Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 star Will Poulter dove into details about the unexpected twist that fans saw in his MCU debut as Adam Warlock.
Adam Warlock was high on fans' list of most anticipated MCU arrivals following teases for his introduction in both Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1 and Vol. 2.
Coming into Guardians 3 alongside Elizabeth Debicki's Ayesha after the Vol. 2 post-credits scene setting his character up, Will Poulter enjoyed a couple of exciting moments in his MCU debut, even while the threequel focused on the original Guardians' sendoff.
But after he was utilized so heavily in the marketing campaign for this threequel, did Marvel have success with the twists seen in Warlock's character development?
Guardians 3 Star Details Adam Warlock Twist
Warning - the rest of this article contains spoilers for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
Speaking with GQ Magazine, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 star Will Poulter addressed Adam Warlock's infant-like character portrayal in the threequel, which came as an unexpected twist for fans as Poulter brought Warlock to life.
This version of Adam Warlock is one that "[came] out of the oven early and isn't fully baked," working hard to figure out his place and his path in a new world. Poulter even noted how fun that was, connecting back to what he loved about the Guardians movies from years past:
"It’s clear that James was putting a certain twist on Warlock. In this movie, he’s in his infancy. He’s come out of the oven early and isn’t fully baked. He’s trying to orient himself in a world where there’s a lot of pressure to work out the difference between right and wrong. That was a really fun place to explore because there was the opportunity for drama and comedy in that. Warlock’s character typifies what I love personally about 'Guardians,' which is that these characters are funny, but they all feel psychologically genuine."
Poulter laughed at the fact that Warlock came in "with this mission to accomplish" and wound up "[getting] his ass handed to him," praising director James Gunn for changing fans' expectations of the character:
"I thought it was really funny that Warlock flies in with this mission to accomplish with a certain level of expectation on his shoulders and then just gets his ass handed to him. It’s typical of James not doing the obvious one-dimensional thing, and instead subverting expectations and finding the funnier, more obtuse angle. I really appreciated that and it was cool that within the fight sequences I end up interacting with nearly all of the Guardians and it ending in a relatively humorous fashion."
He also looked back to some advice that he got from co-star Chris Pratt, who celebrated Poulter's inclusion in the MCU after last year's San Diego Comic-Con.
Pratt gave him the rundown on how Gunn worked with his actors, with Poulter reveling in the fact that he was able to trust his director's vision for the movie:
"I remember Chris Pratt said to me, 'Sometimes James is going to throw things at you and you’re going to be like, ‘What are you talking about? You’ve lost your mind.’ Just trust him.' I did that, and by the end I felt really confident in just doing whatever James said. Sometimes words like visionary get overused. But James is a visionary, there is no question. The way he’s able to visualise things and then bring them to life is second to none."
Gunn himself noted how Warlock is "definitely not a good guy" upon his introduction, with this version of the character being in his infancy when he shows up in Guardians 3:
"But he’s definitely not a good guy. What we’re seeing is the infant form of Warlock, newly out of the cocoon, and he does not understand life very well. He’s basically a baby."
How Will Adam Warlock Evolve After Guardians 3?
With Guardians 3 only taking place a short time after Adam Warlock first came out of his pod, it's not too surprising to see Will Poulter play the role with a more childlike zest after just getting out of his cocoon.
And with the character now being a part of the new Guardians of the Galaxy team alongside Rocket, Groot, Kraglin, and more, he should have an opportunity to evolve more fully into something closer to his comic counterpart in the future.
For the time being, there are no definite places where the Guardians will return in future MCU projects, especially with the franchise being in such a state of flux due to the ongoing writers' strike and changes internally within Marvel Studios.
But with Poulter already looking ahead to his future with the MCU post-Guardians 3, it should only be a matter of time before the ultra-powerful hero blasts his way back into the action.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is now playing in theaters.
