While engaging in one of his frequent and candid Q&As with fans, Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn revealed that at least one studio exec was not thrilled that Bradley Cooper was cast to play a talking CGI raccoon that sounds absolutely nothing like Bradley Cooper. While it is true that the average moviegoer probably wouldn’t know that Rocket is Cooper unless they stuck around for the credits, Gunn successfully argued that Cooper was brought on for his talent, not his star power:
“One exec – who is no longer with Marvel Studios/Disney – saw an early cut & said “Why did we pay money for Bradley Cooper if he doesn’t even sound like Bradley Cooper!?” I was like, we hired him because he’s a great ACTOR. That’s the point! He’s creating a CHARACTER!”
Clearly, Gunn’s decision paid off as Rocket became not only the emotional center of Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2, but he played a pivotal role befriending Chris Hemsworth’s Thor and helping him navigate the epic events of both Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.
You can see Gunn’s tweet below:
One exec – who is no longer with Marvel Studios/Disney – saw an early cut & said “Why did we pay money for Bradley Cooper if he doesn’t even sound like Bradley Cooper!?” I was like, we hired him because he’s a great ACTOR. That’s the point! He’s creating a CHARACTER! https://t.co/TzW7IMQ4gB
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) December 22, 2020
The Guardians of the Galaxy have been back in the headlines lately, and not just because of the recently announced holiday special coming to Disney+. Vice President Mike Pence revealed that members of Space Force will now be called “Guardians,” which immediately launched a million Guardians of the Galaxy jokes on Twitter. Gunn, on the other hand, got directly to the point. “Can we sue this dork?” he tweeted after catching wind of the news.
(Via James Gunn on Twitter)