It's nearly the end of an era. There's precious little time left for fans to appreciate a certain master of stealth and humor while he's still hanging around. Don't worry, this isn't about Sly Cooper, even though he's been absent for quite some time. But this might sting even more for some.

Dave Bautista, former beefy wrestler and current beefy actor, has announced that he will no longer play Drax the Destroyer in the Guardians of the Galaxy films following the upcoming 3rd installment in the franchise. Having played the role to critical acclaim since 2014, Bautista has made no secret about how much he's enjoyed the character over the years. But all good things must come to an end, it seems, and for what it's worth as a silver lining, the decision appears to be his own rather than one suggested by the studio.

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Bautista tweeted this announcement in response to an IGN article reporting his own words on the matter. The article highlighted Bautista's statement that Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3 would be the last time he plays Drax, interpreting it to mean that the character himself would be done with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and all without the satisfaction of killing Thanos personally. Luckily, Bautista seems to have a more optimistic outlook for the future of the character.

"Drax isn’t going anywhere. He just won't be played by this dude!" Bautista said in his tweet, reassuring fans that the character may very well still have some life in him after the 3rd film. It doesn't seem to have anything to do with lack of interest on his part, however, as he continued with "by the time [Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3] comes out I'll be 54 yrs old for gods sake! im [sic] expecting everything to start sagging any second now." While many would argue (with good reason) that one's age shouldn't disqualify them from physical roles that show off their physiques like this, it's satisfying to know Bautista is bowing out on his own terms.

Bautista has always had real enthusiasm behind his roles, even campaigning for years to play comic book villain Bane in a DC movie, and that energy came through in his performance as Drax. Not only did the character stand out comedically and emotionally, but many fans felt a certain connection to him due to his inability to understand metaphors and figures of speech. Some theorized that Drax is on the autism spectrum, which is sometimes characterized by that same manner of interpreting interactions. So a number of fans with autism and Asperger's syndrome identified with Drax as a result, particularly since the films never treated him with disdain or mocked him for being the way he is, even if it was played for laughs much of the time.

So even if the character of Drax continues on beyond Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which director James Gunn has already asserted will be his final film in the franchise, there's no telling if he'll have the same impact without Bautista in the role. As such, now would be a great time to re-watch all of the other Guardians movies, if only to remember the good old times. Ok, the good fairly recent times. The series started in 2014, for Groot's sake.

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Source: Dave Bautista|Twitter