The Guardians of the Galaxy have come a long way in the last decade, transforming from a group of comic book rejects into the stars of one of Marvel Studios’ most popular sub-franchises. Director James Gunn and his collaborators deserve a lot of credit for that turnaround, not just for delivering two fun-filled features, but for believing in the band of misfits in the first place. And now, we’re getting a glimpse of Gunn’s early dreams for his motley space crew, from back before anyone knew how big they would become: the director has shared his original pitch and storyboards for what ultimately became the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie.
Via ComicBook.com, Gunn posted on his Facebook account that he recently came across the original pitch document that he created for Guardians of the Galaxy when he was still only in the running for the director’s gig. According to Gunn, the first sentence of his pitch set the tone not only for the first film, but also everything else that followed: “Life is often externally ugly and harsh – but, if you look deeper, love and selflessness are the guiding forces of our universe.” He also shared a few storyboards from the opening sequence that introduced movie fans to Peter Quill, a.k.a. Star-Lord.
There were of course some changes between the pitch and the final sequence that ended up on screen, but it appears to have remained largely in step with Gunn’s original vision. Remember this moment from the film?
This is what it looked like in Gunn’s initial images.
Even Star-Lord’s rocky escape from the planet was in play from the beginning.
It’s a fascinating look at Gunn’s creative process, and we’re certainly hoping that he shares more pictures from this pitch in the near future. (And even if he doesn’t, we’ve got Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 to look forward to.)
What did you think about Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy pitch storyboards? Let’s discuss in the comment section below!
Images: Marvel Studios
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