Rocket Raccoon Is The Heart Of Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3, Director Gunn Says

James Gunn’s mind might be onto bigger and more urgent things these days, but Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, his third outing in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, won’t be in theaters until May–meaning that the boss of DC Studios is currently doing PR for the MCU. Gunn spoke about the the focus shifting to Rocket Raccoon for this third movie in a new interview with Total Film.

“The most important thing for me was Rocket’s story–and then, following that, everybody else,” Gunn said. “Rocket is the secret protagonist of the Guardians of the Galaxy, and has always been the center of it for me, and this is really fulfilling that. The reason I came back, and decided to do this movie, was because I really felt like Rocket’s story needed to be told–and it was left hanging after Vol 2. So that’s the most important thing.”

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will work both as a stand-alone film and as the end of the trilogy, Gunn continued. “The first movie is about the mother, the second is about the father, and the third movie is about the self,” he said. “And that’s what this journey is.”

Guardians Vol. 3 picks up with the crew where the Holiday Special, released last fall, left them. The team is trying to make Knowhere a safe haven for victims of Thanos’ snap when Rocket’s past comes back to haunt him. The Guardians will encounter the High Evolutionary (Chukwudi Iwuji), who figures heavily into Rocket’s origin, as well as Adam Warlock (Will Poulter), hinted at in the post-credits scene for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. From what we’ve seen in the trailers, it looks like the crew will end up on Counter-Earth, a secret Earth-like planet populated by humanoid animals.

The whole core cast is returning for the final film, including Chris Pratt, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Zoe Saldana, Karen Gillian, Pom Klementieff, and Vin Diesel. Poulter and Iwuji are joined by Daniela Melchior (The Suicide Squad) and Maria Bakalova, who joined the cast as Cosmo the Spacedog in the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 hits theaters on May 5, 2023.