James Gunn has promised some new characters in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, and we now have our first addition to the cast.
According to Variety, Marvel has just added French actress Pom Klementieff to Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. The studio has evidently been testing women for a mysterious new character, and Klementieff came out on top. No official word yet on who she'll be playing.
Klementieff is known primarily for her performance in Spike Lee's Oldboy, in which she played Haeng-Bok. She also had a relatively small role as Lucy in Sleepless Night.
Marvel fans are already scrambling to figure out who Klementieff will be playing, and so far, one character has dominated the conversation. Comic book readers speculate the actress could play Mantis. Introduced in Avengers #112 back in 1973, Mantis played a key role in the war against Thanos, fighting alongside Drax the Destroyer. She's trained in martial arts and has the power of telekineses, the power to sense weak points on an opponent, and the power to heal herself.
Considering the fact that the Marvel universe is moving towards a confrontation with Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War, introducing Mantis in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 would make a lot of sense.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 will see the return of Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Bradley Cooper, Dave Bautista and Vin Diesel. James Gunn will write and direct the sequel and, despite this casting, he has noted that the movie will actually have fewer characters than the first one, as he wants to focus mainly on the existing team.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 hits theaters on May 5, 2017.