- DB
Blog | Guardians United
A little later than usual today as I got distracted by other things and it's getting late here in England, but just thought that it was worth noting that, according to Variety (check near the end of the article), James Gunn could be reinstated as director of the next Guardians of the Galaxy film.
Personally, I thought that he should never have been fired in the first place, and it was a knee-jerk reaction by Disney in an effort to help the acquisition of Fox get over the finish line. Now that the buy-out has been approved, it's very convenient that Gunn could suddenly get his job back.
As for why he should never have been fired, this isn't condoning the content of his old tweets. Even James Gunn himself has condemned the tasteless, and utterly unsuccessful, shock humour they contained. The joint Guardians of the Galaxy cast statement matches this also.
The fact is that James Gunn has demonstrably changed and improved as a person in the years since he made those 'jokes'. Unlike Roseanne Barr, who is unable to tell the difference between her extremely recent racist remarks and Gunn's near-decade old tastelessness, Gunn's indiscretions are firmly in the past.
There are some who believe that he simply should never be forgiven for these past transgressions, but I dearly hope that, for their sake, they have never insulted, belittled or mocked anyone at any point ever in their lives or they are being hypocrites as they are saying we should judge them based on their worst behaviour too.
If a person's worth is to only ever be valued at how they are at their worst, then very few people - if any - on the face of the planet could possibly pass that purity test. Hell, what would be the point of prisons? Once a criminal, always a criminal, rehabilitation be damned?
The additional damning fact for Disney's actions towards Gunn is that these tweets were made and became public knowledge before they ever hired him. It's incredibly unlikely he wasn't vetted before being offered a job, so why are these comments an issue now?
It's because James Gunn was an extremely loud, regular critic of Trump, and the orange tyrant's followers on the right knew if they made enough noise, the far left purity fanatics would do their job for them and get Gunn fired. Nice job, guys! You helped borderline (and actual) Nazis win!
Again, what James Gunn wrote in those tweets was absolutely disgusting, which everyone agrees on, including everyone wanting him to get his job back. He has now apologised multiple times for what he wrote and has proven to those around him that he is a different person to the man he was many years before.
Seriously, the actors all still have contracts and would still get to make Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 if Marvel Studios still wanted to make the film. In fact, by banding together publicly as they have done - including Vin Diesel and Bradley Cooper, who only voice characters - they've actually risked their own jobs to support someone they know far better than any random commenters on social media.
Honestly, I don't expect Disney to re-hire Gunn and would be very surprised if they did so. Hell, the only way I can see it happening is if Kevin Feige steps up to defend him, as the Marvel Studios president's contract runs out next year and that could be a big bargaining chip for him.
James Gunn is an extremely talented writer and director, and I highly doubt he will be looking for work for too long. I don't think it will be with Marvel Studios, but I would be very happy if it was - if only for the fact it would make him the first MCU director to actually complete a trilogy.
Currently playing
Deadlight: Director's Cut - I've got no idea how long the game is, but it's enjoyable enough so far. The atmosphere is great, but it does occasionally feel like the game is trying to do a little too much for what should be a simple game.
Detroit: Become Human - closing in on the end now, reaching the 'Crossroads' chapter where all three of the main stories come together and I'm still on course for the ending I hoped for, despite trying out a few new things here and there that have had some unexpected changes. Such a good game!
Currently watching
Archer Season 1 - three episodes left and loving it. The characters are still not completely set at this point, but enough of what they will become is present already and it's nice knowing how much they have changed over the seasons from this starting point.
