Is Guardians of the Galaxy 3 an Avengers Infinity War prequel? Director James Gunn clarifies

The Guardians of the Galaxy in a still from Avengers: Infinity War.

At the recent MTV Awards, Chris Pratt hinted that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 “might take place in the past.” This little nugget of information came after Avengers: Infinity War directors, the Russo Brothers, also said that the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe might not be linear. But James Gunn, director of all three Guardians movies has definitively cleared the air. Repeating what he said in May, the director on Wednesday replied to a fan’s question and said, “It will be after.”

Guardians 3 is scheduled to begin filming in January, 2019, mere months after the final round of reshoots for Avengers 4 are concluded. Marvel has been holding off on any new information regarding their slate following Avengers 4, billed as a ‘significant conclusion’ to the MCU as we know it by Disney chief Bob Iger, because several of the characters’ fates are up in the air.

At the end of Infinity War, the villainous Thanos ‘killed’ half the universe’s population, and half the Avengers’ too, including several members of the Guardians of the Galaxy.

“Here’s the thing, I think it’s important to remember anything is possible in the MCU,” Anthony Russo recently told HuffPost, adding, “Just because there’s a sequel on the books doesn’t mean ... people become accustomed to time moving linearly in the MCU. That doesn’t necessarily have to be the case. There’s a lot of very inventive ways of where the story can go from here.”

The next two movies on Marvel’s slate - July’s Ant-Man and the Wasp and February 2019’s Captain Marvel - are both set before the events ofInfinity War. Many fans believe that these films will introduce the Quantum Realm, which will allow for characters previously thought to be dead to be resurrected. Coupled with set images from Avengers 4 and the dominant fan theory that the film will involve time travel and alternate dimensions, it seems like death could be challenged in the MCU.

An unofficial plot synopsis for Avengers 4 - the first of its kind - hinted as much. “A culmination of 22 interconnected films the fourth installment of the Avengers saga will draw audiences to witness the turning point of this epic journey. Our beloved heroes will truly understand how fragile this reality is and the sacrifices that must be made to uphold it,” it said.

Infinity War recently became the fourth film to cross the $2 billion mark at the box office, following Avatar, Titanic and Star Wars: The Force Awakens