Guardians of the Galaxy (film) Trivia

Trivia about Guardians of the Galaxy.

• According to Vin Diesel, the voice of Groot, he recorded Groot's iconic line, "I am Groot," over 1,000 times.
• The first non-Avengers Marvel property developed by Walt Disney Pictures.
• Although the Guardians of the Galaxy were created way back in 1969 by Arnold Drake and Gene Colan, the movie will be primarily focused on the 2008 reinvention of the team by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning.
• Joel Edgerton, Eddie Redmayne, Jensen Ackles, Lee Pace, Wes Bentley, Jack Huston, Cam Gigandet, Sullivan Stapleton, Logan Marshall-Green, Garrett Hedlund, Chris Lowell, James Marsden, Jim Sturgess, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Aaron Paul, Michael Rosenbaum and John Krasinski auditioned and screen tested for the role of Peter Quill/ Star Lord. Pace was cast as Ronan the Accuser.
• Adam Brody auditioned and lost the role of Star-Lord know that Chris Pratt is better for the role.
• Zoe Saldana nearly broke Chris Pratt's ribs while filming a fight sequence. During training, Pratt and Saldana would wear protective gear so that they could actually hit each other. However, when the day came to film the actual scene, Pratt forgot to wear his protective gear and did not tell Saldana because he thought she would hold back if she knew. Saldana (under the impression that he was wearing the gear like he usually did) kicked him square in the ribs, which made Pratt fall to the ground. According to him, he had a bruise for the remainder of filming.
• James Gunn stated that Chris Pratt's audition was so good, that he was prepared to offer him the role even if Pratt did not lose weight and get in shape in time. Gunn joked that he was willing to CGI a six pack on Pratt's body. However, Pratt asked him to give him 6 months to lose 50 pounds and he ended up losing 60 pounds.
• According to the filmmakers, Rocket Raccoon in this film is a unique product of experimentation: "He's a little animal that was taken and experimented on and pulled apart and put back together again and implanted with cybernetics and he's half-machine and half-raccoon. And he's a gnarled, miserable, angry creature because there's nothing else like him. And that's something not easy to be."
• Chris Pratt and Dave Bautista spent two and a half months training and rehearsing for their fight scene. On the Friday night before the Monday they were scheduled to film the scene, director James Gunn decided that the fight wouldn't work on camera, so he scrapped the entire fight sequence they had been practicing. Gunn also decided that he wanted the entire fight to be filmed in one long shot with no cuts. As a result, Pratt and Bautista only had a few hours to learn the choreography for the fight sequence that is in the movie. According to Bautista, it took them 22 takes to get it right on film.
• The Guardians of the Galaxy is primarily based on the 2008 comic team (Star-Lord, Gamora, Nova, Drax, Rocket Raccoon and Groot), but features Yondu, a member of the original 1969 comic team.
• Olivia Wilde turned down the role of Gamora, while Rosario Dawson, Kristanna Loken, Moon Bloodgood, Gina Carano, Rachel Nichols and Adrianne Palicki auditioned before the role went to Zoe Saldana.
• According to producer Victoria Alonso, Rocket Raccoon and Groot will be created through a mix of motion-capture and rotomation VFX.
• Djimon Hounsou took the role of Korath for the sake of his son: "I have a son who loves superheroes from Spider-Man to Iron Man to Batman. One day he looks at me and says 'Dad, I want to be light-skinned so I could be Spider-Man. Spider-Man has light skin.' That was sort of a shock."
• Bradley Cooper cited Tommy DeVito (Joe Pesci's character in Goodfellas (1990)) as an influence on Rocket Racoon's voice.
• Iron Man was planned to have a cameo role in this film (in homage to his being the Guardians' latest member in the comics), but this was scrapped when Robert Downey Jr. said he may not reprise his role as Tony Stark in any non-Avengers film.
• To prepare for the role of Nebula, Karen Gillan shaved her head.
• In the unreleased trailer shown at the 2013 Comic-Con and D23 Expo, Peter Quill giving the finger to the Nova Corps officers was not blurred and did not have the "Obscene Gesture Alert" graphic. This was intentionally added in the official trailer for general audiences.
