It's not without reason that Guardians of the Galaxy is one of Screen Rant's most highly anticipated 2014 Movies. Not only will it be the first non-sequel Marvel movie since 2012's The Avengers, it will also introduce a brand-new team of weird and wonderful characters that includes an anthropomorphic tree played by Vin Diesel and a gun-wielding talking raccoon with the voice of Bradley Cooper.

As hyped as Marvel fans might be for Guardians of the Galaxy, it's also one of the riskiest movies of the franchise so far. Unlike Iron Man or the Hulk, the Guardians of the Galaxy aren't exactly well-known outside of comic book circles, and casual moviegoers will probably need some convincing before they decide to give the movie a chance.

However, a new rumor regarding an additional branch to the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise suggests that Marvel and Disney are feeling pretty confident about the characters' appeal. CBM reports that, according to a "well placed source," Marvel has plans for an animated series based on Guardians of the Galaxy. The source claims that Marvel was previously weighing this project up against another Spider-Man cartoon, but has  now decided to go with Guardians of the Galaxy instead.

Guardians of the Galaxy Avengers 2

The comics featuring the characters would definitely be great source material for an animated series, with the sci-fi adventure premise and diverse band of characters holding a lot of appeal for younger audiences (and older ones, for that matter). The Guardians have already appeared as guest stars on both Ultimate Spider-Man and The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes, and this latest rumor suggest that Marvel might have been deliberately testing the characters with audiences before giving them their own show.

As with all stories of this nature it's important to remember that this information hasn't yet been corroborated by any official sources, but it certainly makes sense. The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes debuted alongside the release of the big screen version of The Avengers, so it's possible that Disney and Marvel are considering doing something similar with Guardians of the Galaxy.

Who knows, perhaps twenty years from now the kids of today will be sitting around remembering the Guardians of the Galaxy cartoon with the same kind of misty-eyed nostalgia that's currently reserved for Batman: The Animated Series and X-Men. We'll keep our fingers crossed.

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Guardians of the Galaxy is out in theaters on August 1, 2014.

Source: CBM