Dave Bautista 'thanks' Disney for removing James Gunn from Guardians of the Galaxy 3

James Gunn has many supporters, but none have been as vocal as Dave Bautista.

The WWE wrestler-turned-movie actor has once again criticised Disney’s choice to remove Gunn from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, ‘thanking’ the company in a Tweet while sharing an article castigating their decision.

“Thanks ⁦Disney!! Making America Great Again,” Bautista wrote alongside an article titled ‘Disney Not Rehiring James Gunn is a Big Mistake for Marvel (And Beyond)’.

Bautista has been a staunch supporter of Gunn, calling the prospect of working on the sequel without him ‘nauseating’. Alongside other Guardians cast members – including Chris Pratt and Zoe Saldana - Bautista signed an open letter to Disney asking for the director to be rehired. However, according to recent reports, Disney remains adamant about not bringing back Gunn as director of the upcoming Marvel movie.

Gunn’s firing came after an alt-right site unearthed controversial tweets he made in which he joked about paedophilia and rape. The director had previously criticised Donald Trump and the president’s administration.

Disney bosses announced they had “severed” ties with Gunn branding his comments “indefensible and inconsistent with [its] values.“

Gunn previously apologised for the ill-judged tweets ahead of his employment by Disney for the first Guardians of the Galaxy back in 2012. Disney claims it had no idea they existed and only learned about them when they recirculated.

There has been no word on who could replace James Gunn, though many are calling upon Disney to hire a female director in his place. It’s also unclear whether Disney bosses plan on using Gunn’s already complete script for Guardians Vol. 3, which was looking to enter production early next year.