Guardians Vol. 3: Two MCU Moms Are Reintroduced In New Roles
Contains spoilers for "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3"
Given the vast amount of talent that has stepped into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it's nothing new at this point for stars to have taken on more than one role. Benedict Cumberbatch made twice the amount of magic as Doctor Strange and his sworn nemesis Dormammu in his initial outing, Gemma Chan fought Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) years before she became an Eternal, and future Blade actor Mahershala Ali went up against Luke Cage (Mike Colter) as Cottonmouth prior to the Defenders Saga's official entry into the MCU. Now, in "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3," a couple of favored supporting stars are also pulling double duty, albeit not in an on-screen capacity.
The Guardians' final adventure shows us how Rocket Raccoon (Bradley Cooper) came to be, breaking and warming our hearts in equal measure. And with this story comes the introduction of other animals that were given the same treatment as our favorite trash panda, including Lylla, young Rocket's (Sean Gunn) otter friend, and War Pig, who are both voiced by MCU alumni. In Lylla's case, it's none other than Linda Cardellini, whom we last saw stressing over her arrow-firing husband, Clint (Jeremy Renner), as Hawkeye's wife, Laura Barton. As for War Pig, she was brought to life by way of Judy Greer, the actor behind Scott Lang's ex-wife, Maggie.
Cardellini's and Greer's performances don't dip for Guardians 3
While they might not look like themselves in "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3," these MCU moms are given some time to shine, albeit one a little bit more than the other. As Lylla, Linda Cardellini brings the already established good-natured heart she shows as Mrs. Barton to one of the best moments in James Gunn's swan song with his team of a-holes. Cardellini also provided the motion capture for her "Guardians" character, making this her fourth (sort of) appearance in a Marvel project.
As for Judy Greer, her time as War Pig is brief thanks to a bout with Adam Warlock (Will Poulter), but her performance is memorable nonetheless, possibly because "Vol. 3" isn't her first time dabbling in CGI character work – Greer played Cornelia, another enhanced ape and Caesar's (Andy Serkis) wife, in the "Planet of the Apes" reboot series. Apparently, if you need enhanced animals with a sprinkle of sass, Greer is always a great choice.