Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 premieres nationwide next week, and many early viewers are concerned about how fans will react to the graphic and emotionally-charged material when it comes out. Critics and influencers who have seen the movie in early screenings are warning that the depictions of animal cruelty, in particular, push the envelope when it comes to the PG-13 rating. Some are saying that the movie might not be a good fit for those sensitive to such subjects.
Guardians of the Galaxy 3 has to answer some lingering questions from throughout the franchise, including the backstory of Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper). Rocket has made ominous hints to his past throughout the MCU so far, but the trailers have already shown us that this movie will take us even deeper into those origins. Without spoiling anything, viewers from early screenings say that this plotline is extremely heavy and the scenes featuring CGI animals may be difficult for some fans to process. YouTuber Dan Murrell even warns parents to do some research before bringing young children to the theater.
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Several early reviews for the movie make mention of this as well, and some complain that the movie strays too far from its irreverent, silly beginnings into an emotional roller coaster. The movie even earned itself an entry on DoesTheDogDie.com, though reading the warnings there entails reading major spoilers for the content of the movie.
Content warnings have become a hot topic over the years, and many fans resent these dire warnings from critics and influencers. Others say they are glad to go into the movie prepared for a potentially difficult experience. Here’s a look at what people are saying about the depicted animal cruelty in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 on social media.
Trailers
Many fans were not surprised to hear that animal cruelty would be an issue in this movie after seeing the trailers. They could tell that the subject would be prominent just from the way the movie was advertised.
Powerful
While the depictions may be graphic, fans reported that the overall message of Rocket’s storyline is a powerful statement against animal testing and animal cruelty. They felt that the context helped justify the difficult scenes.
Be Prepared
Even positive reviewers warned about the depictions of animal cruelty here, acknowledging that people have varying degrees of tolerance for that kind of material.
Skip It
Some fans were so wary of these warnings that they thought they might hold off on seeing the movie when it first comes out. If the warnings remain serious, they thought they might have to skip the movie altogether.
Bracing
Other fans knew they couldn’t skip the movie after investing so heavily in its predecessors and in the MCU in general. They simply braced themselves for a difficult watch.
Kids
Fans have become accustomed to bringing children to Marvel movies, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is not the first one to be rated PG-13. Some early viewers worried that fans would ignore the rating out of habit, potentially upsetting children. Many said that anyone with sensitivity to animal cruelty should do some research on the movie in advance – possibly even subject themselves to spoilers just to make sure no one is traumatized.
Comparisons
When searching for a spoiler-free explanation for the animal cruelty in Guardians 3, some fans actually compared it to decades-old Disney movies, including Bambi and Old Yeller. This helped fans contextualize it and plan for it when it comes to their own families.
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