Guardians Of The Galaxy Director Says He Will Not Release Comic-Con Footage

By Rudie Obias | Published

This article is more than 2 years old

james gunnIt’s strange to think that Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy has become one of the most anticipated comic book movies of 2014. Marvel Studios has a lot riding on the superhero space opera, so anything they can do to build anticipation and hype is a good thing for their bottom line. Director James Gunn built up plenty of hype when he shared early footage of the film with the crowd at San Diego Comic-Con. Unfortunately, Gunn says he has no plans to release the footage to the general public on the Internet.

The Guardians of the Galaxy footage has screened twice so far: once at San Diego Comic-Con and again for Disney’s D23 Expo. It showcases the entire lineup of the cosmic team of peacekeepers, including full CGI renderings of Rocket Raccoon and the treelike alien Groot. Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, and Dave Bautista were also in full dress as Star-Lord, Gamora, and Drax the Destroyer, respectively. Even John C. Reilly got in on the action as Rhomann Dey of the Nova Corps. With all the hype and good faith surrounding the footage, why doesn’t Gunn just release it to help build up excitement for Guardians of the Galaxy even more?

Gunn says he doesn’t think the footage isn’t good enough, compared to what the final film will be like. ComicBook.com quotes Gunn as saying, “I know a lot of you have seen the shaky camera footage, but it was made after 12 days of shooting and isn’t a true reflection of the awesomeness we’re trying to create for you.” So the chances of him eventually releasing the footage? Gunn says there’s a “Zero percent chance, sorry!”

A few weeks ago, the Marvel sizzle reel leaked onto the Internet after it was screened for Disney’s D23 Expo. A simple Internet search can find a number of results for the Guardians of the Galaxy footage, but it’s already been pulled down. MTV Splash Page points to a “Guardians of the Galaxy” (or “Guardians”) tag on tumblr that has a number of goodies from the Marvel movie. The big question is, do fans have a right to watch the Guardians of the Galaxy footage now? Does James Gunn have an obligation to the fans to release the Comic-Con footage?

Absolutely not! If Gunn doesn’t want to release the footage, that’s his prerogative as the writer, director, and producer of Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy. The film was only in production for only 12 days before Comic-Con, so the footage cut together as a sizzle reel was very rough and intended only for audiences at Comic-Con and Disney’s D23.

Fans will just have to wait a few months before Marvel releases a teaser trailer, which will be most likely in the front of Thor: The Dark World in November. The teaser will also most likely feature some footage from the Comic-Con sizzle reel alongside new footage from the film’s production. After that, fans will just have to wait for the final product, which is set to releas in August 2014. Gunn’s only job is to make the best possible Guardians of the Galaxy movie. Who cares about the early footage? Wouldn’t you rather watch a real trailer (or the actual film) instead?

Guardians of the Galaxy stars Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Benicio del Toro, Lee Pace, Karen Gillan, Michael Rooker, Djimon Hounsou, Olivia Lovibond, John C. Reilly, and Glenn Close as Nova Prime.

Guardians of the Galaxy will hit theaters everywhere on August 1, 2014, in 3D.