While the Guardians of the Galaxy movies are a solid part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, they are also, largely, a unique franchise thanks to James Gunn. One of the things that makes the film's standout among their peers is the use of music. The Guardians films are known for their 1970s era pop music soundtrack.
Whatever Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is set to bring us, we know it's going to have more of that great music, but James Gunn recently broke the news to one fan that one very popular tune from the era, "Dancing in the Moonlight," won't be making the cut for the new film, even though it's a song a lot of people want. In fact, it won't be in the movie largely because a lot of people want it. Gunn explained on Twitter...
There are a handful of song from the 1970s that were such big hits in their day that they are still popular today. And for the most part James Gunn has stayed away from those hits. Instead, we've heard a few tunes that we recognize in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, but maybe not ones we really "know," combined with songs most people have probably never heard.
"Dancing in the Moonlight" by Toploader may be one of the most recognizable songs of its style, ever. The connection between that song, and many of the pieces that have shown up in Guardians of the Galaxy movies, is obvious. The song would certainly fit in the soundtrack of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, but it would fit too well it seems, so Gunn is going to skip it.
As far as the songs that we will hear, who knows. Gunn has said they he submits a CD with the song choices along with his script. And we know he completed the script, which means that the song's have probably all been chosen.
Of course that assumes that the movie won't be going through changes. While Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 was expected to be released in 2020, the movie was delayed due to the firing and then rehiring of James Gunn as director. The movie now won't be seen before 2022 at the earliest. It's possible that the delay, and all the movies and MCU series that will now take place before it, might require some tweaks to the story.
And if the story is changed, it might therefore change the music. James Gunn says there are lots of songs that he's wanted to include, but hasn't because they just didn't fit right.
It would follow that changes to the story might make a previously chosen song no longer fit.
Before we hear the new music of Guardians of the Galaxy, however, James Gunn is directing The Suicide Squad. The director also promised on Twitter that music would be an important part of that movie as well, though, obviously, the tone and style of that music will be quite different.
