Guardians of the Galaxy 2 director was 'afraid' of pitching Baby Groot to Marvel

‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’ director James Gunn has revealed the creative process behind deciding to make Groot a pint-sized star in his Marvel sequel.

Gunn said he was actually “afraid” to pitch the idea to the comic book maestros, but admits that since filming it’s become apparent it was a “hole-in-one idea”.

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Responding to an article about his own comments saying Baby Groot is not a marketing ploy, Gunn decided to elaborate on Facebook. “When I was first working on the script for ‘Vol. 2’ I was planning on it being years after the first movie and for little Groot to be a grown Groot. But there was something missing.

“Groot just wasn’t working. It was then I came upon the idea of having ‘Vol. 2’ take place very shortly after the first film and for Groot to still be Baby Groot, with quite a lot to learn.

“Even though I had already long-ago-decided on the other characters involved, this change opened up the whole movie for me and it suddenly all came together. I fell in love with the script for ‘Vol. 2’, and I felt like we were creating something very special.”

Gunn then described pitching the film to Marvel Studios, citing his fears over the inclusion of characters like Ego the Living Planet – who is Star-Lord’s (Chris Pratt) father and played by Kurt Russell.

“When I approached Marvel Studios with my idea for ‘Vol. 2’ I was afraid of the involvement of Ego the Living Planet – a rather, uh, broad character in the 616 universe of Marvel Comics. I was afraid of the inclusion of Mantis and Ayesha, and more prominent roles for Nebula and Yondu. But I was even more afraid of approaching them with the concept that Baby Groot, and not Groot, would be a member of the Guardians of the Galaxy.

“Yes, perhaps it seems like a hole-in-one idea now, but Groot was the most popular character in the first film, and sometimes when something works studios are more than a little reluctant to change.

“To my happy surprise, my partners at Marvel were more than supportive about the big swings in the story of Vol. 2. They seemed to instinctively know, like I did, that what matters in the Guardians franchise is to keep giving people the unexpected.”

Of course, Gunny saw the appeal in Baby Groot – which was evident in the original film’s credits scene which revealed the character to be alive and re-growing following his self-sacrifice.

“All that said, I’m not an idiot. I knew if Baby Groot worked, the world would want Baby Groot toys and figures and plushies. But that certainly didn’t seem like a certainty when I was alone in my office conceiving of a story, and it most definitely was not the driving force of the decision.

“I, like so many of you through the trailer alone, had fallen in love with the little dude – even though at that point he was only in my head.”

‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2’ sees Pratt return alongside Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel as Groot. The original Guardians will be joined by returning characters Yondu (Michael Rooker) and Nebula (Karen Gillan), as well as newcomers Kurt Russell, Elizabeth Debicki, Nathan Fillion and Sylvester Stallone.

The film is set for release on 28 April, 2017.