Guardians Of The Galaxy Actor Calls Working For Disney 'Nauseating' Following James Gunn Firing

Drax is one part disheartened, one part disgusted. 

On Twitter over the weekend, Dave Bautista — known to us Marvel fans as Drax the Destroyer from the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise — stated that working for Walt Disney Studios (where Marvel Studios is housed) is "pretty nauseating" after the company fired James Gunn as director of Guardians Vol. 3. Disney cited offensive past tweets of Gunn's — which conservative media personalities and outspoken Donald Trump supporters dug up and re-shared online – as reason for kicking him to the curb. 

The decision sparked controversy, with some rallying behind the House of Mouse and slamming Gunn for so-called jokes he shared to social media nearly a decade ago and others — including Bautista, Gunn's brother Sean Gunn, and the entire Guardians cast — publicly supporting Gunn and calling for Disney to reinstate him. 

After a fan asked Bautista whether he has "any plans or response" if Disney doesn't rehire Gunn for Guardians Vol. 3, the actor confirmed that he will appear in the three-quel pic — but only because he's contractually required to do so, and he certainly won't be happy about it.

"I will do what Im [sic] legally obligated to do but @Guardians without @JamesGunn is not what I signed up for," tweeted Bautista. "GOTG w/o @JamesGunn just isn't GOTG. Its [sic] also pretty nauseating to work for someone who'd empower a smear campaign by fascists #cybernazis. That's just how I feel."

The tweet — which has amassed over 34,000 likes and over 7,700 retweets at the time of writing — garnered tons of support from fans. But here's where things get sticky: Not only have many stated that a Gunn-less Guardians won't feel right, but they have also expressed plans to skip out on seeing Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 altogether if Gunn isn't the director. 

One user wrote in response to Bautista's tweet, "I feel the same way. It won't be the same without him," adding the hashtags #RehireJamesGunn, #WeAreGunn, and #IStandWithJamesGunn. Another took things even further, writing, "I know you all signed contracts to be in Guardians, and I want to support a lot of the great work you're all doing in the films. However, a Guardians without Gunn I will have to boycott. As a consumer, I only have my dollar to protest Disney's actions."

"I'm surprisingly proud of all the fans willing to boycott Disney here. I planned on skipping out on their movies if they didn't #RehireJamesGunn, but figured I'd pretty much be alone," added another Twitter user. "Hate to do it because I love this franchise and those involved." 

Intending to boycott Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 if Gunn isn't rehired does send a pretty strong message to Disney, but it also affects the future success of the film series and could alter the movie's box office performance upon launch. (Not exactly the best way to support your favorite Marvel stars, huh?)

Until Disney makes an official decision about what to do regarding the Gunn/Guardians situation, it seems those who stand with the director will be stuck between a rock and a hard place if Disney doesn't give him his job back — which the company reportedly isn't planning on doing.