• According to the filmmakers, Rocket Raccoon in this film is a unique product of experimentation: "He's a little animal that was taken and experimented on and pulled apart and put back together again and implanted with cybernetics and he's half-machine and half-raccoon. And he's a gnarled, miserable, angry creature because there's nothing else like him. And that's something not easy to be."
• Director James Gunn cites "Iron Man" as an influence on the film: "we are starting Phase 2 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This is Marvel Cosmic. And we're doing exactly what they did with the first Iron Man film."
• When attending the 18th Nantucket Film Festival, Glenn Close stated that she only agreed to star in the film since "it will then afford me to go do the other kind of movies that I really love". However, she followed it up by saying; "And hopefully I will have a great time. It'll be a new experience for me, but practically speaking it will mean that I can do those smaller movies and it'll be okay."
• According to Kevin Feige, Peter Quill left earth in the mid-80's but by the beginning of the film he's "very much a citizen of the universe", Gamora is initially introduced as a villain working with Ronan and Nebula whilst being associated with Thanos and has a reputation as the deadliest woman in the galaxy, Drax is on a hunt to kill Ronan because of a past tragedy, Rocket Raccoon has been genetically and mechanically altered due to being an experiment from one part of the galaxy and Groot is a species that happens to look like trees and is somewhat communicative if one can understand the different inflections in the way he says "I am Groot". 
• Regarding the villains, Kevin Feige stated that Ronan the Accuser is intended to be the main villain of the film yet Thanos is lurking above it all, also revealing that the audience will learn more of him beyond his brief appearance/smirk at the end of The Avengers.
• Kevin stated the movie won't exactly reveal what year or month it takes place in relation to the other Phase Two films but it is definitely taking place around the same time.
• James Gunn has stated on his Facebook page that unlike most films, Tyler Bates would write some of the score so the director could film to the music.
• Adam Sandler, David Tennant, Sharlto Copley, Jim Carrey and H. Jon Benjamin were amongst the actors considered to voice Rocket Raccoon.
• Director James Gunn cites Iron Man as an influence on the film: "we are starting Phase 2 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This is Marvel Cosmic. And we're doing exactly what they did with the first Iron Man film."
• Glenn Howerton auditioned for the role of Star-Lord.
• When Karen Gillan was announced to star in the film. It was rumored that was she was going to play Angela, a sword wielding bounty hunter from the "Guardians of the Galaxy" comic books. But the Scottish actress was cast in the role of the brutal space pirate Nebula and shaved off her hair for the role.
• Kevin Fiege has revealed that one of the Infinity Stones will be revealed in the film.
• Chris Pratt revealed that he signed a multi-picture deal with Marvel Studios to portray Star-Lord in future installements.
• Benicio Del Toro's uncredited cameo as The Collector in "Thor: The Dark World" was written to set the stage for the film.
• The Guardians of the Galaxy is primarily based on the 2008 comic team (Star-Lord, Gamora, Nova, Drax, Rocket Raccoon and Groot), but features Yondu, a member of the original 1969 comic team.
• Chris Pratt went on a very strict training regimen and diet for 6 months and dropped another 60 pounds eventually getting a six pack for his shirtless scenes. Chris Pratt said that it was a lot of hard work, almost 'torturous', but when he was filming his shirtless scenes and saw the playback on the monitor, he felt the effort was well worth it and he was "extremely excited to see the best possible physical version of himself".
• Benicio Del Toro described the Collector as "Liberace in outer space."
• James Gunn's brother Sean Gunn was an acting double for Rocket Raccoon during filming.
• Adam Warlock was rumored to appear in this film as he featured as he was featured in the screenplay as a cameo at the end of the film. This idea was cut from the script to add in a scene to set up the following Marvel film.
• Isaiah Mustafa, Brian Patrick Wade, Shad Gaspard and Jason Momoa were considered for the role of Drax the Destroyer.
• The Collector's residence in the film is the space station Knowhere. In the comics, Knowhere is the base of the Guardians of the Galaxy.
• According to producer Victoria Alonso, Rocket Raccoon and Groot will be created through a mix of motion-capture and rotomation VFX.
• According to James Gunn, Star-Lord's ship the Milano is based on a hot rod: "Its environment is reminiscent of Earth and has a tangible quality - mechanical with chrome and leather and a muscle-car look."
