This huge star is in talks to join the ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ sequel

Guys, major news in the Marvel universe. If you’re as much of a fan of Guardians of the Galaxy as we are, listen up: If rumors end up being true, it turns out that we know who will be playing Star-Lord/Peter Quills’ long-lost dad in the film’s sequel.

And Chris Pratt’s fictional dad will (hopefully) be: Kurt Russell, who would be continuing a strong comeback streak after Furious 7, The Hateful Eight, and Deepwater Horizon. Of course, all of this is still in early talks; according to TheWrap, he hasn’t read the script or officially been offered the part yet, but “meetings are expected to take place soon.” Production is expected to start in early 2016, so we’ll probably be finding out if this rumor is reality quite soon.

Russell would be joining already-confirmed returners Pratt, Zoe Saldana (Gamora), David Bautista (Drax), Bradley Cooper (voice of Rocket), and Vin Diesel (voice of Groot) — as well as newcomer Pom Klementieff, though her role is currently unspecified.

We’re sure Walt Disney, whose last words are rumored to be “Kurt Russell,” would be quite happy indeed. But the real question remains. . . which Marvel character is Star-Lord’s papa? The true identity of Russell’s would-be character still remains unseen, and probably will not be revealed until the movie is released. According to director James Gunn, it will be a character we all know well from Marvel, but not the same character that is in the comics.

Guess we’ll have a while to wait on that one, as Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is slated for May 5, 2017. But either way, we’re crossing our fingers that these rumors are true.

(Image via Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.)