Guardians of the Galaxy 2

James Gunn has some really good ideas, but his latest might just be the best yet. While answering a fan’s question on Twitter, the Guardians of the Galaxy director suggested that there’s one character from the films who deserves their own solo spinoff movie — and no, it’s not Baby Groot (although Baby Groot’s Outer Space Adventures sounds like a pretty dope Pixar short, to be honest).

For those of us who were even more enamored than we thought we’d be by a talking raccoon and a slightly-less-wordy walking tree, Guardians of the Galaxy was an absolute delight. Luckily, all of our favorites are returning for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, and we’ll get to see our favorite Vin Diesel-voiced sapling once again, now quite a bit diminished in size from his last appearance. For the first film, Diesel learned how to say his character’s recurring line “I am Groot” in six different languages, and now he says the director of the sequel is making him learn almost three times that many.

When it comes to superhero movies, women are often relegated to the margins, sculpted as one-dimensional, or exploited as objects of desire. Look at any cover of a superhero film featuring a woman and you’ll find her in poses that emphasize her body or show her as a damsel in distress love interest. We’re only just getting DC’s Wonder Woman next year, but Marvel Studios is also looking to make efforts improving female representation.

Kurt Russell is so far the most exciting news we’ve had of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, made even more exciting by the fact that he’ll be playing Ego the Living Planet, also known as Star-Lord’s mysterious father. Russell himself might even be more excited than we are about the movie, which, according to him, is even bigger than its predecessor, expanding on the universe that the first Guardians built.

Guys, you’re never going to believe what just happened. One of the actors in an upcoming Hollywood blockbuster just predicted that his new movie will be full of incredible special effects and awesome set pieces! This changes everything we thought we knew about Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. And here I thought the sequel was going to be a hard-hitting expose on Peter Quill’s abandonment issues with his father, the giant face planet played by Kurt Russell. You know, real somber stuff.

Are you sitting down? You might want to be seated when you read this. You should also be warned of potential spoilers for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, so if you’re the sort of Marvel fan who likes to go in knowing as little as possible (how do you live without the internet??), you might not want to read on. But if you’re curious to learn more about Baby Groot, James Gunn has revealed something very interesting, and a little sad?

The fact that Stan Lee is guaranteed to appear in nearly every single Marvel movie is one of those small little charms of the Marvel Cinematic Universe that I hope never goes away. Sure, some people probably view it as an annoying break in the fourth wall, but it also reminds audiences that we are watching a superhero comic book movie. These movies don’t need to choose between being cartoonish and deadly serious; they can be both, often at the same time, and Stan Lee always helps drive that point home.

“I am Groot.” With the exception of one small variation, this is the only thing we hear from Vin Diesel’s Groot throughout Guardians of the Galaxy. What makes this such a funny running joke isn’t the fact that he only says the one phrase, though; it’s the fact that Rocket Raccoon understands him perfectly, unearthing complicated sentiments and emotions from three simple words. Translating Groot’s dialogue would be like un-bleeping the profanity in an episode of South Park: you pretty much already know what Groot is saying, and the jokes just work better this way.

If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times: whenever you need to cast someone as a giant floating face planet, get Kurt Russell. Russell has long been one of our most self-deprecating movie stars, an immensely talented actor with movie star looks who, for some wonderful reason, always preferred to play the buffoon over the action hero. Movies like Big Trouble in Little China and even the more recent The Hateful Eight reveal that Russell is never happier than when making fun of his movie star persona.

It won’t be too much longer (November, to be exact) before we see the first trailer for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, but to help tide you over, James Gunn has debuted some new concept art — okay, concept art isn’t a trailer, but this particular image does offer a sneak peek at a particularly ferocious new alien villain battling the core Guardians crew, including a ridiculously adorable Baby Groot.