Last year, Latino-Review reported that the "Planet Hulk" comic book storyline would soon be stomping into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. (In the comic book, the Hulk is banished from Earth and winds up on a fearsome world, following a "Conan"-style trajectory from gladiatorial warrior to ruler of the planet.) The rumors were debunked, but late last month, Hitfix teased a potential "Guardians of the Galaxy" sequel that would also feature "Planet Hulk"-style story elements (head to that site for the full, potentially spoilery details). Well, we recently spoke to "Guardians of the Galaxy" writer/director James Gunn, and he set the record straight on both counts.
When we asked him about the rumors of the Hulk joining up with the Guardians of the Galaxy (which include Chris Pratt‘s Star Lord, Zoe Saldana‘s Gamora, and a talking, trigger-happy raccoon named Rocket voiced by Bradley Cooper), he gave us the unvarnished truth: "I can answer that question very easily: it is absolute, 100% bullshit," he said, adding: "It feels like a great relief to finally say this after all the dumb stuff on the Internet."
"There’s not going to be a ‘Planet Hulk’ movie, there was never going to be a ‘Planet Hulk’ movie, there was never a plan for the Hulk to team up with the Guardians of the Galaxy – I wouldn’t want the Hulk to team up with the Guardians of the Galaxy! And it’s all a bunch of complete bullshit," Gunn continued.
When we joked that his "complete bullshit" comment would be the title of our news piece, Gunn didn’t back down. "That is fine. I love it. I’m so sick of it," Gunn said. He then went on to address one of the reasons the rumors could have persisted (minor spoilers ahead for "Guardians of the Galaxy"). "The whole thing is, there’s Sakaraan in the movie. And the reason there’s Sakaraan in the movie is because there aren’t that many alien races in the Marvel Universe, and of those prominent alien races, such as the Kree and the Skrull," Gunn added, somewhat tantalizingly, "I have some very specific ideas for where those races go."
He then went on to explain the nuts-and-bolts reason for the Sakaraan being in the movie. "The reason we picked the Sakaraan is because we don’t own Badoon. In the script it originally said Badoon," Gunn said. "So you can blame search and replace for changing Badoon to Sakaaran and leading to the whole ‘Planet Hulk’ conspiracy."
So, there you have it. "Guardians Of The Galaxy" opens on August 1st.
It's bad enough he isn't following through with a beloved story for the Hulk. Then he trashes the mystery and talks down to the people who fuel his career? What a twat.
Gunn is being a bit of a prick about it. Nerd buzz is a huge contributing factor to why Marvel films are doing so successfully; the Marvel marketing department knows how to play the fans like a harpsichord. And part of that is, of course, going to be speculation as to what comes next. And of course that speculation is going to be wrong sometime.
Gunn shouldn't bite the hand that feeds him. And he certainly shouldn't do it with such an air of complete condescension.
Latin-Review = Bu!!$#!t. Leave it to Mexicans to constantly be picking $#!t out of there @$$e$ and calling it news.
What if….GOTG 2 and Planet Hulk are two seperate films? Ask that question Internet.
Thanks a f*cking lot James Gunn. I don't mind that the plans in question are complete bullsh*t. But, I'm pissed off that you have to open your fat mouth and publicly say it. Us fans want it. We enjoy speculating what is next on Marvel's agenda. Don't rob us of our hopes on what we want to see or the fun of trying to guess. What a jack*ss move dude! Keep your mouth shut, if it's complete crap like you suggest, then be happy that everyone is thinking in that direction so that the real slate of movies blows us away when we didn't seeing it coming. Now, if it does come to fruition(Like I mentioned, us huge Hulk fans are routing for.) You'll also be a complete lying douche bag. I love just about everything thus far, and can live without that particular movie. I just can't believe that any producer or director would correct the public line of thinking when the business relies on secrecy so much. Shouldn't you want people leaning away from the real ideas and or plans? Coming out and shooting it down so quickly, makes me feel that something major along those lines in the work. And Ruffalo sure thinks there as some really big plans for his character that he is dying to share publicly. I can't wait to see what they really are. Surprise me, thrill me, blow my mind….. but, don't take away my ability to speculate.
Fans are just butt hurt they are not getting the story they want, and expect Marvel to change it's entire plan just for them. There is already a Plant Hulk movie in animated form and it is brilliant, go watch that if you want it so bad. The MCU has hardly let us down yet, sure there has been a few stumbles along the way but I for one trust Marvel a hell of a lot more than anything WB/DC is doing right now. So just calm down, sit back and enjoy what the folks over at Marvel have planned for us cause it will be fun and entertaining in ways non-comic readers have yet to realize.
The reason why the Guardians/planet hulk rumors are so compelling is because it would make an awesome film. Most of the fans I know absolutely love Planet Hulk and count it as the high point of the character. It is powerful enough to stand on it's own, but mixing it in with the Guardians would be really cool.
One thing that bothers me is when companies don't listen to their customers. I think the fans are excited about this concept for a reason and Marvel should take heed. My prediction is that the cosmic elements (Guardians, Thanos, Inhumans, Ronan etc.) will be far superior to the Earthbound counterparts, making Iron Man, Thor and Cap a little stale, if they are not part of the space opera.
Think about how visually interesting it would be for the Hulk to become a Gladiator, then conquer an alien world. It would be fun to watch! So what if Ruffalo doesn't get to spend any time as Banner, that would only matter to an actor, and it's not the actors who are buying the tickets.
I'm actually holding out hope that this is misdirection on the part of Mr. Gunn, and I hope they take the story in this direction. In comics, Ultron interacts with the Guardians and Ronan, so I think they will find a way to tie it all together, even if it takes a hundred years to do so.
why didnt they just make up a race of aliens come on now lmao
Planet Hulk was the reason I stopped reading comics completely. Not a terrible idea, but built on such a bad premise I was horrified. I've been such a fan of the Hulk for so many years. It all ended with Planet Hulk.
Calm your tits gunn, Planet Hulk is an AWESOME storyline and it should be a movie. HOPEFULLY someone in the future will make it a movie. And since u apparently got so much hate for it, i sincerely hope you dont have anything to do with it.
Okay, i take his point, but why so angry? it's not like someone suggested teaming the Guardians up with 'The Situation' from Jersey Shore? It seems a plausible specualtions from fans – why such bitterness in Gunn's tone?