Marvel’s search for a Guardians of the Galaxy director may be nearing its end, as according to Heat Vision James Gunn has emerged as the top choice.
Gunn, like many of Marvel’s past director picks, would be an interesting one that you wouldn’t expect. The director wrote the scripts for Scooby Doo and Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (everyone has to start somewhere), along with Zack Snyder’s Dawn of the Dead.
He then directed the horror/comedy Slither starring Nathan Fillion, and his most recent effort was the indie superhero movie Super in 2010 with Ellen Page and Rainn Wilson. Both movies were financial flops with Slither only making $12 million worldwide and Super only managing $322,000 in the US. Still, there must be something about Gunn that draws Marvel to him. Yes, he’ll be cheap and flexible, but his ability to mix comedy with action and horror must be what they’re after.
Guardians of the Galaxy are “a team of superhuman and extra-terrestrial adventurers dedicated to the safeguarding of the Milky Way Galaxy from any force that threatens the security or liberty of its various people”.
The team includes Star-Lord (a human interplanetary policeman), Drax the Destroyer (a resurrected superhuman warrior and nemesis of Thanos), Groot (a plant monster who can control trees), Gamora (a dangerous female assassin who has a preference for knives and swords) and Rocket Racoon (a genetically altered racoon who can fly a plane and carries a laser pistol).
With an August 2014 release date set we can probably expect filming to begin sometime next year. Expect more creative and casting confirmations before then.
