Director James Gunn is a very busy man. Gunn became a household thanks to his work on the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise, which elevated the group of unknown characters to the top of the MCU. After he was briefly fired by Marvel, the filmmaker pivoted over to DC for The Suicide Squad. With two different comic book blockbusters coming, Gunn has been fielding all sorts of questions on his social media. This includes clarifying Yondu's possible role in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
James Gunn was fired by Marvel in July of 2018, before eventually being reinstated to direct Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. The filmmaker will be able to complete his Marvel trilogy, and wrap up the story he began when the first movie arrived in 2014. But Vol. 3 was also delayed quite a bit, leaving more time for the rabid fanbase the theorize about its contents. A fan recently asked of Yondu would be brought back in the threequel, to which Gunn said:
Well, that seems pretty cut and dry. James Gun is a director who believes in real consequences and stakes for superhero movies. As such, he won't be retconning Yondu's death out of the canon with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
James Gunn's comments about Yondu comes from his personal Twitter page. While the social media service is what got him into trouble and temporarily fired from the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise, he's continued to be extremely generous with his time, using Twitter and Instagram to directly communicate with the fans. Gunn did plenty of Q&A's on Instagram during filming of The Suicide Squad, and the questions often turn to his upcoming Guardians sequel.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 greatly moved the group's story forward, with each of the Guardians becoming more fleshed out. Michael Rooker's Yondu did perhaps the biggest about-face, going from a secondary antagonist to an unlikely ally and father figure for Star-Lord. The blue antihero was ultimately given one of the most devastating death scenes of the entire MCU, as well as a firework-fueled Ravager funeral in space.
Yondu's death seemed pretty cut and dry, and he wasn't mentioned during the course of Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame. Additionally, those movies jumped ahead years after the events of Guardians 2 in order to get the team on the same timeline as the rest of the shared universe. So not only is Yondu dead, but it's been a long time since Peter Quill and company lost Michael Rooker's character.
This isn't the first time that James Gunn has been asked about Yondu and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Fans have been hoping that the character might still pop up in the threequel, despite his apparent death. But Gunn was consistently shut down rumors of Yondu returning from the dead, as he wants his Marvel movies to have true stakes.
Yondu might not be brought back to life, but James Gunn has suggested a few was the blue guy might briefly appear in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Namely by including flashbacks from when he was still alive. But Gunn obviously wasn't going to confirm this type of macguffin.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is currently set to arrive in theaters sometime in 2021. In the meantime, check out our 2020 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
