Marvel Wanted David Bowie to Appear in ‘Guardians of the Galaxy 2’

As the world collectively struggles to find a way to cope with the loss of the incredible being that was David Bowie, many have taken to the internet to share their thoughts and remembrances of The Great White Duke. One of those people is Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn, who included Bowie’s hit “Moonage Daydream” on the soundtrack to the first film. In his tribute, Gunn revealed one more fascinating bit of information: Bowie was set to make an appearance in the upcoming sequel.

Said Gunn today about Bowie and his influence over the first film and the upcoming sequel:

Bowie was an idol of mine, huge and omnipresent. Few artists in any field have had as an indelible impression upon me as he has. To my mind, Ziggy Stardust is perhaps the greatest rock and roll album of all time. We featured “Moonage Daydream” in Guardians, but I always thought the album’s character was felt far beyond that, in the aesthetics, in the integral and seemingly-natural linking in popular culture of ’70’s rock and space opera. I’ve been trying to work another song from Ziggy into the sequel, which would make Bowie the only artist to have a song on both Vol. 1 and Vol. 2. I thought this was fair and appropriate.

But a song on both Guardians of the Galaxy soundtracks was not all. It turns out Marvel had been courting Bowie to take on a cameo role in Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2.

Just a very short while ago Kevin Feige and I were talking about a cameo role in ‘Guardians Vol. 2,’ and he brought up Bowie’s name. I told him nothing in the world would make me happier, but I heard from common friends he wasn’t doing well. We heard back that he was okay and it could potentially happen.

Gunn says the news of Bowie’s death surprised him as much as it surprised the rest of us this morning. Though Bowie and his family knew he was dying, the singer preferred to keep that information private, perhaps even agreeing to the Guardians role as a way of deflecting questions about his declining health. Sorry Stan Lee, but we cannot imagine a more fitting and appropriate cameo in a Marvel movie than David Bowie somehow making an appearance in Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2. One of the myriad reasons it’s such a shame we lost him so soon.