After a decade of serialized, spandex-clad superhero storytelling, Marvel’s sprawling cinematic universe is going to reach the culmination of the saga it has been carefully constructing in 2018’s Avengers: Infinity War. The third Avengers film will pit Earth’s Mightiest Heroes against the likes of the the murderous, purple-faced tyrant Thanos (Josh Brolin), who is after those cosmically powerful mancala beads known as the Infinity Stones. Yet the Avengers won’t be able to face off against Thanos alone; they’re going to need a little help from everyone’s favorite group of intergalactic a-holes, the Guardians of the Galaxy.

While the exact nature of the Guardians’ role in Infinity War is still under wraps, Nerdist’s Hector Navarro sat down with Star-Lord himself, Chris Pratt, as well as Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 writer-director James Gunn to talk about the lead-up to Marvel’s much-anticipated mega-movie. Pratt revealed that while the Guardians are, in fact, in the film, they play much more of a supporting role. It is, at the end of the day, an Avengers movie, not a Guardians movie.

Given his role as the primary architect of what we’ve seen so far of Marvel’s Cosmic Universe, we couldn’t help but ask Gunn exactly how involved he is in Avengers: Infinity War. While Joe and Anthony Russo have proved that they can handle a gigantic cast of characters with films like Captain America: Civil War, it’s understandable that they might turn to Gunn for clues on how best to deploy characters like Star-Lord, Rocket Raccoon, and the rest of the Guardians gang.

Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2 hits theaters on May 5, 2017. Read our spoiler-free review, and make the wait go by faster by listening to the exclusive Awesome Mix we curated based on suggestions by the stars themselves!

Image: Disney/Marvel

Dan Casey is the senior editor of Nerdist and the author of books about Star Wars and the Avengers. Follow him on Twitter (@Osteoferocious).