At the beginning of 2019, approximately a half year after James Gunn was unceremoniously fired from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, it was officially confirmed that he’d be jumping to the DC universe to write and direct The Suicide Squad. Then, just two months later, Disney and Marvel reversed course and rehired Gunn to helm Guardians 3, though because he boarded The Suicide Squad in that interim period, he’s tackling that DC tale first and then will jump back to the MCU.
Even though he’s now working with the MCU’s chief rival on the superhero movie front, James Gunn has revealed that the folks over at Marvel Studios are incredibly supportive of him working on The Suicide Squad for DC, and Gunn is advocating that DC and Marvel fans follow suit and stop feuding with one another about these companies.
Starting off, here’s what James Gunn had to say about the gift he received from some of the Marvel Studios bigwigs:
Starting production on The Suicide Squad, I received perhaps the coolest & sweetest start-of-production gift ever, along with a note of how excited they are for the movie from Kevin, Lou, Victoria, Mary & Jonathan at Marvel Studios.They made me this incredible scrapbook of our journey so far on Guardians of the Galaxy. It’s a thick tome packed with memories that brought a tear to my eye.
As you’ll see on James Gunn’s Twitter thread, his time working on the Guardians of the Galaxy movies has been beautifully chronicled in a scrapbook. Hopefully there are a few blank pages towards the end of this book where some Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 memories can be pasted.
While I’m sure that the Marvel Studios leadership would like it if Gunn could tackle Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 sooner, as was the original plan, it’s nice to see that they’re showing their support for him overseeing The Suicide Squad right as that sequel/relaunch/whatever it is begins principal photography. Just because DC and Marvel are competitors doesn’t mean people from one side can’t be happy for someone who’s lending their talents to the other side.
Which brings us to the second half of James Gunn’s Twitter thread, where the filmmaker asked for DC and Marvel fans to come together and enjoy what both companies are offering rather than keep feuding. In his words:
As I’ve said so many times, at the end of the day, Marvel & DC fans have a lot more in common than they do not. I am now & have been for almost all my life, both. Maybe you like one more than the other - that’s cool - but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy them all or that you have to tear the other down. I know I & my partners at both Marvel & DC believe what’s good for one studio is generally good for all: spurring each other on daily with heartfelt, spectacular & innovative entertainment that keeps audiences around the world loving movies based on or inspired by sequential art. #marvel #dc Let’s go, team(s).
Obviously it’s okay to have preferences when it comes to Marvel, DC and any comic book company, but there’s a difference between that and needing to “tear down” the other side. Realistically speaking, it’s unlikely DC and Marvel fans will ever stop bickering amongst each other, especially where the movies are concerned, but it’s nice to see Gunn remind us that it is possible to enjoy both rather than pick one or the other. Ultimately it all leads to more comic book-related content being churned out.
James Gunn is now one of the few directors who’s gotten to work for both Marvel and DC, and he’s getting to do so at the same time. But as mentioned earlier, Gunn is firmly focused on making The Suicide Squad right now, and it’s only when the final edit on that movie is completed that he’ll hop back on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which he spent a long time writing.
The Suicide Squad charges into theaters on August 6, 2021, and while Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 doesn’t have a release date yet, it’s expected to be part of the Phase 5 slate. As for what’s coming to the silver screen for the rest of this year, scan through our 2019 release schedule for that information.
