This past San Diego Comic-Con took place with a giant cloud hovering overhead. In addition to not really being at the con in a big way, Disney announced their decision to remove Gunn as director of the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 film. This came on the heels of some tweets from the director that had surfaced from several years back, and in the tweets, Gunn made some crass statements involving pedophilia, among other things.

Gunn apologized for those tweets in follow-up statements, saying they were cheap ways for him to be shocking, though he made no excuses for the tweets made. In the time since then, the actors have individually made statements, some in defense of Gunn and some in a more neutral tone. However, not long ago, actor Dave Bautista posted a joint statement from the entire core cast, voicing their support for the director, and their desire to have Disney rehire him.

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Here’s what the letter said.

“To our fans and friends:

“We fully support James Gunn. We were all shocked by his abrupt firing last week and have intentionally waited these ten days to respond in order to think, pray, listen, and discuss. In that time, we’ve been encouraged by the outpouring of support from fans and members of the media who wish to see James reinstated as director of Volume 3 as well as discouraged by those so easily duped into believing the many outlandish conspiracy theories surrounding him.”

“Being in the Guardians of the Galaxy movies has been a great honor in each off our lives. We cannot let this moment pass without expressing our love, support, and gratitude for James. We are not here to defend his jokes of many years ago but rather to share our experience having spent many years together on set making Guardians of the Galaxy 1 and 2. The character he has shown in the wake of his firing is consistent with the man he was every day on set, and his apology, now and from years ago when first addressing these remarks, we believe is from the heart, a heart all know, trust, and love. In casting each of us to help him tell the story of misfits who find redemption, he changed our lives forever. We believe the theme of redemption has never been more relevant than now.”

“Each of us looks forward to working with our friend James again in the future. His story isn’t over — not by a long shot.’

“There is little due process in the court of public opinion. James is likely not the last good person to be put on trial. Given the growing political divide in this country, it’s safe to say instances like this will continue, although we hope Amercians from across the political spectrum can ease up on the character assassinations and stop weaponizing mob mentality.”

“It is our hope that what has transpired can serve as an example for all of us to realize the enormous responsibility we have to ourselves and to each other regarding the use of our written words when we etch them in digital stone; that we as a society may learn from this experience and in the future will think twice before we decide what we want to express; and in so learning perhaps can harness this capability to help and heal instead of hurting each other. Thank you for taking the time to read our words.”

“The Guardians of the Galaxy.”

Below that were the signatures of Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Bradley Cooper, Sean Gunn, Vin Diesel, Dave Bautista, Pom Klementieff, Karen Gillan, Michael Rooker, which really shows a united front. Will it work out for them? We’ll have to wait and see.

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SOURCE: Dave Bautista