By a show of hands, who had forgotten that the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special was going to be a thing? It's ok. Forgetting doesn't mean it's not worth remembering. In fact, anybody who forgot now has the distinct pleasure of being reminded that there is, in fact, a Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special coming soon, which is an idea that only gets more wonderful every time it's uttered. Now, it looks like things are gearing up for something truly special, according to James Gunn himself.
Many were probably shocked in the best way when Gunn announced the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special last year, their imaginations running wild with delightfully campy possibilities involving the interplanetary team of misfit heroes. So it's only natural that Gunn himself has every intention of keeping Guardians of the Galaxy fans excited in the lead-up to the special's premiere. Aside from the already intriguing concept behind it, it seems audiences can also look forward to a particularly exciting reveal.
Answering a fan question on Twitter with big news, as he often does, Gunn recently teased an interesting new tidbit regarding the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special. According to the post, the special will feature a special appearance from a big name in the MCU. The fan tweet offered a query on whether fans could look forward to an unexpected cameo in the vein of Boba Fett's role in the equally criticized and ironically beloved Star Wars Holiday Special. "In my incredibly subjective & admittedly often odd opinion," Gunn replied, "we'll be introducing one of the greatest MCU characters of all time."
This tease could mean any number of things, particularly given its rather ambiguous wording. Fans of Gunn's work are likely already familiar with his rather eccentric view of comic book characters, and given how passionately he interpreted such oddball characters as Polka-Dot Man and a shark with a dad bod in The Suicide Squad, his opinion of who might be one of the "greatest" characters could point to anyone from Howard the Duck to that prisoner from the first Guardians of the Galaxy played by Nathan Fillion.
The thing is, Gunn has also made the claim that the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special will be required viewing before seeing Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. So while this big character might be somebody completely unexpected, it's also possible that they'll play a substantial role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe going forward. It's worth noting that he said "one of the greatest MCU characters" rather than "one of the greatest Marvel characters," which could either mean it's a classic character from the movies or someone from the comics who will be making their film debut. So the doors are open for a lot of possibilities here.
Whoever it ends up being, there's no doubt that the holiday special will be something to remember. Considering the third film's reported focus on Nebula and Gamora, maybe the new character will be someone from their past or at least someone who plays a big part in their future. Either way, one thing is for certain: It'll probably have some totally rad music.
The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is currently set to premiere on Disney Plus in late 2022.
Source: James Gunn/Twitter