Guardians star Michael Rooker has quit Twitter after firing of James Gunn

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Update: It looks as if Michael Rooker is a man of his word, as his Twitter account is no longer active, thus rendering the tweet he posted earlier today unavailable for viewing. You can still what he wrote in the original article below.

Original Article:

Over this past Comic-Con weekend, one of the biggest and most shocking news stories related to superhero cinema arrived by way of Marvel's firing of James Gunn as the director of GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3. Gunn's abrupt departure from the mega-popular film series came after a series of offensive tweets were unearthed which found the director joking about such controversial topics as pedophilia and rape. In a statement, Disney chairman Alan Horn said, "The offensive attitudes and statements discovered on James’ Twitter feed are indefensible and inconsistent with our studio’s values, and we have severed our business relationship with him."

Shortly thereafter, Gunn issued a statement in response to Disney's bold move:

"My words of nearly a decade ago were, at the time, totally failed and unfortunate efforts to be provocative. I have regretted them for many years since — not just because they were stupid, not at all funny, wildly insensitive, and certainly not provocative like I had hoped, but also because they don’t reflect the person I am today or have been for some time.

Regardless of how much time has passed, I understand and accept the business decisions taken today. Even these many years later, I take full responsibility for the way I conducted myself then. All I can do now, beyond offering my sincere and heartfelt regret, is to be the best human being I can be: accepting, understanding, committed to equality, and far more thoughtful about my public statements and my obligations to our public discourse. To everyone inside my industry and beyond, I again offer my deepest apologies. Love to all."

Since the release of Gunn's statement, several cast members of the GUARDIANS films have come forward to express their thoughts on the matter, including Chris Pratt, Dave Bautista, Zoe Saldana, and Gunn's own brother, Sean. As part of a more recent development, Michael Rooker (who plays Yondu in the first two films of the series) has stepped up to the plate in Gunn's defense by announcing his departure from Twitter.

“This account will be inactive after today,” Rooker wrote on Sunday. “We’re very tired & upset over the ongoing BULLSHIT… neither I nor my rep will use Twitter again. Twitter sucks and I want nothing to do with it.”

For those of you who wish to remain connected to Rooker via social media, you can take comfort in knowing that his Facebook and Instagram accounts are still active at this time. Obvioulsy, Gunn and Rooker share a solid working relationship that harkens back to when the two joined forces for Gunn's feature debut with the underrated sci-fi horror flick SLITHER. Since that time, the duo have collaborated for the movies SUPER and THE BELKO EXPERIMENT, which Gunn wrote and produced.

As for what will happen with GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3, well, no one really knows at this stage of the game. For now, I'd imagine that Disney and Marvel are still sorting through the wreckage, though it's to be expected that a solution to the fallout will be announced soon. In terms of progress on the sequel, Gunn had recently announced that he'd completed a draft of GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3, which was scheduled to begin filming in January in Atlanta for a 2020 release. Will Disney and Marvel remove Gunn as director but keep the script? With Gunn's firing, who will go on to shape the cosmic end of Marvel's cinematic universe? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.