Marvel Studios took the opportunity to tease the huge slate of movies coming in Phase 4 of the MCU as movie theaters worldwide begin opening their doors again. The three-minute video shared new footage from three of 2021's films, including the first look at Marvel's Eternals , while also confirming the updated titles The Marvels and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever .
The clip closed by confirming 2023 release dates for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania on February 17 and Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 3 on May 5.
James Gunn's third MCU theatrical outing is still some time from filming, as the director is currently putting the finishing touches on his first DCEU project, The Suicide Squad .
Nevertheless, MCU fans are thrilled to see him return for his third full-length Marvel outing with the franchise's fan-favorite "bunch of a-holes" coming back in a post- Avengers: Endgame world
In light of such a highly-anticipated release, the latest round of social media posts certainly hypes up its arrival in one way or another...
GUARDIANS VOL. 3 BRINGING SOME STRESS
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 director James Gunn took to Twitter to answer a fan question asking if he was stressed about having the film's release date in the open so far in advance. Gunn admits that this is "a little stressful that the release date is so close" since the film is still in pre-production two years to the day until it arrives:
No. But it’s a little stressful that the release date is so close. Apparently you and I look at these things differently. https://t.co/JTXbFklX8x
Gunn later clarified some of the more nerve-wracking elements of the movie such as "designing dozens of new characters & entire worlds & cultures, building enormous sets" and taking new risks with the VFX department. The director makes it perfectly clear that there is a ton on his plate for this expansive adventure:
In a world where we are designing dozens of new characters & entire worlds & cultures, building enormous sets, & pushing the boundaries of VFX & action sequences beyond where they’ve ever been, mf
Gunn also teased that "not much" has changed with the script or story, even though the film is releasing much later than originally planned. More than anything, the director commented that the adjustments "have been creative choices" with the Guardians' path having been "set for a long time:"
No, not much. Most of the tweaks have been creative choices. The Guardians’ path has been set for a long time. https://t.co/4uavYoVJHt
Star-Lord actor Chris Pratt helped bring even more excitement for his seventh MCU movie, saying how much he "loved the first two" movies:
I can’t wait! I loved the first two!! https://t.co/Zo45aB1Xis
With many fans asking about casting news for this film, Gunn simply stated the obvious by confirming casting for Chris Pratt, Dave Bautista, Pom Klementieff, Karen Gillan, and Sean Gunn, all returning from the saga's first two movies:
Star-Lord is @prattprattpratt, Drax is @DaveBautista, Mantis is @PomKlementieff, Nebula is @karengillan, and Kraglin is @seangunn. There you go! https://t.co/LvpasBiUny
STILL A WAYS OUT FOR THE GUARDIANS
James Gunn is known as one of the biggest presences on social media from the MCU, always responding to fan questions and news reports about his upcoming work. Even though he's clearly thrilled to be back with Marvel Studios for his final run with the team , his stress levels are surely rising to make sure this highly-anticipated threequel comes out the best that it can.
Taking into account that he enjoys using his sense of humor, this is one of his more truly honest moments by giving just a peek into the challenges of directing a movie this massive.
After leading the way on the franchise's first two galactic entries and serving as an executive producer on Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame , Gunn will bring two new Guardians stories into the mix over the next two years, also directing the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special for Disney+ shortly before the threequel.
It should be exciting to know that even through so many changes for this film, the story for Vol. 3 has been set in stone for a while. There should be plenty of new story threads on which to pick up as well, most notably the case of a missing Gamora after their team-up with the Avengers on Earth.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will release in theaters on May 5, 2023 .
