There have been a lot of new names added to the cast of James Gunn’s ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ lately. And we’re not talking random, no-name actors either. In the last two weeks alone, we’ve had John C. Reilly, Glenn Close, and Karen Gillan join the diverse and star-studded cast, but most recently Academy Award winner Benicio Del Toro signed on for not only the upcoming Phase Two film, but also future films as well. When that announcement was made, it was unclear who he would be playing, but speculation lead people to believe that he would be Thanos, who was last seen in the post-credits scene of ‘The Avengers’. However, a new report seems to indicate that the veteran actor will be stepping into another villain’s shoes.
According to an exclusive report from a reliable source of Comic Book Movie, Del Toro will actually be playing Taneleer Tivan, the Elder of the Universe who gathers species and artifacts in order to protect them from an all-powerful being that has the ability to destroy the universe known as The Collector. The character has been rumored to be involved in the film since Ophelia Lovibond was cast as one of his aides. With that announcement and Tivan’s connection to The Mad Titan, who is said to be playing a much larger part in the Marvel Cinematic Universe beyond Phase Two, it was only a matter of time before we discovered who would be filling the character’s shoes.
Personally, I feel like this announcement is a red herring to throw people off the path that ends with Del Toro playing Thanos. I don’t doubt that the Collector will be a part of ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’, but I’m not really sure how he’d factor in down the line. On the other hand, the lover of Death is guaranteed to be a character “built to be part of future Marvel films”. By that description alone, it just seems more logical to me for Del Toro to play Thanos, but if Gunn and Joss Whedon have found some way to make the Collector a more key player than he is right now, then more power to them. I will most definitely be checking out whatever they decide to do either way anyway, but we’ll see how the wider, less comic oriented part of the audience receives the character, if that is in fact who Del Toro will be playing.
Who do you think Benicio Del Toro will be playing in ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’? Do you think he’ll play the Collector or does the idea of him playing Thanos make more sense to you? Or do you think that he’ll play a different character all together? Also, with Lee Pace, Karen Gillan, and Michael Rooker all lined up to play villains as well, do you think that the rogues gallery may be getting a bit full? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ starring Chris Pratt, Dave Bautista, Zoe Saldana, Lee Pace, Glenn Close, John C. Reilly, Karen Gillan, Benicio Del Toro, and Michael Rooker blasts off on August 1st, 2014.
