Guardians of the Galaxy 2's sisterly reunion almost didn't happen (because Nebula was gonna die in the first movie)

Nebula's return was one of the highlights we called out in our Guardians of the Galaxy 2 review but the unlikely ally almost wasn't alive for it to happen. Actress Karen Gillan revealed in an interview with Digital Spy that Nebula was originally meant to perish in the events of the first film. 

"I definitely had a feeling that there was room for the character to expand in the future, but she was originally supposed to die in the first movie, I think I remember in the script," Gillan said. "She obviously did not die, then I found out that she was coming back in the second movie and then I found out we got to explore all these amazing things about her past and her relationship with Gamora, her sister, so I was really happy."

We don't know if Nebula would have croaked in her fight with Gamora, or if she would die later (perhaps at the hands of Ronan, who never seemed like the type to particularly value employees). Either way, she was saved by a script change. There aren't enough fleshed-out relationships between women in the Marvel Cinematic Universe so I'm glad that it all worked out for the sisters.

Directed by James Gunn and starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, and Kurt Russell, Guardians of the Galaxy 2 hit cinemas on April 28 in the UK and will arrive in US theaters on May 5.

Make sure you read our Guardians of the Galaxy 2 review and check out collection of early audience reactions.

Image: Disney

Connor Sheridan

I got a BA in journalism from Central Michigan University - though the best education I received there was from CM Life, its student-run newspaper. Long before that, I started pursuing my degree in video games by bugging my older brother to let me play Zelda on the Super Nintendo. I've previously been a news intern for GameSpot, a news writer for CVG, and now I'm a staff writer here at GamesRadar.