Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 Has a Script, Rough Schedule

The motliest crew that listens to Mötley Crüe is coming back for a probable 2020 release, but pre-production of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 looks like it’s right around the corner.

We’ve already covered (spoiler alert for Infinity War) the issue of scheduling another Guardians flick while all of them but Rocket were snapped into oblivion by Thanos. Whether they’ll be resurrected by the Time Stone, exchanged for other Avengers’ lives with Death, or artfully reassembled into dust-people by a mopey Captain America won’t be known until Avengers 4 is released next May. Despite our concern, however, Marvel must march on. Phase 4 of the MCU is racing ahead, and new beginnings must be drafted before the old comes to an end.

Fortunately for us, two-time Guardians director and screenwriter James Gunn has been busy at work on the third installment. The film will potentially feature Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), Rocket (Bradley Cooper), Drax (Dave Bautista), Groot (Vin Diesel), and Mantis (Pom Klementieff). Maybe Gamora (Zoe Saldana) will reappear as well, but the odds seem slim. Kevin Feige, the Marvel Studios president, recently spoke with Collider and reported that Gunn has already handed in a draft of the new film’s script. Here’s all that he had to say:

“James [Gunn] has delivered a draft and we begin official pre-production on that very, very soon. It’ll be shooting early next year. Captain Marvel finishes in about two weeks, Spider-Man starts in about two weeks, and then Guardians 3 will start early next year.”

As far as future MCU timelines go, this is the best we can ask for before we start hearing about which characters will be taking over the franchise during Phase 4 and beyond. While little is known about Captain Marvel, there’s just a feeling in the air that star Brie Larson is going to knock us dead before Thanos even has the chance to. Next, the Spider-Man sequel will takes us far from home before the Guardians take us even farther once more.

Featured Image: Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2..L to R: Gamora (Zoe Saldana), Nebula (Karen Gillan), Star-Lord/Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), Drax (Dave Bautista) and Rocket (voiced by Bradley Cooper) . Ph: Film Frame. ©Marvel Studios 2017