James Gunn has once again spoken about his attempts to make a Hitman movie. The Guardians of the Galaxy director responded to a question on Twitter asking about which video game series would make a great film with an answer about his rejected Hitman pitch.
"Weeks before I got Guardians I pitched a Hitman movie," Gunn said, in reference to the stealth series starring bald assassin Agent 47. "The studio really wanted to hire me, but a producer on the project did not. I was bummed then, but thank God, because I would have never been able to do GotG if they had said yes!"
Gunn has broached this topic before in a now-deleted tweet (H/T AV Club), revealing in 2017 that the reason he was turned down from the project was due to “producers at the time” not wanting an R-Rated Hitman movie. Go figure.
Of course, things turned out for the best for all parties. Gunn was launched into the stratosphere with a pair of Guardians movies and Hitman reinvented itself – fresh off the divisive Hitman: Absolution and a middling 2007 film adaptation – with its stellar World of Assassination trilogy.
Gunn is now focused on capping off the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy. The third movie, set for release on May 5, 2023, had its first trailer at San Diego Comic-Con in July. Gunn, though, has said he isn’t ready to show it to the public just yet.
"I wish you could have [seen it] too," Gunn said on Twitter. "But it’s not just Marvel, it’s also me. Although I love the teaser some VFX aren’t where I’d want them to be for repeated views & close inspection – remember we didn’t wrap long ago – so you’ll have to wait just a beat! Sorry!"
For more on what else is coming to the MCU, check out our guide to upcoming Marvel movies.
