"Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" Runtime Unveiled

James Gunn has disclosed that the runtime for "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" will be "around" two and a half hours.

Responding to a fan on Twitter, who asked if reports that the upcoming installment would be two hours and 29 minutes were correct, the director - and new CEO of DC Studios - confirmed the information and noted: "It's around that long".

"Although, that's not yet exact. And, I promise, not a second is wasted. There's no fat. It was necessary to experience the full arc for every major Guardians character, not only for this film, but for the trilogy (or, I should say, trilogy plus)", he added.

Gunn also responded to a few other queries during the session, clarifying that 'trilogy plus' took in the three feature movies, plus the "Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special", "Avengers: Infinity War", and "Avengers: Endgame", of which the Guardians were pivotal players. 

He added that the movie was shot in 1.90:1 IMAX format, which will provide a nice visual treat for fans keen to have a premium experience when the movie hits the theaters.

"Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" is the third and final entry to the epic Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy.

It stars Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldaña, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Sean Gunn, and Maria Bakalova.

The upcoming movie also stars Will Poulter as Adam Warlock, a super-powered being created by Ayesha, Sovereign leader and High Priestess of a genetically engineered alien race known as Sovereign, to eliminate the Guardians. 

Gunn previously teased that Vol. 3 would be the most emotional installment of the trilogy.

He also shared how easy it was to film and produce "Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special" alongside "Vol. 3" due to the serious and heavy nature of the movie compared to the light and breezy festive special.

The festive frolic dropped some big news for the Guardians including revealing that Mantis is Quill’s sister and Kurt Russell’s Ego is also her father.

It also unveiled that the Guardians have purchased Knowhere from the Collector (Benicio del Toro), adopted Cosmo the Spacedog, traveling on a new ship Bowie, and Groot has had a serious growth spurt since viewers last saw him in a movie.

"Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" will be the emotional conclusion to Rocket Raccoon's story. It will also see the Guardians face new antagonists, including Chukwudi Iwuji’s High Evolutionary, and Will Poulter's long-awaited Adam Warlock, one of the most powerful figures in the history of the Marvel comics.

Furthermore, Quill is continuing to deal with the heartbreak he is suffering as a result of losing Gamora during the events of "Avengers: Infinity War", only to get her back during "Avengers: Endgame" but discovering that, as a younger variant of Gamora, the years they spent falling in love never happened for her.

"Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" will be the second movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Phase 5, following "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania", and will open in theaters on May 5.