At this point, everyone is expecting Marvel Studios’ two-part Avengers: Infinity War, hitting theaters in 2018 and 2019, to be a massive mash-up of all the superheroes that have made the leap from page to screen in the company’s cinematic universe up to that point — after all, it is an event that’s so big it needs two feature-length films to contain it.
But that may not be the case, according to Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn.
In an interview with Screen Junkies, Gunn hinted that the events transpiring in 2015’s Avengers: Age Of Ultron and the tone set by that series might not have any effect on what’s in the works for his group of heroic cosmic misfits. In fact, the Guardians of the Galaxy cast might not have much interaction at all with Iron Man and the rest of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.
“[We’re] trying to make [Avengers] effect it as little as possible,” said Gunn when asked how the dark tone of Age of Ultron could impact the sequel to Guardians of the Galaxy. “We really are separate from the Avengers, and I don’t think people should assume too many things about the Guardians’ play in all this. We have our own galaxy to take care of. We have our own galaxy to save. Earth is the Avengers’ province.”
“Thinking that everything is going to come together in a perfect way is not necessarily the way it’s gonna happen,” he added.
Guardians of the Galaxy 2 is scheduled to hit theaters May 5, 2017. Avengers: Infinity War – Part 1 arrives in theaters a year later, premiering May 4, 2018.
You can watch the full interview with Gunn below: