Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 unveiled its first trailer at the San Diego Comic-Con recently. While it isn’t available online because of unfinished VFX, the footage is said to have left several attendees in tears, and the movie will be even harder to bear, per James Gunn and the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 cast.

James Gunn, along with Karen Gillan and Pom Klementieff, sat down with The Hollywood Reporter recently to talk about Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and they had a lot to say. “This is a much bigger movie than the other two movies, and it’s a much more emotional movie than the other two movies,” Gunn said. “And it’s a longer movie than the other two movies—it’s bigger in every way.”

Gunn has promised an emotional send-off to the Guardians of the Galaxy series and also a large body count, though he might have been joking on that one. But Gunn and the GOTG cast have hinted that not all of the characters will make it out of Vol. 3 alive. In fact, Gillan and Klementieff were in “floods of tears” after reading the script. Gillan, who plays the villain turned hero Nebula in the series, reiterated the sentimentality of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, saying:

“It was emotional making it, for sure. There was, of course, so much fun in the film and seeing fun sequences where the emotion isn’t so heavy, but ohh, there are scenes where the emotion is heavier than it’s ever been in the Guardians world. It was hard to get through some of it. It definitely feels like the most epic. It’s complex, and the characters are having to deal with that. It’s very emotional for all of them.”

While Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 looks to tug at our heartstrings, the film won’t skimp on the irreverent humor and the awe-inspiring visuals that have become synonymous with the series. Plus, being the final film of the trilogy, GOTG 3 will also be the most epic, so much so that Gunn figures he’d probably need half a billion dollars to bring his vision to life properly.


Related: Guardians of the Galaxy 3 Will be Last Time We See This Team, Says James Gunn

James Gunn Says Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 Will Be ‘Something Completely Different’

James Gunn was set to begin work on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 in 2018 before he was fired by Disney over past offensive tweets. But the company ultimately caved into fan demand and rehired the director, but by that time, he had jumped ship to the DC Extended Universe. Gunn opened up about collaborating again with Marvel and how things only got easier after all that controversy and delays.

“It was really comfortable, actually … I’m really familiar with the actors, so I know what they have to do. They’ve gotten better at their jobs so that I don’t have to bash them around so much. In a lot of ways, it was really easy — it’s really natural for me. I understand this. But I’m also really pushing myself and trying to create something completely different from what came before it, but that also honors what came before it.”

Gunn has assured that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3’s script hasn’t changed much due to the delays, but it will be an entirely different movie than fans are expecting. So keep those expectations in check.

Starring Chris Pratt, Will Poulter, Dave Bautista, Zoe Saldana, Bradley Cooper, Maria Bakalova, and Chukwudi Iwuji, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will premiere on May 5, 2023.