Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3's villain, the High Evolutionary, has connections to many characters in the movie, teases Chukwudi Iwuji. The final installment in James Gunn's Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy is expected to find Peter Quill coping with the death of Gamora as he must rally the ragtag team once again to protect the universe, and one of their own, from an imminent threat. The Marvel Cinematic Universe film is scheduled to be released on May 5, 2023, as part of Phase 5.
Chris Pratt returns to lead the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 cast once again as Star-Lord alongside Zoe Saldaña, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Elizabeth Debicki, Sean Gunn, and Sylvester Stallone. New additions to the series include Midsommar's Will Poulter as Adam Warlock, Borat 2's Maria Bakalova as Cosmo the Spacedog, and Peacemaker's Chukwudi Iwuji as the High Evolutionary. The first look at Guardians of the Galaxy 3's villain was revealed at San Diego Comic-Con 2022 and now, more information is coming out of the recent convention.
In an interview with Screen Rant during Marvel's press line at SDCC 2022, Iwuji shared the first details about Guardians of the Galaxy 3's main villain. The Peacemaker actor says the High Evolutionary has "been around for eons" and is closely connected to many characters in the film and has affected their "lives in a not-so-nice way," and not just Rocket specifically. Read what Iwuji shared below:
The High Evolutionary, who's been around for eons, is actually connected to a hell of a lot of the characters in this movie. I've been seeing a lot of talk about it being about Rocket specifically, but actually, he's connected to a lot of people. Let's just say that he affects a lot of people's lives in a not-so-nice way.
First introduced in Marvel comics in 1966, the High Evolutionary has factored into many heroes' backstories over the years, including Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, Thor, and Black Knight. Previously known as Herbert Wyndham, the High Evolutionary was a brilliant biologist who, as his title suggests, becomes consumed by the study of evolution and genetic alteration. He eventually relocates to Mount Wundagore where he puts his studies into practice by experimenting on local animals, turning some into talking humanoids known as the New Men.
The High Evolutionary's backstory has led to speculation he will be responsible for Rocket's origin story in the MCU. But Based on Iwuji's recent comments, it's apparent that he will have connections to other characters in the film as well, likely Adam Warlock. The artificial being was created by Ayesha during Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2's post-credits scene, though Iwuji's tease is a strong indication the High Evolutionary was also involved in some significant way. Now that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3's main villain has been revealed and Iwuji can openly discuss his character, more information will be revealed in due time.
