Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 doesn’t officially head into production until early next year, but it looks like some preparations are already being made for James Gunn’s intergalactic superhero sequel. Zoe Saldana takes us behind the scenes in a new photo, showing us a bit of the work that goes into getting her ready for Gamora.

As you can see below, Saldana’s face and neck are being covered in a slime-green-colored substance to create a facial cast so the team can build the subtle prosthetics for Gamora’s face. In the Guardians narrative, Gamora’s body was genetically “enhanced” by her adoptive father Thanos in an effort to turn her into a perfect weapon:

Even though Gunn frequently participates in Q&A sessions with fans on Twitter and Facebook and is more transparent than most directors in the MCU, much is still unknown about the sequel. Last week, Gunn shot down a report claiming to know the identity of Star-Lord’s father, whom the director previously said would be featured in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.

Joining Saldana’s Gamora are fellow returning cast members Chris Pratt as Peter Quill / Star-Lord, Vin Diesel as Groot, Bradley Cooper as Rocket Raccoon and Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer. Saldana also recently confirmed Benicio Del Toro’s return as The Collector. Canadian actress Pom Klementieff (Spike Lee’s Oldboy) has also signed on, with many speculating that she’ll be portraying Mantis — a Marvel character who has been rumored to be joining the MCU for some time now.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 hits theaters on May 5, 2017.

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