Back in 2018, Disney made the decision to fire James Gunn from his role as the director of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. This public firing came after Gunn’s controversial tweets, which included jokes about sensitive topics like r*pe, p*dophelia, 9/11, and the Holocaust. The Suicide Squad director revealed that his first call following the controversy was to Kevin Feige, and the response he received surprised him.
Gunn’s firing was met with massive backlash from celebrities and journalists, mainly because the controversy was fueled by an attempt to silence Gunn’s political viewpoints. Eventually, Disney reversed their decision and reinstated the director, allowing him to complete his final Marvel movie before joining the DC Studios as its CEO.
James Gunn Was Surprised By Kevin Feige’s Response To The Controversy
While James Gunn’s controversial tweets from 2008 were certainly insensitive and questionable, it was a deliberate attack against the Slither director to discredit him. The far-right political commentator, Mike Cernovich, initiated the attack and even accused Gunn of running a p*dophelia ring. The issue gained widespread attention and ultimately got the attention of Disney.
The recently released book, MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios, sheds light on the events that unfolded during this time. The authors wrote that Alan Horn, the chairman of Walt Disney Studios, had already made the decision before Kevin Feige or Marvel Studios could act. When Gunn called Feige in the midst of the controversy, the Marvel Studio head had no clear answer for him, which surprised the Super director. In the book, Gunn shared about his conversation with Kevin Feige:
“I called Kevin the morning it was going on, and I said, ‘Is this a big deal?’ And he goes, ‘I don’t know.’ That was a moment. I was like, ‘You don’t know?’ I was surprised.”
Gunn issued an apology tweet followed by a lengthy public statement. He took full responsibility for the insensitive remarks and promised to be more careful with his words. However, Feige later informed him that the decision to fire him had already been made by the studio. The statement issued by Alan Horn read:
“The offensive attitudes and statements discovered on James’ Twitter feed are indefensible and inconsistent with our studio’s values, and we have severed our relationship with him.”
Gunn shared another apology statement, this time adding that he accepted the “business decisions” taken by the studio. However, many celebrities and journalists came to the defense of the Peacemaker director.
Disney Reinstated James Gunn After Severe Backlash
Disney faced criticism from several news outlets for giving in to the pressures of a politically motivated campaign against James Gunn. While many acknowledged the severity of the remarks, they believed that Disney set the wrong example on how to respond to such attacks. The cast of Guardians of the Galaxy released a joint statement announcing their support for the director.
Trevor Norkey of MovieWeb believed the firing to be “ridiculous & hypocritical”, stating three reasons. Firstly, he shared that Disney was aware of the tweets when they hired the director and chose to remain silent as no issues were raised at the time. Secondly, he found Disney’s comment “inconsistent with our studio’s values” hypocritical, considering that they had acquired movies like Deadpool, which also included similar types of humor. Thirdly, he cited the clear political motivations behind the controversy.
The backlash led Disney to reconsider their decision, and they finally rehired James Gunn to direct the third installment of GOTG in 2019. James Gunn left the MCU following that film, and it’s unlikely that he will return for another Marvel project. MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios is now available for purchase on Amazon.
