“An office that seemed to be constructed from cardboard and scotch tape”: James Gunn Called Marvel ‘Cheap’ During Guardians of the Galaxy Meeting
Marvel Studios which is lauded for successfully making billion-dollar movies was once called cheap by the acclaimed director James Gunn.
James Gunn who’s lauded for his creative work in Guardians of the Galaxy was shocked to witness the Marvel studios for the first time when he visited there to discuss his vision for the galaxy. The director couldn’t believe that he was inside an office that was behind the billion-dollar movies.
James Gunn Labeled Marvel Studios as Cheap After Visiting For First Time
When we hear Marvel studios, the first thing that’ll pop into our minds is the creative construction of the offices that depict the superhero world with extreme visionary thinking. However, James Gunn didn’t think of the offices this way when he first visited Marvel Studios for a meeting. MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios, a book written by Joanna Robinson, Dave Gonzalez, and Gavin Edwards revealed that during the initial years of Marvel Studios, it was way too tight-fisted.
James Gunn who went to the office for the first time to have a meeting regarding his vision for Guardians of the Galaxy, was shocked to witness extreme frugality in Marvel’s culture that didn’t suit it. The director said: “They were cheap. They were very cheap.” James Gun wasn’t satisfied and even claimed that:
“I was sitting in an office that seemed to be constructed of cardboard and scotch tape.”
During the initial years, the cost-saving methods adopted by Marvel included closely scrutinizing the bills related to Marvel studios led to a modest and unimaginative structure and negatively impacted the working culture. One of the screenwriters even called it “shithole-adjacent.” This was below what one might expect when they hear that Marvel studios are behind the billion-dollar hit movies. This might have made Gunn call the studios cheap as he didn’t expect what he witnessed.
Marvel Studios Lacked Basic Office Amenities
The authors have briefly described how the studies looked like during their initial years as they lacked some of the basic office amenities. The book unveils that the conference room was filled with mismatched chairs and excluded the elemental requirements of an office.
When distributor Chris Fenton explored the office, he described it as: “unassuming and a bit disheveled” as he had to wait in the conference room because the reception area had no capacity and said: “None of them matched.”
What made the situation worse was when a chair tumbled over Fenton and the receptionist was the one who didn’t even warn the distributor about the chairs. She said: “I forgot to warn you about the chairs.” and this humorous incident highlighted the inconsistency in the office furnishings.
Another cost-saving measure that has been mentioned in the book by the authors is about the employees being asked to use their lunch box napkins to blow their noses which is again a humorous but unexpected order from a studio that is now one of the most accomplished offices in the entertainment industry.
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Watch Guardians of the Galaxy on Disney+
