James Gunn ‘never thought’ unexpected character would join GotG

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 hits cinemas in a matter of hours, and while fans will be expecting to see some familiar faces in the Marvel superhero line-up, one member of the Ravagers was a surprise to the cast and crew.

Although the picture is bringing back the iconic Star-Lord, Gamora, Nebula, Drax, Rocket and Groot, the Ravagers – ruthless space pirates – are also making a comeback.

At their helm is none other than Kraglin, who was the right-hand man of Yondu throughout GotG and GotG Vol 2. But after Yondu sacrificed himself to save Peter Quill, the meek first-mate took over.

What’s more, this time around he is wearing Yondu’s head fin, which allows him to use the deadly weapon, the Yaka Arrow.

Looking back on bringing Kraglin into the fold, director James Gunn explained how he initially felt as if the character was not going to be a key player in the mythos, until the writing process.

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“That just kind of developed,” Gunn went on, before referencing the acting prowess of his brother, Sean Gunn, who plays Kraglin.

Sean Gunn was brought into the Guardians of the Galaxy series as an on-set stand-in for Rocket Raccoon. Although Bradley Cooper voices the hero on the big screen, all of the physical work is done by Sean.

As a result, James Gunn confessed, this worked in their favour. “Also,” he went on. “Because it was cheaper. Because we already had hired Sean for Rocket, and so we saved money by also giving him another character.”

It looks as if Kraglin’s position in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 is much larger than before as he is now the new captain of the Ravagers.

Going forward, that may mean he works closely with the Avengers as the multiversal threat of Kang continues to expand. But does he have what it takes to take on such a Thanos-level threat? 

Either way, he’ll certainly be working with the Avengers on Earth just as Rocket once did in Avengers Endgame. 

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 hits cinemas May 3.

Guardians of the Galaxy and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 are available on Disney Plus now.