One character's origin story in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 may have just been teased through a photo of three personalized lens caps given to director James Gunn.
Shortly after announcing that filming had wrapped, Gunn shared an emotional series of tweets saying his goodbyes to the series and its cast and crew. At the end of the thread, he also posted a photo of the back of the slate used for the final scene that was shot, saying, "Anyway. The camera crew also stuck their hand-made camera lens caps on the back of the slate for me. Much love to you all." The three colorful caps each have an emblem related to the Guardians of the Galaxy, with the first being the Ravagers' symbol and the third a mix tape that says Vol. 3. The one in the center is a little more cryptic, showing only the code 89P13, but this is the one with a special significance to one of the team's founding members, Rocket Raccoon.
Rocket, as 2014's Guardians of the Galaxy explained, is the product of illegal biological experimentation. Although it's known that he escaped his creators and gave himself the name Rocket, little else is known about his traumatic past. However, in the prison lineup scene in the first movie of the trilogy he's identified by Nova Corps as "Subject 89P13," which is likely to be what he was labeled by the scientists who made him.
It's not yet known if the code has any relevant meaning, although the P might stand for Procyon lotor, the scientific name for real-world raccoons. Whether or not it comes up again in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, though, the inclusion of this subtle reference to Rocket's roots on Gunn's slate seems to imply that Vol. 3 will be giving the character some deep exploration.
The Guardians have become a beloved part of the MCU since they were first introduced. Although the ultimate fates of each one are unknown so far, some of the actors have made remarks implying that they, like Gunn, are completing their journeys through the franchise with this final film, scheduled to hit theaters in one year. Gunn has previously stated that this will be the end of this version of the team as well as his involvement with it, but there are also two other projects featuring the Guardians that will be coming out in advance: The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, set to be released in December on Disney+, and Thor: Love and Thunder, which premieres on July 8.
To see the ending and learn about Subject 89P13's beginnings, watch Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 when it blasts into theaters May 23, 2023.
Source: Twitter
