in Endgame, has been undone. The Gamora that will likely reconnect with the rest of the team in Vol. 3 is effectively a different person.
“I just felt very blessed and grateful,” Saldaña said of her time filming the movie. “It was a very sweet departure, I have to say.”
The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is expected to release on Disney Plus Nov. 25. As for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, the movie will arrive to theaters May 5, 2023.