Where to watch Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)

Trivia & production notes

• James Gunn initially hesitated to return for a third Guardians film because Michael Rooker's character Yondu died at the end of the second installment, and Gunn didn't want to continue without him.
• Gunn conceived the three Guardians films as a single story arc, with the third film intended to tie together loose threads and provide answers from the first two movies.
• Disney fired James Gunn in July 2018 after conservative commentators circulated old tweets in which he made jokes about offensive topics, though the tweets predated his involvement with the film.
• Over 300,000 fans signed an online petition calling for Gunn's reinstatement after his firing, and the entire Guardians cast issued a joint statement of support for him.
• Dave Bautista said he would only return for the film if Marvel used Gunn's existing script, and expressed uncertainty about working for Disney given how they handled Gunn's firing.
• James Gunn was privately told he could return as director just one day after joining The Suicide Squad for Warner Bros., after Alan Horn reconsidered the firing decision.
• Production on Vol. 3 was delayed until February 2021 to allow Gunn to complete The Suicide Squad first.
• Gunn's exit settlement with Disney was expected to pay him $7-10 million or more, and there was initially hope the negotiations could lead to his eventual return to the franchise.
• Gunn originally planned to include Adam Warlock in his script treatment for Vol. 2, but saved the character for Vol. 3 after recognizing his importance to the cosmic side of the MCU.
• Marvel Studios executives conducted behind-the-scenes negotiations with Disney in an attempt to reverse Gunn's firing, inspired by support from the film's cast members.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Rewritten for StreamShack; errors are ours — tell us about them.