Guardians of the Galaxy Director on Whether Thanos Will Return for Sequel

Thanos is shaping up to be the Marvel Cinematic Universe's biggest villain, with Avengers: Infinity War promising an epic showdown between the galactic overlord and what sounds like every hero on the Marvel roster. But while the character was first introduced in 2014's smash Guardians of the Galaxy, director James Gunn has revealed that he won't play a part in the sequel.

During a Facebook Q&A, Gunn was asked if Thanos would return for 2017's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. "Thanos isn't in this movie," he confirmed. "I think he's gonna have a little bit to do and say when it comes to a certain wars and infinity. We've got other fish to fry in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. We're not really so much about the Infinity Stones in Guardians 2. Is that a spoiler? It's not really a thing."

"I'm dealing with this one story. It's not like I have to change something now for something in the future. It's more like whatever happens in the future will have to be changed by what's created now."

Last week, Thanos actor Josh Brolin revealed that he would be filmed via motion capture for his role in Infinity War, rather than just adding his voice to a pure-CG creation. "I'm there and I'm not in a booth. I'm being filmed. I have a bunch of crap on my face," he said. "I'm being filmed by like thirty-four cameras? Thirty-six cameras? Something like that. Every movement, everything. So, it's very new to me, it's very exciting, it's very unnerving."

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is currently in pre-production and will be released on May 5, 2017. Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 and Part 2 hit cinemas on May 4, 2018 and May 3, 2019 respectively.