James Gunn begged for a Gamora scene to be added to Infinity War

Gamora in Guardians of the Galaxy 3 — (Image credit: Disney/Marvel)

James Gunn fought for that Peter-Gamora kiss scene in Avengers: Infinity War – before her tragic death.

"I begged them to have that kiss in the movie, because it was necessary to really cement their relationship. I had a kiss in Vol. 2 that I cut – it was awesome, but it came in a weird time," Gunn told The New York Times. "At the end of Vol. 2, you establish the fact that they have feelings for each other pretty distinctly, but in Infinity War, we needed to establish that they were now boyfriend-girlfriend and this was a normal thing for them. It wasn’t really about the kiss, it was about showing that they were now a couple."

Of course, this made Gamora's (Zoe Saldana) death even more heartbreaking. She was resurrected in Avengers: Endgame, but as a past incarnation that has no memory or recollection of Peter Quill (Chris Pratt).

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"Gamora was going to die originally in Vol. 2, and then we talked about it happening in Infinity War, and that worked better for the story," Gunn explained. "But the rest of them, I always knew where they were going. I knew that the whole trilogy is about Rocket, who we think of as a supporting character, becoming the captain of the Guardians."

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3. sees Star-Lord and co. settling into life on Knowhere, but it isn't long before their lives are upended by the echoes of Rocket's (Bradley Cooper) turbulent past. Peter Quill, still reeling from the loss of Gamora, must rally his team around him on a dangerous mission to save Rocket's life – a mission that, if not completed successfully, could quite possibly lead to the end of the Guardians as we know them.

For even more on Guardians of the Galaxy 3, see our interviews with Chris Pratt on a potential Star-Lord return and his belief that you’ll be surprised by how dark Guardians of the Galaxy 3 is, as well as Chukwudi Iwuji on how the High Evolutionary is one of Marvel’s most irredeemable villains. You can also check out our writer's view on why Guardians of the Galaxy 2 is a celebration of fatherhood.

If you've seen the movie, head to our spoilery deep dives on: