James Gunn says Adam Warlock is an infant in Guardians of The Galaxy Vol. 3

Ever since Phase 4 began, every MCU project has introduced a new character, and now Phase 5 is bringing in Adam Warlock. This Phase will start with two strong punches with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

While Ant-Man 3 gives us Cassie, Kang, and MODOK, Guardians Vol. 3 will bring Lylla, Adam, and the High Evolutionary. Among these characters, Adam Warlock is arguably the most exciting one on the heroes’ side. However, he won’t begin as a hero as James Gunn is introducing him as a secondary villain. Fans have had a few queries about Adam since Vol. 2, and Gunn has answered at least two.

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Is Adam Warlock a villain?

Will Poulter as Warlock (Image via Marvel)

In a recent interview with Empire Online, James Gunn made some things very clear about Adam. We’ve been asking where Adam has been since Vol. 2 and whether he will be a good guy, and Gunn told Empire Online:

“It’s kind of more complicated than that... But he’s definitely not a good guy. What we’re seeing is the infant form of Warlock, newly out of the cocoon, and he does not understand life very well. He’s basically a baby.”

So, according to Gunn, Warlock’s cocoon hatched only recently. It took over a decade since Vol. 2 took place in MCU’s 2014, and he’d start as a bad guy who would ultimately turn into a hero/anti-hero.

Why Will Poulter was cast as Adam (Image via Marvel)

Gunn went on to talk about why he chose someone as young as Will Poulter and not an A-lister like Tom Cruise:

“People online were saying, ‘Oh, Tom Cruise should be Adam Warlock... I wanted somebody who was youthful, and I wanted the person who had the dramatic chops and the comedic chops, not only for this movie but for what Marvel will use Adam Warlock for in the future... He could become this really important character."

Adam is certainly an essential character in the comics, as he played a crucial role in the Infinity Gauntlet storyline. But apparently, he was still in his cocoon when MCU’s Infinity War and Endgame happened. Warlock could still come into play in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty or Avengers: Secret Wars. And after that, he’d become an important persona, as Gunn suggests.

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Adam Warlock’s MCU origin

Did High Evolutionary create Adam? (Image via Marvel)

In the comics, Adam Warlock made his debut in Fantastic Four #66 and #67. He was first created by a group of researchers on Earth who called themselves the Enclave. He was referred to as “Him.” But after a battle with Thor, Him created a regenerative cocoon around himself as a safety measure, only to be reborn later.

Then, in Marvel Premiere #1, the High Evolutionary got his hands on Him’s cocoon and began to further his evolutionary process.

Since The High Evolutionary is also the main villain of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, he is also expected to be directly involved with the creation of Adam Warlock. He was the one who placed the Soul gem on Adam’s head in the books. But here, he has added a different element to his head, which could also be his power source.

It will be interesting to see the extent to which Adam’s MCU origin will differ from the source material.

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Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will arrive on May 5, 2023.