James Gunn has made it clear: Thor was never going to be in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
An Unexpected Endgame Edit
In a recent exclusive interview with Entertainment Weekly, the writer-director explained that, despite the ending of Avengers: Endgame teasing Thor’s future with the Guardians, he had no intention of incorporating the God of Thunder into the film.
James Gunn attends the European Premiere of Marvel Studios’ “Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol 3” in Disneyland Paris on April 22, 2023 in Paris, France. (Photo by StillMoving.Net for Disney)
“I said in the script notes: ‘I’m not gonna put him in. I don’t want to have Thor in the Guardians,” Gunn said. “I don’t want to do a movie with Thor…. I don’t understand the character that much. I love watching his movies and I love Chris Hemsworth as a guy. I don’t understand how to write that character.”
Fans will remember that Endgame ended with Thor boarding the Milano alongside the Guardians, seemingly setting up a crossover. But according to Gunn, that edit came as a surprise.
(L-R): Natalie Portman as Mighty Thor and Chris Hemsworth as Thor in Marvel Studios‘ THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER. Photo by Jasin Boland. ©Marvel Studios 2022. All Rights Reserved.
Fortunately for James Gunn, Thor: Love and Thunder director Taika Waititi stepped in to resolve the dangling plot thread, giving the Guardians a brief appearance in his film and allowing Gunn to move forward with Vol. 3 on his own terms.
The Complications of Post-Credit Scenes
Gunn also used the EW interview to reflect on how post-credits scenes can complicate long-term storytelling, pointing to his own experience with Adam Warlock. The character, played by Will Poulter, was first teased in a post-credits scene at the end of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, which Gunn later admitted had been premature.
(L-R): Karen Gillan, James Gunn, and Chris Pratt on the set of Marvel Studios’ GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3. Photo by Jessica Miglio. © 2023 MARVEL.
“I did not like what I did in Guardians 2 where we set up Adam Warlock and we set up the Guardians of the Galaxy and we set up all this s— that I didn’t necessarily plan on,” he said. “Well, I guess I kind of planned on fulfilling that [Adam Warlock] promise, but you want to be careful about that. The way a post-credits scene works is a punch to the face, like, ‘Oh my God! Look at this.’ At times when you’re using it just solely to set something up, sometimes you’re screwing yourself over. It was not easy to work Adam Warlock into Guardians 3. I loved working with Will, and I liked dealing with the character, but at the end of the day, was he kind of fitting a weird square peg into a round hole? A little bit, yeah.”
James Gunn and Chris Pratt attend the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 Premiere at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood CA on Thursday, April 27, 2023.
(Photo: Alex J. Berliner/ABImages)
Ultimately, Gunn’s decision to keep Vol. 3 centered on the core Guardians team gave the trilogy a more emotionally resonant conclusion. It also reflected his philosophy as a storyteller, one he now brings to his role as co-head of DC Studios.
How These Lessons Will Shape Superman
In the same EW interview, Gunn confirmed that his upcoming Superman film will feature a post-credits scene, but one crafted with care.
“It’s somewhat related to my own mistakes in my time with Marvel,” he said. “You want to be careful about that… I do love giving something back to the audience, so I will try to put something in the end credits for audiences to see, because I think it’s great. I love my crew, and I want you to stick around and see who the gaffers were.”
David Corenswet as Superman flying in James Gunn’s “Superman” – YouTube, DC
Now overseeing DC’s next cinematic chapter, Gunn’s experience with Guardians of the Galaxy—including the lessons learned about crossovers and creative choices—continues to shape his evolving approach to superhero storytelling.
Do you think James Gunn was right to refuse putting Thor in Guardians of the Galaxy? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
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Since when has not understanding a character ever stopped Gunn?
Thor was too white?
Thor is one of the most abused characters in the MCU. Him being in fewer movies is a good thing.
If he had included Hemsworth, I expect the budget would have had to balloon way, way out and it didn’t hit profitability by enough to also absorb the salary from another A-Lister.
Plus, we might not have gotten the Extraction on Netflix, which are way better than anything Gunn or Tikitiki Watiki could have come up with.