James Gunn’s Journey From Troma to Marvel
Jonathan Barkan
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This past weekend saw the release of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, which was written and directed by James Gunn. The film took in nearly $150 million this weekend, making it the number one film in theaters and solidifying Gunn as one of the most inventive, creative, and exciting directors working in Hollywood. For horror fans, we’ve already known of Gunn’s brilliance. By looking at his past, we can see how Gunn paved his path to where he is now. That path, interestingly enough, began with Lloyd Kaufman at Troma Entertainment.
Back in 1996, Gunn was responsible for writing and acting as the associate director of Tromeo and Juliet, a transgressive romantic comedy adaptation of William Shakespeare’s famous tragedy “Romeo and Juliet” that’s packed with violence, nudity, and sexuality. He remained at Troma for a few more years, writing the odd piece here and there. In 2002, Gunn’s script for Scooby-Doo was adapted into a feature-length film with a budget of $84 million (it took in nearly $275 million worldwide), giving him the chance to write the 2004 sequel. Also in 2004, Gunn’s Dawn of the Dead remake, which he wrote, hit theaters and was a massive hit with critics and horror fans alike, many of whom cite as an example of a genre remake done right.
Then, in 2006, Gunn brought us the gross out spectacle that is Slither, which brought together the writer/director and Michael Rooker, who plays Yondu in the Guardians of the Galaxy films. While it didn’t perform well at the box office, Slither has since gone on to become a cult favorite, a film that embodies much of what we love about the genre. It’s over-the-top, gruesome, full of practical FX, and features delightful characters. If you watch Guardians of the Galaxy and then go back to watch Slither, it’s amazing how consistent they are in terms of feel and attitude. They’re undeniably fun and every moment of both movies is engaging and entertaining.
Prior to Gunn devoting years to Marvel and expanding the Guardians of the Galaxy, which didn’t stop him from writing and producing this year’s social experiment psychological horror/thriller The Belko Experiment, he wrote the Suda 51 video game Lollipop Chainsaw, which was positively received and combined humor, action, and horror.
Already committed to a third Guardians of the Galaxy film and acting as an executive producer on Avengers: Infinity War, I cheer Gunn on as he takes this path. I do so because I know that while he may be playing amongst in a science fiction playground, he started in the absurd and all the horror it had to offer. I can only hope that we’ll see Gunn return there to give us another exciting, wickedly entertaining horror film with him behind the lens.
Photo by Gage Skidmore
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