James Gunn was generous enough to give some hints about his "Guardians of the Galaxy" sequel at Variety's Entertainment & Technology Summit Tuesday, Oct. 21.
The 44-year-old filmmaker confirmed at the event that all five original Guardians - Star Lord, Gamora, Drax the Destroyer, Groot and Rocket - will be back for the second installment of the film series, Variety reported. He also revealed that fans may see the team welcoming new members.
The Saint Louis, Missouri-born director and screenwriter is so excited for the movie's second part that he spent the whole day of August 1 - the opening date of "Guardians of the Galaxy" - writing the sequel. "I was so excited about it and I was finally able to let go of the last one and begin the second one. I always saw this as a universe, not just as one story," he said.
When asked about the possibility of his Marvel franchise crossing over with other Disney-owned properties, Gunn said that it is unlikely, even if the characters in "Guardians of the Galaxy" have the ability to travel to galaxies far, far away.
"'Star Wars' was a long time ago," Gunn said. "It would have to be time travel."
"Guardians of the Galaxy," which has a production budget of $170 million, has already grossed $732.7 million at the box office worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo. And Gunn believes that the 3D release is one of the reasons the film continues to see success worldwide.
The "Dawn of the Dead" director added that it is the international appeal that pushes a studio to go 3D with a movie rather than what a director necessarily wants to do with it.
"3D kind of is a wash in the United States, but in Europe it's bigger. So it makes much more of a difference than it does here," he explained. "If it was just 3D in the United States, most people would not do 3D."
But unlike other flicks that simply apply 3D in post production, Gunn said that he deliberately planned the film's effects for the 3D experience to avoid issues like shaky cam during action shots. He also revealed that his special-effects training came on the set of "Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed."
Meanwhile, the Marvel film's soundtrack "Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix Vol. 1 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack), which was previously released on digital download, CD and vinyl, will be rereleased on cassette form on Nov. 17, Time reported.
Even though the album does not feature original songs, it remarkably topped the Billboard 200 over the summer. The soundtrack includes Blue Swede's "Hooked on a Feeling" and David Bowie's "Moonage Daydream," among many other '70s hits.