Who Could Sylvester Stallone Be Playing In Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2?

STAR-LORD'S FATHER

We don't know who Star-Lord's father is, of course, so this could totally be something that crosses over with one of the other names on the list.

That said, it's been generally assumed up to now that Kurt Russell would play Star-Lord's dad, simply because he's age-appropriate and so when he was cast in the film, that became one of the first rumors.

Now, there's another age-appropriate male actor joining the film's ranks, which throws a wrench into things significantly...!

J'SON OF SPARTAX

J'Son of Spartax is a key figure in recent Guardians of the Galaxy comics.

Of course, in the comics, he's Star-Lord's father...something that director James Gunn has said he won't be in the movies.

Could we see a kinda-sorta misdirect here, where J'Son appears in the film, his domain playing a role in the story even though he has no familial bonds with Peter? Don't be too surprised if it happens...!

Devil's advocate, though? The big reason it's unlikely is that, from all impressions, Gunn just kind of doesn't like the character and the way he fits into the Marvel Universe. I may be wrong, but I had the impression that creating a character who was more or less explicitly "Jason of Sparta" was one of the issues Gunn had with this version of Peter's backstory.

Even if that isn't the case...it does kind of make the name and backstory harder to swallow for casual, movies-only fans...!

EGO, THE LIVING PLANET

One of a small handful of characters rumored to be a villain in the film, Ego the Living Planet is exactly what it sounds like -- which probably would mean that Stallone's contribution to the film, if he were to play this role, would be primarily motion-capture and/or voice work.

That would allow him to fit the movie in around Creed 2, obviously a concern for the star since they already lost director Ryan Coogler to a Marvel movie...and, really, Stallone's got a pretty solid voice, that he's almost never used for voice-only acting. Seems like it could be a good fit.

TERRAX

Terrax the Tamer shares a lot of DNA with Ronan the Accuser; he's a powerful cosmic being with a strange complexion and a really cool weapon.

Could we see him in this movie? It's hard to say. While the obvious jokes about DC's Darkseid and Marvel's Thanos being basically the same character haven't discouraged either company from using those guys as their big bads, having a bald, gray-skinned baddie in a Marvel movie sandwiched between Batman V Superman's Doomsday and Justice League's Darkseid seems like it could be visually boring -- which isn't a phrase you'd usually put on a James Gunn joint.

That said, Sly could play a great Terrax -- he's got the build, the snarl, and could easily exude the overall sense of menace that the character needs.

And, yeah, in the comics this is a character who has ties to the Nova Corps and Drax the Destroyer, so it doesn't seem entirely implausible that he could be on a shortlist somewhere.

The biggest possible problem here? Terrax may (and of course we don't know for sure, but he may) be a Fantastic Four villain, as far as the contracts are concerned.

SYLVESTER STALLONE

...Of course, Guardians of the Galaxy was pretty pop-culture savvy.

It would be a whole other, almost Deadpool-style level of fourth wall breaking to bring in Stallone as himself for some reason...but we wouldn't entirely put it past them.

Wait, has Stallone ever starred in a movie with Kevin Bacon...?