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Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 came out with a promise that it will be the final outing for the original Guardians as a team. With this movie being James Gunn's final MCU film, some of the cosmic heroes that he brought into the mix will retire as well. But with the way Vol. 3 ended, fans are left asking whether the original team members could reunite once more.
Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
Towards the end of Vol. 3, Peter Quill retired as the leader and left for Earth, leaving Rocket Raccoon in charge of organizing a new crew that included Groot and other new members. Gamora reunited with the Ravagers while Nebula and Drax stayed in Knowhere.
So, every OG Guardian is currently scattered across the galaxy, but if all parties agree, everyone could be back for another MCU outing. However, the possibility of such an event has diminished due to what Dave Bautista, Zoe Saldana, and James Gunn have said in the past.
Why some Guardians of the Galaxy actors will not return
While Guardians 3 ended with a confirmation for the return of Rocket, Groot, and Star-Lord, the likes of Drax and Gamora may not return. Firstly, Dave Bautista had already confirmed his retirement from the MCU way before Vol. 3 even hit the theaters.
On the Tonight Show, he stated that Guardians 3 will mark his final appearance and he would never return as Drax beyond that just to get another paycheck. Bautista said:
“I don't know why it's news. This is my seventh film as Drax. And my third 'Guardians' (movie). It was like our trilogy. That's kind of what we all signed up for, to do a trilogy. And I think this will be the last version of our 'Guardians of the Galaxy.'"
Drax's journey concludes with him becoming the father of his newly adopted Star Children, and that's all there is to it!
Following Bautista’s comments, Zoe Saldana also told Total Film Magazine that she will be retiring from the MCU after Vol. 3. She said:
“I think the time has come for me to step down, and for the next generation to come forward. The one thing I would not want is for Gamora to go away. She’s been such an impactful character for fans, and especially female fans, and young female fans.”
Surprisingly, Saldana did confirm that Gamora should continue in the MCU without her, and she gave the blessing for Marvel to recast the character in the future.
Then the final nail in the coffin was hammered by James Gunn himself, who stated that we’d never get a Guardians Vol. 4 with the OG team. He told Esquire Middle East:
“I don’t think there will ever be a 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 4.' There’s many reasons this group will not be back. There could be more 'Guardians' movies, but it won’t be with this group.”
So all in all, a reunion with all the cast members has become next to impossible after the aforementioned statements.
How the OG Guardians team could return in Secret Wars
After Vol. 3, there’s a huge possibility that the original team of Guardians will never reunite on the big screen. Many fans would agree that they don’t even need to because most of them have served their purposes.
But Avengers: Secret Wars is expected to be the biggest crossover event of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Even the OG Avengers could be back in it. So, why not the Guardians as well? But since some actors may not want to return, Marvel could simply bring in multiversal variants for characters like Drax and Gamora if they have to reform the first Guardians of the Galaxy team.
Avengers: Secret Wars arrives on May 1, 2026.
