Bradley Cooper has responded to claims he could direct Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 3 after the original director, James Gunn, was fired.
- Read more: Guardians Of The Galaxy 3: what we know so far about the next chapter in the Marvel series
Gunn was fired by Disney back in July following the re-emergence of a number of his old tweets, which made offensive jokes about pedophilia and rape. Disney’s decision to remove Gunn from his role as head of the franchise he created prompted a wide backlash, with the stars of the films signing an open letter in defence of Gunn a week after his termination.
Cooper, who voices Rocket Raccoon in the Marvel series, recently finished directing and starring in A Star is Born. When approached with the idea of replacing Gunn, Cooper responded: “In directing it?”
“I could never direct anything that I didn’t write,” he continued, in an interview with Joe. “No, I could never direct anything that I didn’t write.”
Last month, Disney appeared to be standing firm on decision to fire Gunn. The director and his UTA (United Talent Agency) representatives were successful in securing a meeting with Disney chief Alan Horn, but the latter only agreed to take the meeting with Gunn in order to “clear the air”.
Though the meeting was described by sources as “civil and professional”, Horn reportedly made it clear to Gunn that he and Disney would not be changing their position. Representatives for Disney and Marvel have declined to comment on the new report.
Chris Pratt, who plays the Star Lord in the films, previously tweeted that Gunn is “a good man” despite the “inappropriate jokes” that led to his sacking.
Pratt wrote: “Although I don’t support James Gunn’s inappropriate jokes from years ago, he is a good man. I’d personally love to see him reinstated as director of Volume 3.”
In the follow-on post, which revealed that some of the cast support Pratt’s call, Pratt praises Gunn for changing their “lives forever”, and urges readers to “stop weaponising mob mentality.”