Guardians of the Galaxy's Karen Gillan Never Expected a Larger MCU Role

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Guardians Star Karen Gillan Didn't Expect Larger MCU Role

By Tom Chapman

Published Sep 24, 2018

Karen Gillan reveals she only expected to play Nebula in James Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy and credits the director with helping her character.

Karen Gillan has admitted that she didn't anticipate her ongoing role as Nebula in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Joining the MCU for James Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy in 2014, Gillan's vengeful cyborg evolved from the first movie and saw her return for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Suiting up again as the scorned adoptive daughter of Thanos, Nebula had a small part in this year's Avengers: Infinity War and was one of the lucky few who survived Thanos' finger snap moment.

"I thought when I signed onto the first Guardians that I was going to shoot for eight days and then die," said Gillan at Fan Expo Canada via Comicbook.com. "That’s what it was in the script.”

Of course, Nebula lived to fight another day and her complicated relationship with Zoe Saldana's Gamora was a big part of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.

Gillan went on to explain how an emotional scene between Nebula and Gamora was filmed for her screen test but never made it into the first Guardians movie. Clarifying that the cut scene added another layer to Nebula's characterization, Gillan credited James Gunn for the villain's evolution.

“Well, it was an emotional scene, but I started crying during it," she said. "And then James Gunn really responded to that, I remember, and then we felt that we’d found this whole other aspect of a character that could have just been bad, you know?”

Although it's unclear what's next for Nebula, Gillan is confirmed to return for Avengers 4 in 2019. Currently, only Nebula and Bradley Cooper's Rocket Racoon are alive from the main Guardians roster as the MCU heads into the final part of Phase 3. Whether Nebula gets to exact revenge on her warmongering father remains to be seen, but expect to see more of Gillan in Avengers 4.

If Nebula survives the events of Avengers 4, she would've likely been a part of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, but with the movie on indefinite hold, no one knows what will happen to the likes of Nebula, Gamora, Drax and Star-Lord next.

Gillan is one of the MCU stars who has pushed for an all-female Avengers lineup, but she has to escape that final brush with Thanos before she can start planning Nebula's role in Phase 4 and beyond. Either way, Gillan and Gunn helped turn Nebula from a one-shot villain into the MCU staple that she is today.

Directed by Joe and Anthony Russo, Avengers 4 stars Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Brie Larson, Mark Ruffalo, Jeremy Renner, Scarlett Johansson, Paul Bettany, Anthony Mackie, Paul Rudd, Elizabeth Olsen, Tom Holland, Benedict Cumberbatch, Chadwick Boseman, Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, Karen Gillan, Evangeline Lilly and Josh Brolin. The film is set to hit theaters on May 3, 2019.