James Gunn Criticizes Avengers: Infinity War's Decision To Have Star-Lord Punch Thanos And Doom The Universe

The Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 director James Gunn has shared his criticisms of Avengers: Infinity War, saying he wouldn't have made the same decisions for the Guardians in the film if it were up to him.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Gunn and the cast of the upcoming Marvel Studios film sat down to discuss the trilogy ahead of its release next month. When talking about the future of the Guardians after the third film releases, Gunn shared his enthusiasm but said he is still protective of the characters he brought to the big screen. The filmmaker brought up Avengers: Infinity War--which was co-directed by Joe and Anthony Russo--and said there were aspects of that film that didn't align with the characters he wrote in the Guardians trilogy, saying, "They did some things that I wouldn't have wanted."

During one of the major battles in Infinity War, Tony Stark, Peter Parker, Doctor Strange, and the Guardians of the Galaxy team up and attempt to subdue Thanos in order to take the Infinity Gauntlet away from him. They almost succeed, but Star-Lord--played by Chris Pratt--punches Thanos and the team ultimately loses the battle, leading to Thanos snapping half of all life in the universe out of existence.

Gunn went on to say that his version of Star-Lord would've killed Gamora when she asked him to in Infinity War, but he wouldn't have punched Thanos and doomed the galaxy.

Pom Klementieff, who played Mantis, went on today that she isn't sure about working for a new director, saying, "I can’t imagine playing Mantis with someone else writing the words," and hinting at the fact that Gunn played a role in shaping the character when she appeared in the Avengers films. Gunn added that Klementieff and Pratt reached out to him personally while they filmed Infinity War for approval.

"I was being given directions, and I was like, 'I think I’m going to call James,'" said Klementieff.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is set to release on May 5 and James Gunn has already confirmed that there will be two post-credits scenes. Zoe Saldana has said that after Vol. 3, she doesn't expect to come back to play Gamora again.