‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’: Everything to Know About Chris Pratt’s Next Marvel Movie
ne last time. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is set to conclude Marvel Studios’ trilogy about the ragtag team of intergalactic heroes, and fans have high expectations for the flick.
Though Guardians of the Galaxy came out in 2014 and Vol. 2 was released in 2017, it hasn’t actually been quite that long since Marvel fans saw Peter Quill/Star-Lord (Chris Pratt) and his team. They appeared in 2018’s Avengers: Infinity War and 2019’s Avengers: Endgame, where they helped defeat Thanos, and they made a cameo in Thor: Love and Thunder, which came out in July 2022.
After turning to dust for five years, the Guardians will return to the sky without Gamora (Zoe Saldana). Thanos killed his daughter in Infinity War, but the 2014 version of the character — who hadn’t fallen in love with Peter or decided to become a good guy yet — was left in the present day. She ran away before the Guardians could convince her to come with them, so she has some unfinished business with the team.
There are still Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 cliffhangers left to deal with as well. The end of the 2017 flick ominously teased the villain in a post-credits scene when Ayesha (Elizabeth Debicki), after losing a battle to Star-Lord’s team, says she has a plan for revenge. She reveals a birthing pod and says she has created the most powerful and beautiful being ever: Adam.
Black Mirror actor Will Poulter has been cast as the mysterious being. The England native told Variety in November 2021 that he was “very honored to have been welcomed into the Marvel family. Everyone I’ve interacted with there is great and you know, [I’m] very excited to be part of a franchise like Guardians, which I regard to be like, one of the most creative and unique.”
Director James Gunn revealed in May 2022 that filming was officially finished.
“And that’s a picture wrap on the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy,” he shared via Twitter at the time. “I love this amazing cast & crew & their beautiful talent & kind souls. I’m a lucky human to have them on the journey with me for nearly a decade.”
He shared a behind-the-scenes photo that included stars Sean Gunn (Kraglin), Pom Klementieff (Mantis), Pratt, Karen Gillan (Nebula) and Dave Bautista (Drax). Saldana was noticeably absent, but Gunn said there’s a reason for that.
“And yes Zoe was with us but the only picture I have with her has an unannounced actor with us!” he captioned a polaroid of the Crossroads star and his fiancée, actress Jennifer Holland.
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Scroll down to find out the release date, cast and everything we know so far about Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3:
Does ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’ Have a Release Date?
Marvel Studios plans to have the third movie premiere in theaters on May 5, 2023. It will be released three months after Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania hits theaters in February and before Captain Marvel sequel The Marvels hits the big screen in July.
Should Fans Watch the Holiday Special First?
Fans should definitely watch the Guardians Of The Galaxy Holiday Special on Disney+. Gunn said he used the November 2022 special as “a trojan horse” to avoid needing so much exposition in the third movie.
“I used the holiday special as an opportunity to introduce some elements into Guardians of the Galaxy, so I didn’t have to explain them at the beginning of Volume 3,” Gunn told Deadline amid the holiday installment’s release.
“I don’t have to talk about where they got [the new Guardians HQ] Know here from, or Cosmo being around Know here,” Gunn said, revealing that Cosmo the Space Dog (voiced by Maria Bakalova) will be in the next movie. The 45-minute special also introduced The Bowie, the Guardians’ new spaceship, as well as Nebula’s new role as a leader.