James Gunn: Will James Gunn be reinstated as director for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3?

James Gunn is a phenomenal director, whose work on Guardians of the Galaxy saw his movies stand out from the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

But when the Tweets from 2008 to 2011 resurfaced, Disney was quick to fire him from the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy.

As the immediate aftermath has calmed, some fans are wondering if Gunn’s Tweets warranted his July 20 sacking from Disney, with cast members and fans calling for him to be reinstated.

Will James Gunn be reinstated as director of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3?

Maybe, if the Guardians of the Galaxy cast have their way.

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Chris Pratt, who plays Peter Quill aka Starlord in the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise, as well as other Marvel movies, posted an open letter to Disney on his Instagram feed.

He captioned the letter with: “Although I don’t support James Gunn’s inappropriate jokes from years ago, he is a good man.

“I’d personally love to see him reinstated as director of Volume 3.”

He added: “If you please, read the following statement- signed by our entire cast.”

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The open letter references an online petition on Change.org which calls for Gunn to be reinstated.

As of writing, the e-petition has gained over 330,000 signatures.

Journalists, too, have called out Disney for its harsh response, with a Vulture article titled “Disney Should Know the Difference Between James Gunn and Roseanne” going in depth into the difference between Gunn’s offensive humour and hate crimes.

Pratt’s costar Zoe Saldana also Tweeted the letter, adding: “If you please, read the statement written and signed by The Guardians of the Galaxy cast in support of James Gunn’s reinstatement as director of GOTG Volume 3.”

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Actors outside the Guardians’ Galaxy have also come to Gunn’s defence, including Selma Blair and comedian Patton Oswalt.

Karen Gillan, Sean Gunn (James’ brother, who was quick to post a public defence of James on Twitter), Vin Diesel, Pom Klementieff and Michael Rooker also signed the letter.

The cast wrote in the letter “The character [Gunn] has shown in the wake of his firing is consistent with the man he was every day on set, and his apology, now and from years ago when first addressing these remarks, we believe is from the heart, a heart we all know, trust and love.””

The letter continued: “Each of us looks forward to working with our friend James again in the future.

“His story isn’t over — not by a long shot.”