Spoilers ahead for Guardians 3.
Last weekend marked the release of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which has also inspired fans to re-watch the Marvel movies in order. James Gunn’s movie offered a finale for the scrappy group of cosmic heroes, with each member of the cast getting a moment to shine. That includes Vin Diesel’s Groot, who broke new ground by uttering something other than “I am Groot.” James Gunn recently confirmed a key detail to that big Groot scene, and now I’m emotional.
Since he was introduced in the first Guardians movie, Diesel has appeared in a number of Marvel movies, and only had to deliver one line (in all different ways). Namely, “I am Groot.” But his final line in Guardians 3 was one of the movie's most heartbreaking scenes, saying “I love you guys.” which was definitely a surprise. A fan recently reached out to Gunn on Twitter asking if a popular theory about this scene was true. Namely, if this sequence was the moment where audiences were finally able to understand Groot’s language. He responded saying:
Spoiler….Yes that’s exactly what it means.May 6, 2023
I’m not crying, you’re crying. The Guardians franchise was methodical in its storytelling, with the audience slowly earning character’s backstories and seeing as they grow before our eyes. Groot was no exception in this regard, and during Guardians 3’s ending we finally got the chance to understand what the cosmic hero was saying. We’ll just have to wait and see if he returns to the MCU, allowing for more challenging dialogue for Diesel.
Part of what made this Groot scene make such an impact is because, earlier in the runtime, we got a bit more information about how his fellow heroes understand. When Gamora joins the team on their quest to help Rocket, she’s baffled by the way everyone else understands him. But by the end of their adventure, she’s able to communicate with him on Knowhere before departing with the Ravagers.
And so when Vin Diesel’s raspy voice says “I love you guys” it’s that same process happening with the audience. Considering that it's been a decade of following the Guardians and their stories, this is a huge payoff– even if some fans needed the confirmation from Gunn himself.
Guardians 3’s post-credits scene revealed that Chris Pratt’s Star-Lord would be back, but it’s unclear if/when we’ll see the rest of the team again. Rocket is now the head of the Guardians, which features a mixture of new and returning characters. Then there’s the group that’s taking care of things at Knowhere. Additionally, Mantis is having her own adventure. We’ll just have to wait and see what comes next in upcoming Marvel movies, especially Avengers: The Kang Dynasty.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is in theaters now. Be sure to check out the 2023 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.
