Guardians of the Galaxy Stars Want James Gunn Back, Despite His Politically Incorrect Tweets
The stars have signed an open letter explaining why Gunn didn't deserve to lose his job.
The stars of the Guardians of the Galaxy movies have signed an open letter expressing their support for director James Gunn. Gunn, who directed the first two films in the Guardians series, was fired by Disney earlier this month after right-wing trolls dug up some ill-advised jokes he tweeted years ago.
The letter is signed by cast members Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Sean Gunn, Pom Klementieff, and Michael Rooker:
An Open Letter from the "Cast of Guardians of the Galaxy"
To our fans and friends:
We fully support James Gunn. We were all shocked by his abrupt firing last week and have intentionally waited these ten days to respond in order to think, pray, listen, and discuss. In that time, we've been encouraged by the outpouring of support from fans and members of the media who wish to see James reinstated as director of Volume 3 as well as discouraged by those so easily duped into believing the many outlandish conspiracy theories surrounding him.
Being in the "Guardians of the Galaxy" movies has been a great honor in each of our lives. We cannot let this moment pass without expressing our love, support, and gratitude for James. We are not here to defend his jokes of many years ago but rather to share our experience having spent many years together on set making Guardians of the Galaxy 1 and 2. The character he has shown in the wake of his firing is consistent with the man he was every day on set, and his apology, now and from years ago when first addressing these remarks, we believe is from the heart, a heart we all know, trust, and love. In casting each of us to help him tell the story of misfits who find redemption, he changed our lives forever. We believe the theme of redemption has never been more relevant than now.
Each of us looks forward to working with our friend James again in the future. His story isn't over—not by a long shot.
There is little due process in the court of public opinion. James is likely not the last good person to be put on trial. Given the political divide in this country, it's safe to say instances like this will continue, although we hope Americans from across the political spectrum can ease up on the character assassinations and stop weaponizing mob mentality.
It is our hope that what has transpired can serve as an example for all of us to realize the enormous responsibility we have to ourselves and to each other regarding the use of our written words when we etch them in digital stone; that we as a society may learn from this experience and in the future will think twice before we decide what we want to express; and in so learning perhaps can harness this capability to help and heal instead of hurting each other. Thank you for taking the time to read our words.
The Guardians of the Galaxy
Gunn's tweets, which involved violence and sexual assault against children, were disgusting, but they were clearly intended as gags; in any event, the director has apologized for them. As I noted last week, making them an issue now is an act of pure retaliation against the left (Gunn is a liberal), perpetrated by far-right hypocrites who are just as committed to weaponizing P.C. culture as anyone on the other side of the spectrum.
The Guardians stars aren't the only ones who want Gunn back. A Change.org petition calling for Disney to rehire the filmmaker has garnered nearly 340,000 signatures.