James Gunn is excited to be back for 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3'Mar 16 (AZINS) Director James Gunn is all set to take charge of Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol 3 after Walt Disney Studios re-hired him.

Marvel Studios had fired Gunn in July 2018 after his old, offensive tweets had resurfaced and conservative pundits had argued his place as director of the Guardians franchise.

Gunn had issued an apology for his tweets.

"My words of nearly a decade ago were, at the time, totally failed and unfortunate efforts to be provocative. I have regretted them for many years since not just because they were stupid, not at all funny, wildly insensitive, and certainly not provocative like I had hoped, but also because they don't reflect the person I am today or have been for some time," Gunn said.

The cast of Guardians of the Galaxy, Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Bradley Cooper, Vin Diesel, and others later issued a statement backing their director and expressing their shock over studios treatment. When rumours of Guardians 3 being shelved emerged, Marvel Studios head Kevin Feige and others maintained that the third film in the franchise will happen, but never gave a release date for it.

According to a report in The Hollywood Reporter, after firing Gunn, Disney did not search for a replacement. The report alleges that Gunn and Disney reached a secret deal to keep him involved in the making of the movie. Earlier this month, Feige had revealed that Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol 3 will use the screenplay penned by embattled Gunn.

On Friday, Gunn took to Twitter to release a statement. "I am tremendously grateful to every person out there who has supported me over the past few months," Gunn posted on Twitter. "I am always learning and will continue to work at being the best human being I can be. I deeply appreciate Disney's decision and I am excited to continue making films that investigate the ties of love that bind us all. I have been, and continue to be incredibly humbled by your love and support. From the bottom of my heart, thank you. Love to you all."

Gunn is still directing Warner Bros and DC Comic's Suicide Squad 2 starring Idris Elba as Deadshot. He will begin work on Guardians 3 after finishing the Suicide Squad sequel.

Guardians of the Galaxy is one of the profitable franchise for Marvel Studios. The first 2014 Guardians movie earned more than $773 million worldwide while 2017's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 earned $863 million. Gunn also served as executive producer for Avengers: Infinity War and his Guardians squad was featured prominently in the movie. While most of Guardians turned to dust, Karen Gillan's Nebula and Bradley Cooper's Rocket the Racoon will be a significant part of Avengers: Endgame.