Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 star Karen Gillan has teased hard times ahead for Nebula, with the actress sharing an image of herself in battle-damaged make-up on her official Instagram account. Gillan will reprise the role of villain-turned-guardian Nebula in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, and shared a caption alongside the image; “I’m on around make up 170th application, but I appreciate the cake anyway.”

karen-gillan-nebula-guardians3
Marvel/@karengillan

Gillan, who has portrayed Nebula since the first Guardians of the Galaxy outing back in 2014, will reunite with Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, and Dave Bautista in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. While she began her story as the loyal daughter of Thanos, Nebula is now a fully-fledged member of the superhero team. The battle-hardened warrior is no stranger to taking damage. Still, with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 expected to bring this particular iteration of the franchise to an end, the damage could be too much for even Nebula to handle this time.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 Promises to be a Hugely Emotional MCU Outing

guardians-of-the-galaxy-2
Marvel Studios

While plot details for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 remain a closely guarded secret, whatever the direction the sequel decides to go in is guaranteed to be an emotional one. Returning star Zoe Saldana recently described the latest installment in the franchise as “bittersweet” saying, “It’s bittersweet; after all those years of complaining about that green make-up, I find myself already nostalgic about it. There’s a lot of melancholy here, but also pride that we’ve achieved something great. James Gunn has written a beautiful story, that’s making us emotional even as we shoot it. Omicron plays a doozy on us every other day, but we’re getting by and we’re happy.”

Sadly, the hints towards Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 being by far the most emotional adventure in the MCU continues with Dave Bautista, who adds that the movie will wrap things up for not only his character but others as well. "It's our third film, we're gonna wrap it up,” the Drax actor said. “And it's been a hell of a journey with a few bumps. So, I'm looking forward to this, man. My cast and obviously the director, James Gunn, they're like family to me."

Lastly, director James Gunn has provided the most detailed suggestion of how hard a watch Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will be for fans. “This is the end for us, the last time people will see this team of Guardians,” Gunn said. “It’s big; it’s so, so big and dark, and different from what people might be expecting it to be. I just want to be true to the characters, the story and give people the wrap-up that they deserve for the story. That’s always a little bit scary; I’m doing my best.”

Written and directed by James Gunn, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 stars Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Dave Bautista, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Sean Gunn, Sylvester Stallone, and Will Poulter. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is scheduled to be released on May 5, 2023, as part of Phase Four of the MCU.