Medium sized spoilers ahead for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Be careful if you haven't seen the film yet!
After an excruciating few years of waiting, James Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is finally upon us. The intergalactic space romp continued the challenge expectations for Marvel Cinematic Universe blockbusters, resulting in an installment that has non-stop jokes, as well as an emotional core than touches both the characters and audiences. Guardians 2 also changed the game in regards to post-credits scenes, which have become standard practice in the MCU. Because rather than two quick scenes, the sequel contained a whopping five post-credits scenes. Although it now appears that a sixth was originally shot, before being left on the cutting room floor.
Director James Gunn recently spoke to USA Today about Guardians of The Galaxy Vol. 2, including its myriad credits scene. It's there that he revealed that there was another scene that didn't make it.
The scene revolved around tertiary Ravager named Gef, played by actor Steve Agee. During Yondu and Rocket's battle against the traitorous Ravagers, Yondu's arrow went around the ship, killing just about everyone. But the post-credits scene saw Gamora and Mantis discover Gef, who had actually not been killed in the battle. Instead, he was just seriously hurt and on the ship, unknown to the Guardians. James Gunn said of the scene:
We realize that Gef has been on the ship the entire time mortally wounded. It ended up being a little confusing.
After seeing Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 last night, I'm inclined to agree with James Gunn. The five scenes were thoroughly enjoyable, with my full theater glued to their seats. But I doubt audiences would recognize Gef, let alone care that he happened to be bleeding out during half of the film's events. It would certainly be confusing, while also not being especially hilarious, since we aren't invested in the character.
Besides, one of the other post-credits scenes already provided a confusing WTF moment for audiences, so cutting a second confusing scene was probably the right call. The scene in question is Ayesha's post credits scene, which saw her creating a weapon to destroy the Guardians and presumably provide a villain for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Only the hardcore comic fans recognized the name Adam as Adam Warlock, so that scene was a confusing moment for most moviegoers.
It should be interesting to see if other MCU blockbusters decide to follow James Gunn's lead, include a handful of post-credits scenes. Although the film would need to be light enough to make these moments hilarious, so perhaps a more comedy-centric property like Ant-Man would be the right choice.
You can currently catch Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 in theaters. Be sure to check out our full 2017 premiere list to plan your next trip to the movies.
