Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 director James Gunn is excited to see what happens next to the Guardians, leaving the door for a new filmmaker to helm Guardians of the Galaxy 4. Whether Guardians of the Galaxy 4 will happen remains to be seen, but Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 set up an interesting future for the Guardians. None of the main Guardians of the Galaxy characters died in Vol. 3, and a new team roster has been formed.

Speaking to The New York Times, James Gunn addressed the future of the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise after Vol. 3, noting that he hopes Marvel continues to use the Guardians going forward.

Whatever Marvel does with those characters, I can’t wait. I hope they use them. I can’t wait to see another filmmaker take on the Guardians, and I hope that they do it in a way that they take ownership of the characters.

Considering how Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 ended, Gunn’s comments make a lot of sense. Even though most of the original Guardians are no longer part of the team, there is more than enough room for a new Guardians of the Galaxy movie centered on the new lineup. With Gunn now moving to DC Studios, a potential Guardians of the Galaxy 4 would have to find a new director.

Can Guardians Of The Galaxy 4 Work Without James Gunn?

James Gunn directed all three entries in the MCU’s Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy. Only one other director achieved such a feat in the Marvel Cinematic Universe – Jon Watts directed the entire MCU Spider-Man trilogy. Therefore, it is indeed difficult to imagine Guardians of the Galaxy 4 without James Gunn. That said, there are still a lot of Guardians of the Galaxy stories left to be told.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’s ending wrapped up James Gunn’s trilogy, but it did not necessarily end the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise. Just the fact that there is a new Guardians of the Galaxy team suggests that a fourth Guardians movie could very well happen. Likewise, spinoffs centered on former Guardians of the Galaxy members, such as Star-Lord and Nebula, cannot be ruled out.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3‘s post-credits scenes give the MCU the perfect opportunity to replace James Gunn with a new director for Guardians of the Galaxy 4. Gunn’s vision defined the first three Guardians of the Galaxy movies, but the filmmaker got to conclude the story he wanted to tell. Therefore, Guardians of the Galaxy 4, centered on the new Guardians lineup, can work with a different director.

Source: The New York Times