• When attending the 18th Nantucket Film Festival, Glenn Close stated that she only agreed to star in the film since "it will then afford me to go do the other kind of movies that I really love". However, she followed it up by saying; "And hopefully I will have a great time. It'll be a new experience for me, but practically speaking it will mean that I can do those smaller movies and it'll be okay."
• According to James Gunn, Ronan's ship the Dark Aster is designed after a mausoleum: "It's minimal and brutal, a stark gray colorless world devoid of any set dressing whatsoever, and relying purely on its heavy concrete-like architecture to convey its tone and function."
• This film identifies the Collector's Assistant (Ophelia Lovibond) as his daughter Carina Walters.
• Jason Momoa auditioned and was offered the role of Drax the Destroyer but decided to turn down the role because he didn't want himself to be pigeonholed as a brute by the audience (having played several action roles) and to free himself up to direct Road to Paloma. This in turn allowed Dave Bautista to step in his place.
• According to James Gunn, Star-Lord's obscene gesture was an improvisation by Chris Pratt.
• Chris Pratt went on a very strict training regimen and diet for 6 months and dropped another 60 pounds eventually getting a six pack for his shirtless scenes. Chris Pratt said that it was a lot of hard work, almost 'torturous', but when he was filming his shirtless scenes and saw the playback on the monitor, he felt the effort was well worth it and he was "extremely excited to see the best possible physical version of himself".
• Director James Gunn didn't want to see Chris Pratt auditioning. He was convinced later by his assistant, at the end of the auditions. After Pratt read for 30 seconds, Gunn stated that then he knew that Pratt was perfect for the role.
• When Vin Diesel started recording his lines for Groot, he was pleasantly surprised to find himself working with an old friend - the sound technician he'd worked with on The Iron Giant.
• James Gunn compared the Avengers and the Guardians to music bands: "The Avengers are like the Beatles, but the Guardians are like the Rolling Stones!"
• "The Avengers" director Joss Whedon, who signed a deal to creatively consult on all of the films leading up to the "The Avengers" sequel, was enthusiastic about the selection of Gunn to direct.
• Vin Diesel recorded all of his "I am Groot" lines in several different languages, including Russian, Mandarin, Spanish, Brazilian, Portuguese, and French so that they could use his real voice in the film around the world.
• In the film, Peter Quill/Star Lord was born in the mid 1980s and was raised by a group of thieves and smugglers called The Ravagers. In the comic book, Peter Quill was born to a human mother and a alien father and assumed his mantle of Star-Lord, an interplanetary policeman.
• Djimon Hounsou found his costume and make-up as Korath very uncomfortable and rigid. He channeled this discomfort into his action sequences.
• Chris Pratt said that a shirtless "selfie" of himself from during the filming of Zero Dark Thirty won him the role of Star Lord in this film. On a talk show that Pratt was attending, he had released a photo of himself in his underwear, flexing and showing off an excessively ripped and muscular body. It was that photo which convinced the film-makers of this film that he could actually get in shape and play a superhero. During final meetings, they brought out that picture of him and asked him if he could get that physique again. He promised them he could and actually surpassed it with an even more rigorous eight month training schedule.
• The Guardians of the Galaxy is primarily based on the 2008 comic team (Star-Lord, Gamora, Nova, Drax, Rocket Raccoon and Groot), but features Yondu, a member of the original 1969 comic team.
• In the unreleased trailer shown at the 2013 Comic-Con and D23 Expo, Peter Quill giving the finger to the Nova Corps officers was not blurred and did not have the "Obscene Gesture Alert" graphic. This was intentionally added in the official trailer for general audiences.
• Benicio Del Toro described the Collector as "Liberace in outer space."
• To prepare for the role of Nebula, Karen Gillan shaved her head.
• In the film, Ronan the Accuser is an admiral serving under Thanos. This combines his classic Marvel comics portrayal (a top-ranking military governor) with his Marvel Ultimate comics portrayal (an ally of Thanos).
• According to James Gunn, the film's soundtrack is composed mainly of 1970s-80s songs as they are part of Quill's memories of Earth: "The music and is one of those touchstones that we have to remind us that Quill is a real person from planet Earth who's just like you and me, except that he's in this big outer space adventure."
