Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 wrapped up filming last month, and while information on the plot of the film is being kept quiet, fans are slowly being fed more information as it's made available. Recently, Deadline revealed that Oscar nominee Maria Bakalova will be joining Star-Lord and company as a key role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe threequel.
Writer and director of the Guardians films James Gunn keeps his projects close so not much is known about the third installment or about Bakalova's involvement. The Bulgarian actress got her breakout role with Sacha Baron Cohen when she was cast as his daughter in the controversial Borat Subsequent Moviefilm which earned Bakalova an Oscar nominee for Best Supporting Actress and proved she could not only act, but was a perfect fit for the more comedic franchise of the MCU. She can most recently be seen in A24's upcoming comedy horror Bodies Bodies Bodies, as well as starring in and producing The Honeymoon, and Judd Apatow's pandemic flick The Bubble alongside fellow MCU cast member Karen Gillan who plays the Gamora's sister Nebula.
What we do know is that many of the stars from the first two films will be returning, including Christ Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Vin Diesel as Groot, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper as Rocket, Pom Klementieff as Mantis, Sylvester Stallone, Gillan, and Elizabeth Debicki who played the Golden High Priestess of the Sovereign in Vol 2. In addition to appearing in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Pratt, Bautista, Klementieff, Gillan, Diesel and Cooper will also appear in Thor: Love and Thunder.
Along with the mysterious Bakalova character, Gunn has announced that Vol 3 will be introducing Will Poulter as the major player in the Marvel universe Adam Warlock. In the post-credits scene for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2, Ayesha is creating something she describes as powerful enough to destroy the Guardians of the Galaxy, and that something she dubs Adam. This doesn't bode well, considering Vol 3 is set to be the last of the Guardians movies.
Alongside Poulter, Daniela Melchior and Chukwudi Iwuji are jumping universes from The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker, and there is still an "unannounced actor" Gunn teased and "that person isn’t Bakalova."
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will hit theaters May 5 next year.