Among the many things we know about Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 ahead of the upcoming Marvel movie’s wide release is that it will be Rocket’s biggest platform to shine yet. Writer/director James Gunn described him as the “secret protagonist” of Vol. 3, and audiences will learn more about the character’s origins, which includes meeting his old pal Lylla (voiced by MCU vet Linda Cardellini). Additionally, Bradley Cooper, the voice behind Rocket, has shared why fans might see his character “in a different light” after the events of the threequel.
While Sean Gunn physically portrays Rocket on set during the filming of these Marvel movies when he’s not busy playing Kraglin, Bradley Cooper has been bringing him to life vocally since Guardians of the Galaxy came out in 2014. In fact, Cooper believes that once the public sees Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, they’ll view Rocket differently the next time they go through the Marvel movies in order, telling GMA:
I think that once they watch this movie, you'll maybe go back and watch the other movies and I think see Rocket in a different light. I think you really get a chance to understand how he came to be. It was really emotional honestly, it was very emotional to play him in this. It was surprising. James and I sort of looked at each other after a couple moments because Rocket went through a lot.
Along with Rocket being an integral character in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, he was also prominently featured in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, particularly for being the only Guardian besides Nebula who survived Thanos’ snap. However, we’ve never heard the story about how the raccoon, who was once known as Subject 89P13, became genetically enhanced and kicked off his life as a cynical and sarcastic bounty hunter prior to meeting the other Guardians. While there have certainly been moments in the MCU that have made viewers sympathize with Rocket, as Bradley Cooper laid out, the information supplied in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will give them a better understanding of just how much hell he’s been through over his life.
Much of this stems from Rocket and his fellow animal buddies being experimented on by Chukwudi Iwuji’s High Evolutionary, a scientist from Counter-Earth who’s quite the “piece of shit.” Rocket will cross paths with his “creator” in the midst of the Guardians’ latest adventure, which will also see them clashing with Will Poulter’s Adam Warlock. As if seeing painting Rocket in a different light wasn’t emotional enough, Vol. 3 will also be the last time we see this iteration of the Guardians. That’s not to say Rocket and the other characters couldn’t appear in the MCU again, but it won’t be all together as a team.
The public will have to wait until May 5 to see what awaits Rocket in his latest MCU appearance, but the good news is that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 has already scored a lot of positive responses from early screenings. You can revisit the Guardians’ previous adventures ahead of this release, including The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, by breaking out your Disney+ subscription.
