Who dies in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3?

The Guardians of the Galaxy burst into the live-action scene in 2014. Nine years later, they return for their last standalone story with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. The film has been billed as a swan song for the MCU’s current iteration of the heroes.

Note: The following article contains spoilers for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.

Vol. 3‘s finality raised a lot of anticipation and questions regarding the fates of the ragtag space adventurers. Now that the film is out, there’s an answer to what happens to Peter Quill and his space-based teammates on their third galaxy-saving endeavor.

It’s almost become a sure bet for major characters to die in the last installment of a superhero trilogy or the closing chapter of a franchise. In the late 2000s, that was prominently done by X-Men: The Last Stand, in which Jean Grey died, and Spider-Man 3, which killed off Harry Osborn. More recently, it’s happened in Logan, with Wolverine dying in the third act, Avengers: Endgame, with Tony Stark and Natasha Romanoff receiving heroic send-offs, and Spider-Man: No Way Home, which had Aunt May being killed by the Green Goblin.

Who dies in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3?

Vol 3., on the other hand, much like Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, doesn’t kill off any of its core heroes. With that said, there are multiple fake-outs throughout the picture. Rocket spends a large portion of the film on life support, Drax gets shot and initially appears to be dead, and Nebula seemingly intends to sacrifice herself while controlling the High Evolutionary’s ship. The biggest fake-out comes when Peter Quill nearly dies in space after defeating the High Evolutionary but is ultimately saved by Adam Warlock.

Yet, as mentioned, even with all of those scenes, Rocket, Peter, Gamora, Nebula, Groot, Drax, and Mantis all live to fight another day. Peter and Mantis decide to leave the Guardians to find their own paths, Drax and Nebula stay on Knowhere to help raise a new civilization, and Rocket becomes the Guardians’ new captain. The film’s first post-credits scene reveals that Rocket and Groot’s team is comprised of Adam Warlock, Phyla-Vell, and Kraglin. Gamora, meanwhile, returns to be part of the Ravagers, alongside Sylvester Stallone’s Starhawk.

Even though none of the core Guardians perish, there are several pivotal players in the film that die. The most prominent examples are Rocket’s childhood friends, Lylla, Floor, and Teefs, who are killed by the High Evolutionary and his minions. The fourth big death is Ayesha. Played by Elizabeth Debicki, the character was introduced in 2017’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 as an adversary to the Guardians. In Vol. 3, Ayesha becomes a mother figure for Adam Warlock, and she dies during the High Evolutionary’s destruction of Counter-Earth.

The last major death, though not definitive, is that of the High Evolutionary. After defeating the villain, Rocket refuses to kill him, and instead seemingly leaves him on his exploding ship. The High Evolutionary, however, isn’t shown after that, which could, in theory, leave the door open for his return.

Will the Guardians return to the MCU after Vol. 3?

Despite the finality of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, the Guardians are all alive and well at the end of the film, so any of them could come back in the future. Surprisingly, one particular character’s return is firmly established during the movie’s second post-credits scene. The sequence features Peter Quill eating with his grandfather, after which a title card appears that reads: “The Legendary Star-Lord Will Return.”

Though any potential return from the Guardians cast after Vol. 3 could be relatively far down the line, their likeliest next appearances could be in 2025’s Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and 2026’s Avengers: Secret Wars. Given their fan-favorite status among the MCU fandom, it’s exciting to know the Guardians have the possibility to make their presence felt in the franchise once again.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is now playing in theaters.

What do you think about the Guardians’ send-offs in Vol. 3? Are you happy with the conclusion of their storylines? Let us know in the comments!