Guardians of the Galaxy was one of Marvel's biggest hits, turning former unknown heroes like Star-Lord and Groot into A-listers and making the sequel one of the most anticipated films on the studio's slate. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 hits in May and is going to bring with it even more obscure comic book characters that are now set to become iconic.

The team themselves will be joined by returning characters Yondu and Nebula, as well as franchise newcomer Mantis (played by Pom Klementieff), but that's just the tip of the spaceberg. Kurt Russell will appear as Star-Lord's father and living planet Ego and Sylvester Stallone in a "very important role". On villain duties against that massive group is Elizabeth Debicki, who will be playing Ayesha.

And, thanks to the promo images for Funko's Pint Size toy range, we have a new tease of what Ayesha will look like in the Guardians sequel. The images were released a few days ago, but it's only now Twitter user DIU has reached out to director James Gunn to ask about the toy that we've gotten some confirmation.

In the comics, Ayesha (also known interchangeably as Kismet, Paragon and Her) was an artificial being created by the same group behind fan-favourite (and core Infinity Gauntlet comic hero) Adam Warlock. The Ayesha identity came about late on in her development, the result of her being under the control of an intergalactic supervillain. How much of that, if anything, will make it to the big screen is unclear; the first Guardians extensively changed each of its core characters both visually and personality-wise, to adapt the weirdness of the original cosmic Marvel comics to the big screen.

Still, now we know how Ayesha will look. This is a toy - and a greatly cutified one at that - but there are some broad details to be taken from the design: long, pinned back hair, yellow skin, blue outfit. And with those elements in mind, this may be a fairly comic accurate look; Ayesha's hair and skin tone are close to her comic counterpart. It would be foolish to make any resolute statements before seeing Debicki in action, but that toy's plain design may actually be a positive.

The villain - Lee Pace's Ronan - was one of the weakest parts of the first Guardians, an undernourished antagonist with basic motivations. That didn't matter too much at the time - like most Marvel movies, Guardians is more about the heroes than story - but it is something everyone is hoping will be fixed the second time around. That Ayesha's been absent from much of the discussion around Guardians 2 so far suggest a semi-marginalised role, but let's hope that's just part of the confidently restrained marketing campaign's plan.

Source: James Gunn