Dave Bautista says Marvel "dropped the ball" on Drax's backstory

Dave Bautista, who plays Drax in the MCU, has offered his thoughts on Marvel's treatment of his character.

"That role changed the trajectory of my life. It's always going to be special to me. Now I'm four films in... I really wish that they would have invested more in Drax, personally," he told Collider. "Because I think Drax has more of a story to tell and I think Drax has got a really interesting backstory which they dropped the ball on. And that's no dig on Marvel. They had their slate, and I know what they're focused on, and that's what they have slated out. But man, I think they really missed the ball on Drax. He's got such a great backstory."

Bautista added: "Selfishly, as a performer, that would have given me the opportunity to show different sides of Drax, emotionally. And physically as well." He then commented that "Drax gets his ass kicked more than any other Marvel character" despite his "terrifying" look, and said "the whole 'Destroyer' thing, they just threw that out the window." Bautista explained he thinks the "comedic side" to his character was so popular that "they just tapped into that, then they tapped into it more, then they just really dug a hole in it." 

The actor continued: "We missed a huge boat on that character and I don't think it'll ever come back around. But I'm really just looking forward to finishing out this whole journey with the cast."

Bautista has played Drax in the James Gunn-directed Guardians of the Galaxy and its sequel Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, as well as Avengers: Infinity War and follow-up Avengers: Endgame. He's set to reprise his role in the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy 3, but recently said he would no longer be playing his character after the threequel.

The actor can next be seen in Army of the Dead, Zack Snyder's latest zombie flick. Bautista has also been cast in the sequel to Rian Johnson's Knives Out.

Guardians of the Galaxy 3 arrives May 5, 2023. The next Marvel offering to hit our screens will be Loki on June 9, followed on the big screen and Disney Plus by the long-awaited Black Widow on July 9. Until then, check out how to watch Marvel movies in order for a catch-up movie marathon.