Michael Rookerhas spoken up about James Gunn being fired fromGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3while hypingSuicide Squad 2. Rooker has worked with Gunn throughout his entire career as a filmmaker and their relationship extends far beyond the confines of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Up to this point, Rooker has been somewhat quiet, only taking to social media to make a very brief statement previously. Now, Rooker has expanded a bit on his thoughts, calling the situation terrible.
The actor recently appeared at Walker Stalker in Atlanta. During a Q&A, the subject ofJames Gunnbeing fired by Disney from the Marvel sequel came up. While Michael Rooker still didn’t say too much, he clearly doesn’t love the situation and has sided with his friend, but he’s also not too worried about Gunn’s future in Hollywood. Here’s what Rooker had to say about his friend getting the axe fromGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
“It’s terrible, isn’t it? Yeah, but oh well, guess what? He’s on a gig already. Suicide Squad, that’s right. He’s writing it and directing it as well.”
As we recently learned, Warner Bros. was prettyquick to scoop up James Gunnonce his business with Disney and Marvel was settled. He’s now going to writeSuicide Squad 2and the intention seems to be for him to direct as well. But bare minimum, he’s going to write the sequel, which previously had Gavin O’Connor (The Accountant) on board to write and direct. His draft of the screenplay is being thrown out entirely and Gunn will be given free reign to craft his own story. The sequel has been in development for a couple of years now and it seems like it’s been tough to crack, buthaving Gunn on board should help get things moving in the right direction.
James Gunn was fired by Disney after a series of old, offensive tweets that were intended as humor resurfaced online. Disney chairman Alan Horn referred to them as “indefensible” and the filmmaker was let go fromGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Most of the cast has come out to defend him and they even wanted to see him reinstated, with Dave Bautista being easily the most vocal about his distaste for the decision. Bautista has even said he’s ready to jump on boardSuicide Squad 2.
Rooker has been less vocal, though. Perhaps it’s because he’s actually friends with James Gunn. Or perhaps it’s because Yondu died in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 and wasn’t going to be back for the sequel anyway. Whatever the case, Rooker is clearly sticking by his friend and doesn’t seem terribly concerned about this having any long term negative effects on his career. For now, Marvel has delayedGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3indefinitely, even though it had been scheduled to shoot in January. This news was previously reported byComicbook.com.
