Sean Gunn Weighs In on Brother James Gunn's 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3' Firing

Jennifer Drysdale‍
Updated
'Guardians' star Dave Bautista also reacted to the news on social media.

James Gunn's brother is weighing in on his Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 firing.

Sean Gunn, who stars as the goofy Ravager, Kraglin, in the Guardians films, took to Instagram on Saturday to react to the news that his brother, James, was fired from directing the upcoming Marvel movie.

Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn confirmed James' firing in a statement to ET on Friday, stating that the decision was due to the discovery of controversial tweets James made which are "indefensible and inconsistent with our studio's values." James, meanwhile, apologized and took "full responsibility" for the tweets in a statement to ET.

In Sean's Instagram post, the actor offered his support to his brother, encouraging fans not to turn their backs on the Guardians films because of James' missteps.

"It goes without saying that I love and support my brother James and I’m quite proud of how kind, generous, and compassionate he is with all the people in his life," Sean began. "Since he was a kid, it was clear he had a desire (maybe destiny) to be an artist, tell stories, find his voice through comics, films, his band. The struggle to find that voice was sometimes clunky, misguided, or downright stupid, and sometimes wonderful, moving, and hilarious. Since devoting his entire life to the Guardians movies and MCU six years ago, I’ve seen him channel that voice into his work and seen him transform from the guy who made up things to shock people."

"This change in my brother was reflected in the change that the Guardians go through. I’ve heard my brother say many times that when Quill rallies the team with 'this is our chance to give a sh*t' -- to care -- that it’s the pep talk he himself needed to hear. It’s part of what made working on the Guardians movies such a rewarding experience for the cast," he continued.

"So I guess my hope is that fans continue to watch and appreciate the Guardians movies, not despite the fact that the filmmaker used to be kind of a jackass, but because of it. They are, after all, movies about discovering your best self," Sean concluded. "Working on those movies made my brother a better person, and they made me one too. I’ll always be proud of that. Peace."

It goes without saying that I love and support my brother James and I’m quite proud of how kind, generous, and compassionate he is with all the people in his life. Since he was a kid, it was clear he had a desire (maybe destiny) to be an artist, tell stories, find his voice through comics, films, his band. The struggle to find that voice was sometimes clunky, misguided, or downright stupid, and sometimes wonderful, moving, and hilarious. Since devoting his entire life to the Guardians movies and MCU six years ago, I’ve seen him channel that voice into his work and seen him transform from the guy who made up things to shock people. I saw firsthand as he went from worrying about “softening his edge” for a larger audience to realizing that this “edge” wasn’t as useful of a tool as he thought it was. That his gift for storytelling was something better. I saw that he was more open-hearted than the guy who thought he needed to get a rise out of people by making nasty or offensive jokes (or whatever you choose to call them—I don’t think his bluer material was ever his funniest and neither does Mom). And the best part is, this change in my brother was reflected in the change that the Guardians go through. I’ve heard my brother say many times that when Quill rallies the team with “this is our chance to give a shit”—to care—that it’s the pep talk he himself needed to hear. It’s part of what made working on the Guardians movies such a rewarding experience for the cast. We managed to find ourselves involved in a big-budget superhero movie that was, at its core, deeply personal. That’s a gift. And that’s why it’s good. This isn’t new information, by the way. It’s all stuff that James has explained many times in interviews, in more detail and more eloquently. It’s not some new spin. It’s always been part of this story. So I guess my hope is that fans continue to watch and appreciate the Guardians movies, not despite the fact that the filmmaker used to be kind of a jackass, but because of it. They are, after all, movies about discovering your best self. Working on those movies made my brother a better person, and they made me one too. I’ll always be proud of that. Peace.

A post shared by Sean Gunn (@thejudgegunn) on Jul 21, 2018 at 3:47pm PDT

Guardians star Dave Bautista also reacted to the news on social media, tweeting on Friday, "I will have more to say but for right now all I will say is this..@JamesGunn is one of the most loving,caring, good natured people I have ever met. He’s gentle and kind and cares deeply for people and animals. He’s made mistakes. We all have. I'm NOT OK with what’s happening to him."

James wrote and directed the first two installments of the Guardians franchise, and was in pre-production on the third one, which is slated to hit theaters in 2020. News of his firing came in the midst of Comic-Con in San Diego, at which the filmmaker was supposed to appear at Sony's presentation on Friday -- though he did not attend.

See more on James in the video below.

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