• The Collector's residence in the film is the space station Knowhere. In the comics, Knowhere is the base of the Guardians of the Galaxy.
• Despite being somewhat of a villain in the movie in the comics Yondu was actually one of the original Guardians of the Galaxy that first appeared in 1969.
• According to James Gunn, Star-Lord's ship the Milano is based on a hot rod: "Its environment is reminiscent of Earth and has a tangible quality - mechanical with chrome and leather and a muscle-car look."
• Peyton Reed was considered to direct this film. He was later chosen to direct Ant-Man (2015) another Marvel Studios film.
• The film is to set the 2nd phase in the cinematic Marvel universe.
• The Guardians of the Galaxy was first published in January 1969 with a different team but the new one is still composed of characters that existed in Marvel Comics even before the first Star Wars movie. Star-Lord (Marvel Preview #4 Jan. 1976), Rocket Raccoon (Marvel Preview #7 Summer 1976), Gamora (Strange Tales #180 June 1975), Drax the Destroyer and Thanos (Iron Man #55 Feb. 1973). Groot being the only one that predates the Guardians of the Galaxy themselves in Tales to Astonish #13 published November 1960
• James Gunn's brother Sean Gunn was an acting double for Rocket Raccoon during filming.
• James Gunn has stated on his Facebook page that unlike most films, Tyler Bates would write some of the score so the director could film to the music.
• Features the first onscreen appearance of a Celestial, one of Marvel's mega-villains.
• Jason Momoa auditioned and was offered the role of Drax the Destroyer, but turned down the role because he didn't want himself to be pigeonholed as a brute by the audience (having played several action roles) and to free himself up to direct Road to Paloma.
• Adam Warlock was rumored to appear in this film as he was featured in the screenplay as a cameo at the end of the film. This idea was cut from the script to add in a scene to set up the following Marvel film.
• According to James Gunn, Ronan's ship the Dark Aster is designed after a mausoleum: "It's minimal and brutal, a stark gray colorless world devoid of any set dressing whatsoever, and relying purely on its heavy concrete-like architecture to convey its tone and function."
• According to producer Victoria Alonso, Rocket Raccoon and Groot will be created through a mix of motion-capture and rotomation VFX.
• The Nova Corps world Xandar is based mainly on the designs of modern architect Santiago Calatrava.
• The trailer featured the song "Bad Machine" by Dark Stares but was not included in the films soundtrack.
• When attending the 18th Nantucket Film Festival, Glenn Close stated that she only agreed to star in the film since "it will then afford me to go do the other kind of movies that I really love". However, she followed it up by saying; "And hopefully I will have a great time. It'll be a new experience for me, but practically speaking it will mean that I can do those smaller movies and it'll be okay."
• Nebula first appeared in The Avengers #257 in July 1985, 29 years before the release of "Guardians of the Galaxy".
• In the film and in the comic book, Drax the Destroyer seeks vengeance upon Thanos for the attack and murder of his family. A nod to "Conan the Barbarian", which the mighty Cimmerian barbarian warrior Conon sought to avenge his family, after they were attacked and murdered.
• The second film wherein Benicio Del Toro plays a comic book character of sinister intent. His first role was as Jackie Boy in Sin City (2005).
• The Nova Corps world Xandar is based mainly on the designs of modern architect Santiago Calatrava.
• Chris Pratt read for the lead role of Captain James T. Kirk in 'J.J Abrams' "Star Trek", which went to Chris Pine. Zoe Saldana (Gamora) played Nyota Uhura and Chris Hemsworth played George Kirk in J.J Abrams' "Star Trek". Karen Gillan (Nebula) is a big fan of Star Trek.
• In the film, Ronan the Accuser is an admiral serving under Thanos. This combines his classic Marvel comics portrayal (a top-ranking military governor) with his Marvel Ultimate comics portrayal (an ally of Thanos).
• The dog in the astronaut uniform that Rocket snarls at is Cosmo, a Russian dog with psychic powers. He was more of a main member of the Guardians in the comics, and ran the headquarters of Knowhere.
• In one of the glass holding cells, a Long One (Slugs) from Slither, James Gunn's directoral debut film, can be seen.
• Michael Rooker is the first cast member from The Walking Dead television series to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe.