James Gunn unites DC and Marvel filmmaking with a heartwarming story

Though fandom often likes to divide the world of DC and Marvel Comics into two very distinct, separate entities, creators still sometimes get a chance to walk in both universes for a while. Guardians of the Galaxy writer/director James Gunn is doing that right now with The Suicide Squad, his first DC Comics-based film after years spent working in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Gunn hasn't forgotten about his Marvel family, though, and in a heartwarming Twitter post over the weekend he revealed that his Marvel family definitely hasn't forgotten about him either.

Gunn has been shooting The Suicide Squad -- his revamp of the titular antihero team starring returning cast members like Margot Robbie and Viola Davis as well as new stars like Idris Elba and Michael Rooker -- for a little while now, and on Sunday he shared that when production first kicked off, he received a very special gift from Kevin Feige and the production team at Marvel Studios: An Up-inspired scrapbook filled with memories from his time on the first two Guardians films, wishing him well on The Suicide Squad and reminding him that he'll be headed back to Marvel soon for work on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

In the process of describing this thoughtful congratulatory gift, Gunn also laid out his thoughts on how much Marvel and DC have in common. 

The circumstances that led Gunn to become a filmmaker in both universes began as something devastating. The director was fired from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 in July of 2018 after years-old tweets in which he joked about things like pedophilia resurfaced on alt-right websites. Gunn apologized for the tweets in question, but Disney removed him from work on future MCU projects anyway. Months later, after meetings with Walt Disney Studios head Alan Horn, Gunn was re-hired for Guardians Vol. 3. In the interim, Warner Bros. had already signed him up for The Suicide Squad, which set up a one-two punch of DC followed by Marvel movies for Gunn. After The Suicide Squad is completed, he'll return to the MCU and the future of the Guardians of the Galaxy. In the meantime, he's getting support from both sides and taking his current cast to see Joker. 

The Suicide Squad hits theaters August 6, 2021.