Director James Gunn gave fans a potentially disappointing update on the relationship between Rocket Raccoon and Thor in the MCU.
In an April interview with Rolling Stone, Gunn mentioned that he was surprised by the ending of Avengers: Endgame, which had Chris Hemsworth’s Thor joining the Guardians. However, Gunn was not made aware of it, as “[Marvel Studios] chose to have that ending in editing” and how he “didn’t think it was gonna be in there.”
Such a change would have clashed with his already-written draft of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. At the time Gunn was rehired for the threequel, he had no idea what he was going to do, but Taika Waititi “took a bullet for [him]” resolving Thor’s time with the Guardians in Thor: Love and Thunder.
Rocket Ghosting Chris Hemsworth’s Thor
On Twitter, James Gunn held an open Q&A but would only respond to yes or no questions. So one fan asked if Rocket had kept in contact with Chris Hemsworth’s Thor since Love and Thunder, to which Gunn responded, “No.”
Considering how much older Groot looked in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 compared to his appearance in the Ragnarok sequel, either Groot had a massive growth spurt or Rocket hasn’t contacted the Thunder God in quite some time.
Of course, this response from Gunn saddened some fans, who loved their budding friendship in Infinity War and Endgame.
Why Did Marvel Studios Pair Thor With the Guardians?
Neither Marvel Studios director wanted to invest any screentime on Thor’s fellowship with the Guardians, so why did Marvel Studios set that up? In the same Rolling Stone interview, Gunn also said, “Endgame came out right after I decided to do Guardians again. So I didn’t have much say in what was in Endgame.”
Indeed, Gunn was rehired as director of the threequel in March 2019 while Endgame was released in theaters the month before. So it’s obvious that the original plan from Marvel Studios seemed to be a Gunn-less Guardians movie that would include Thor, but Gunn’s sudden return torpedoed those plans.
It’ll be curious to see how the next director for the Guardians franchise will handle the dynamics of the characters with the rest of the MCU. Maybe then fans can see Rocket and Thor interacting again.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is playing in theaters worldwide.
