Vin Diesel proved that he is Groot during the Avengers: Endgame premiere in Los Angeles Monday night.
The actor, who portrays the last surviving member of a tree-like alien race in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), stepped out alongside his co-stars Monday donning a leather jacket designed to look like it was covered in thick layers of mossy tree bark, an ensemble that clearly paid homage to his character.
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The actor’s nature-filled look wasn’t just inspired by his onscreen counterpart, who stole hearts in both the Guardians of the Galaxy films and Avengers: Infinity War, as Diesel also explained that he was encouraged to go with the unusual ensemble after seeing fans cosplay.
“This is the way I see it: As a lover of Comic-Con, I know how these cosplayers really engage and how they really commit,” Diesel explained during Marvel’s livestream of the premiere, according to Entertainment Weekly. “And for something like Groot, I always like to participate.”
He added that he opted for a “cool jacket that kind of speaks to the Groot-esque qualities of all of us.”
Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, he added that he did it “in the name of love and cosplay.”
“All those [fans] out there, when you come into this premiere, you see so many people invested. They created costumes, they’re wearing it out there in the intense heat,” said. “And I felt like just jumping in with them and being a part and repping with them. Hence the bark.”
This is far from the first time Diesel has channeled his MCU character for a red carpet event. At last year’s Avengers: Infinity War world premiere, the actor paid tribute to his botanical character with a jacket featuring tiny twigs, resembling how Baby Groot grew into Teenage Groot.
“It’s just the Groot coming out of me. It’s the Groot coming out of my jacket.” Diesel said of the jacket. “I’m talking normal, and next thing you know, branches are growing out my chest. It’s crazy. I gotta give credit to Paris, my stylist. Because the last time I was at a premiere, I was wearing stilts in London. But this Groot is a teenaged Groot, so we’re going to wait for the stilts until the next one.”
Diesel wasn’t the only star to hit the red carpet channeling Avengers characters. Both Brie Larson and Scarlett Johansson wore Infinity Gauntlet-inspired bracelets to the premiere.
Avengers: Endgame premieres in theaters everywhere on Friday, April 26.
