Miriam Shor, who portrayed Recorder Vim in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, just shared why her villain chose to go against her master in the recently released MCU project.
Chukwuji Iwuji’s High Evolutionary may have led Vol. 3 as its key villain, but he wasn’t alone.
As they say, it takes a team. In this case, for the High Evolutionary, the sentiment remained true. Within the film, the big bad is seen tailed at almost every moment by his trusted team of advisors. One of those people was Shor’s Vim.
While she helped Iwuji’s god-like villain do terrible deeds, there does come a point in Vol. 3 where she attempts to overthrow her master. But why now?
Recorder Vim's Mindset
In an exclusive interview with The Direct, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 actress Miriam Shor, who played Recorder Vim in the movie, spoke about her character’s big twist towards the end of the movie.
So, what exactly was Vim thinking in that fateful moment when she attempted to usurp Chukwudi Iwuji’s High Evolutionary? Shor shared how she was “looking at what leads people” to “follow the worst people in the world:”
“So I think in that moment, I was sort of looking at what leads people, what allows people to follow the worst people in the world. What allows people to follow and do their bidding, the absolute worst? And because this isn't a question only for like some far off universe that doesn't exist. This is a question for the world we live in? How? How do people make themselves Okay, by following these, the worst people in the world right off the cliff.”
Continuing, the actress noted that she doesn’t believe Vim “has a plan,” but she did come to finally understand “the depth of the lunacy that’s happening:”
“And then inevitably, that moment, right before you fall off that cliff, you realize what's happening. I mean, we've seen it with the leaders throughout history. And currently, you know, I'm kind of fascinated by that moment. And that happens for my character, this moment of like, really understanding the depth of the lunacy that's happening. So I don't think she has a plan, right? I think this is like, this is a do or die, literally do or die moment, and she makes the decision.”
Shor doesn’t exactly think Vim “becomes a good guy in that moment,” noting that her betrayal was more about basic survival from a bottom line perspective:
“What I love is the idea of like, what could that look like? You know, I think she thinks of herself as a scientist. I think she thinks of herself as someone who's doing this. And again, this is not unrealistic. In the world. We live in someone who, who believes in—she's a zealot, right? She believes in this. And so I don't think she suddenly becomes a good guy in that moment. I think that moment is more about, 'How do we preserve this thing that I valued?' I thought we both valued... 'How do we get out of this alive?' but I would love to be like, and then she's a hero!”
But what would she do had her efforts been successful? Shor believed that Vim would've stuck around and after recouping, continued the work, as she always believed she “was doing the right thing:”
“Although *there might be some soul searching that had to happen right after that moment, because that's an eye opening moment where you realize I've gone to the depths and there's no going back so I think she would stay. I think she would recoup and I think she thought she was doing the right thing. But also, that's how she was built. But I think this whole movie is [about] questioning your Creator and your creation and what you were you thought you were meant to do. So I do think that's that moment for her she's questioning that.”
She also jokingly pitched the idea that perhaps she would work for the Guardians had things gone her way.
That final scene between Vim and the High Evolutionary was actually the actresses' favorite scene between her and Iwuji's villain:
“The climactic scene that my character has… James let us play… There were a couple of times where we did things like he was like, this is never going to make the movie keep going. It's so fun.., we were chewing the scenery and having so much fun with the like, stakes of it, you know, at the end of the day, we just were like… sipping our tea and honey, and just being like, ‘that was the best.’”
Feeling that way about is scene is exactly what actors like Shor and Iwuji want, with the actress saying that there’s a deep “[appreciation for] someone asking you to dig as deep as possible:”
“I mean, that's what you want… if you're the kind of actors that really appreciate someone asking you to dig as deep as possible, which we are, and you know, and then with someone like Chuck, you can't really ask for a better scene partner, you really can't.”
But how exactly how long was Recorder Vim with The High Evolutionary? Shor doesn’t have a specific timeframe, but she assumes that it was “eons:”
“I mean, eons… know, worlds were created and destroyed. Whole worlds were created and destroyed. I think it's longer than humans can imagine. Because we're talking about creation and destruction multiple times, you know, whole worlds, whole areas of the universe… And this is where the makeup is kind of great…”
The actress also called attention to her makeup, noting that clear wear and tear is visible as time goes on in the story’s flashbacks and present-day storytelling:
“But what's great about the makeup, is that you there is a difference between when you see them earlier, and you see them later. There's wear and tear, you know, those recording devices that are in their heads that are recording every single little thing, and you think about, like, how they get refurbished and redone and the upkeep. At what point did they break down? But it's been quite a long time. I don't have an exact answer. But in my mind, it was eons… it's not like they're good friends… She's standing up to her creator. I mean, that's the scariest thing you can do.”
While her MCU journey might have been cut short, Miriam Shor will next be seen later this year in Bradley Cooper's Maestro.
In talking about the project, Shor declared her time on the movie "was amazing," and that "Bradley Cooper is just a gem of a human:"
"Well, [Bradley Cooper] plays Leonard Bernstein. I play Cynthia O'Neil, who was a very good friend of the Bernstein's especially at least, Leonard Bernstein's wife. And Bradley Cooper is just a gem of a human, but he's also like an immense creative talent and watching him create that piece. Direct it, write it, star in it. I mean, and then he, there were days where I was like, being directed by Leonard Bernstein. It was amazing. So that was quite the experience. I'm like, I apparently I only work with Bradley now. And only when he's like, either. unrecognizable is like a space raccoon or musical genius."
Vim's MCU Future That Never Was
It is hard to imagine how Recorder Vim thought her final confrontation would go down. She was well aware of how powerful the High Evolutionary was and that her odds of actually usurping him were extremely low.
Perhaps she just didn’t care either way. She saw how deranged and obsessed he had become, so she felt like she had to do something.
As mentioned previously, the timeline where Recorder Vim was successful could make for a great episode of What If…?. Would she lean towards the side of good or continue down the dark path Vim was already so familiar with?
Sadly, audiences will likely never know.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is now playing in theaters worldwide.
