Though he was only in the movie for a short amount of time, and largely served to provide some very important exposition, Benicio Del Toro gave one of the most fascinating performances in Guardians of the Galaxy, playing the odd and kooky museum curator Taneleer Tivan a.k.a. The Collector. But while the character emerged as a fan favorite, it seems that the actor's future with the franchise is a bit murky, as he has not yet been informed whether or not he will be in Guardians of the Galaxy 2.
Currently out promoting his new movie Escobar: Paradise Lost, Del Toro recently sat down to chat with IGN, and during their conversation the subject of James Gunn's forthcoming sequel was discussed. Asked if The Collector would be making his return in Guardians of the Galaxy 2, the actor revealed that he hasn't actually heard anything yet, but that he is very excited about the prospect of expanding his role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He said,
I would like to keep working on that character, though.It was kind of like a cameo. I would like to keep developing the character based on what's written in the comic books. I'd like to see some different sides. I had a blast working with James Gunn and the cast - but it's not up to me.
When we last saw The Collector - namely during the post-credits sequence of Guardians of the Galaxy - he was doing a bit of boozing while sitting in the destroyed remains of his museum with the Seth Green-voiced Howard The Duck. Of course, there's absolutely no reason that has to be the end of his appearances, and there are plenty of reasons to bring him back. In particular, his clear interest in collecting Infinity Stones means that he is likely one of the major players involved in the Marvel Cinematic Universe's over-arching storyline regarding Thanos and the upcoming Infinity War. So even if he doesn't return for Guardians of the Galaxy 2, that doesn't mean we won't be seeing him in another Marvel movie soon.
At this point, very few details are known about the plot of Guardians of the Galaxy 2, though James Gunn has confirmed a few names to return for the sequel. Naturally, this group includes the five main members of the titular team, but it's also been confirmed that we will see the return of Karen Gillan's Nebula, Michael Rooker's Yondu, and Sean Gunn's Kraglin. With the movie due out on May 5, 2017, production is likely scheduled to start up early next summer, meaning that we could start hearing about big developments some time soon (the upcoming D23 Expo seems as good a place as any). As always, be sure to stay tuned for more updates!
