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GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL.3 (2020): James Gunn Fired as Director, Marvel Severs Ties Over Tweets

James Gunn Guardians of the Galaxy Premiere

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 Director Fired Over Tweets

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 director James Gunn has been fired from his directing duties on that Marvel Studios film. All ties between Marvel Studios and James Gunn have been formally severed. This swift and final decision comes after it was brought to light by conservative bloggers Jack Posobiec and Mike Cernovich that James Gunn had made various derogatory comments via tweet about numerous groups, people, and subjects. The tweets were made between 2009 and 2012 and the subject matter pertained to jokes about pedophilia and rape.

Chairman of The Walt Disney Studios Alan Horn said this in a official statement about the firing of James Gunn:

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The offensive attitudes and statements discovered on James’ Twitter feed are indefensible and inconsistent with our studio’s values, and we have severed our business relationship with him.

This reaction in the zero tolerance atmosphere that the United States currently exists in was to be expected.

After the firing and before James Gunn deleted his Twitter account, James Gunn apologized for his previous insensitive tweets:

James Gunn Twitter Apology

Then James Gunn released a formal press released apology:

“My words of nearly a decade ago were, at the time, totally failed and unfortunate efforts to be provocative. I have regretted them for many years since — not just because they were stupid, not at all funny, wildly insensitive, and certainly not provocative like I had hoped, but also because they don’t reflect the person I am today or have been for some time.

Regardless of how much time has passed, I understand and accept the business decisions taken today. Even these many years later, I take full responsibility for the way I conducted myself then. All I can do now, beyond offering my sincere and heartfelt regret, is to be the best human being I can be: accepting, understanding, committed to equality, and far more thoughtful about my public statements and my obligations to our public discourse. To everyone inside my industry and beyond, I again offer my deepest apologies. Love to all.”

There is no word yet if Marvel still plans on using James Gunn’s completed Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 film script. This coupled with the hunt for a new director, it is unclear if Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will still be released in 2020.

Leave your thoughts on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 director James Gunn being fired over tweets (via Hollywood Reporter, Deadline) below in the comments section. Readers seeking more movie news can visit our Movie News Page, our Movie News Twitter Page, our Movie News Facebook Page, and our Movie News Google+ Page. Want up-to-the-minute notifications? FilmBook staff members publish articles by Email, Twitter, Tumblr, Google+, and Facebook.

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Rollo Tomasi

Rollo Tomasi is a Connecticut-based film critic, TV show critic, news, and editorial writer. He will have a MFA in Creative Writing from Columbia University in 2025. Rollo has written over 700 film, TV show, short film, Blu-ray, and 4K-Ultra reviews. His reviews are published in IMDb's External Reviews and in Google News. Previously you could find his work at Empire Movies, Blogcritics, and AltFilmGuide. Now you can find his work at FilmBook.
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