All of the Easter Eggs in the Guardians of the Galaxy Movies

Our recaps of the Easter eggs in the Marvel Cinematic Universe continue with the galaxy’s biggest A-Holes, The Guardians of the Galaxy! The outcast group of heroes went from a C-list Marvel property to a household name worldwide thanks to the Guardians of the Galaxy movies from Marvel Studios.

The Guardians of the Galaxy made their cinematic debut in 2014 with Chris Pratt as Peter Quill aka Star-Lord, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Dave Bautista as Drax, with Vin Diesel as the voice of Groot, and Bradley Cooper as the voice of Rocket. James Gunn, known for his work in the horror movie field up until that point, wrote and directed the movie, which also starred Lee Pace as villain Ronan the Accuser, Karen Gillan as intergalactic assassin Nebula, and Michael Rooker as Yondu. The film is also notable for being the first appearance of Josh Brolin as Thanos in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 was released three years later in 2017, despite taking place just six months after the events of the first movie. New additions to the film included Pom Klementieff as Mantis, Elizabeth Debicki as Ayesha, Chris Sullivan as Taserface, and Kurt Russell as Peter Quill’s father, Ego.

A third film in the series is set to be released in 2020.

Marvel Movie Easter Eggs: GOTG Series

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY
Peter's grandpa

Playing Grandpa Quill in the film is actor Gregg Henry, a frequent collaborator of writer/director James Gunn.

Henry previously appeared in Gunn's films Slither, Super, and lent his voice to the Gunn-penned film The Belko Experiment and video game Lollipop Chainsaw.
The President

In case you needed a reminder this scene was set in the 1980s, there's a portrait of President Ronald Reagan in the background.
Meredith Quill

Peter's dying mother Meredith is played by actress Laura Haddock, who actually previously appeared in another MCU movie, playing a fan eager for an autograph in Captain America: The First Avenger.
Morag

The name for the planet in the film actually comes from the first Kree leader in the pages of Marvel Comics.

In addition, the coordinates for the planet are real coordinates in the Andromeda galaxy!
Dr. Von Spears

The projection of the dog seen here is actually director James Gunn's own dog, Dr. Von Spears.
Bereet

Peter's... friend... that he forgot was on board his ship is actually a character from Marvel Comics as well.
Coordinates in GOTG

The coordinates for locations in Guardians of the Galaxy are either A) A real Place that has been spotted and coordinated in the Andromeda Galaxy, or B) Made-up numbers that when placed into a number-to-letter puzzle create a message.

The location of the Dark Astyr translates to "This is Moms Cancer," which shouldn't exactly be taken literally, but is more in reference to Peter's journey in the film itself.
Stan Lee

Lee is credited as the Xandarian Ladies' Man in the film, spotted here by Rocket in the film.
The Broker

The Broker is actually a very minor character from the pages of Marvel Comics.
Universal Church of Truth

Among the artifacts in The Broker's shop is a reference to the Universal Church of Truth, a group of antagonists from the pages of Marvel Comics who previously battled the Guardians of the Galaxy.
Gamora's mugshot

Gamora is noted as "The last of the Zehoberei people," which isn't entirely true and is something that James Gunn has noted is the one thing he'd like to change about the movie.
Rocket's Mugshot

Two major references in Rocket's file are his home planet, Halfworld, and his associate, Lylla.
Groot's mugshot

Groot's original origin from Planet X is referenced in his mugshot.
The Kyln Coordinates

The coordinates of the space prison The Kyln reveal that it is in fact, not real.
Giving Tree

Since Peter Quill was abducted from Earth in the 1980s, his references are all a little dated, like when he calls Groot by the name of a classic Shel Silverstein book.
Lloyd Kaufman

On the left is Troma founder Lloyd Kaufman, a friend and mentor to James Gunn, as a prison inmate.
Nathan Fillion

The alien on the left is voiced by Nathan Fillion, a fan favorite and frequent collaborator with Gunn.
The Milano

Here we finally learn that Peter Quill's ship is named after actress Alyssa Milano.
Ranger Rick

Another old school reference from Quill. referencing the cartoon Raccoon character from the children's nature magazine.
Dark Elf

Among The Collector's collection is a Dark Elf as seen in Thor: The Dark World.
Knowhere

The location of Knowhere is important in Marvel Comics as it previously functioned as the Guardians' base of operations.
Collector's collection

Also featured is a member of the Chitauri from The Avengers, as well as...
Cosmo

Cosmo! The talking space dog previously launched to the stars from Russia in the pages of Marvel Comics.
It's Howard

Though he won't appear front and center until the post-credits scene, Howard the Duck can be seen earlier in the film in another container.
Adam?

There in the back is the same pod many theorized would be the container of hero Adam Warlock, though James Gunn has now confirmed it's simply an early prototype of The Sovereign's pods.
Slither

The slugs from James Gunn's horror movie Slither are seen in another container.
The Infinity Stones

This marks the first time that the six Infinity Stones are fully explained and also shown all together.
A Celestial!

Pictured here is Eson the Searcher, a Celestial from the pages of Marvel Comics.
The Ravager ship's computer

The Ravager ship's computer is voiced by musician-turned-filmmaker Rob Zombie, who has previously lent his voice to other James Gunn projects. So yes, Rob Zombie is in the MCU.
Tyler Bates

Composer Tyler Bates appears in the film as the Ravager whose eye Rocket really wants.
James Gunn cameo

Writer/director James Gunn cameos as the Faceless Sakarin in the film.
HOWARD

Howard the Duck makes his official MCU debut in the post-credits scene of the film.
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 2
Missouri

In the pages of Marvel Comics, Peter Quill is from Colorado but since writer/director James Gunn is from Missouri, the MCU's Peter Quill is from Missouri.
Meredith Quill

Laura Haddock returns as Peter's mother!
Football

In the film, Peter has converted a Mattel's handheld football game into a tracker of some sort.
Orloni

The small rat-like creatures seen in the first film make a return.
Drax watches...

Drax stumbles upon a dancing Groot and watches for him to move, much like the mid-credits scene from the first film.
Awesome Mix Vol. 2

The highly-anticipated tape returns for the film, as we all knew it would.
Trash Panda

Trash Panda is a more modern synonym for Raccoons, so it's a little surprising that Peter Quill would know it.
He's back

Howard the Duck returns along with Seth Green reprising as his voice.
Starhawk and Martinex

Two members of the original Guardians of the Galaxy from 1970s Marvel comics are seen in the scene, played by Sylvester Stallone and Michael Rosenbaum.
Steve Agee

Comedian Steve Agee appears in the film (seen here on the left). Agee previously collaborated with Gunn on his film Super.
David Hasselhoff

Quill jokes he would tell people his dad was David Hasselhoff, and even keeps a photo of him.
Rocket gets his eye

As Groot tries to get Yondu his fin, he finally gets the cybernetic eye that Rocket wanted from the first movie.
Yondu's fin

Yondu's look from his original comic book appearance is finally complete with his new fin.
Kronan

As Rocket, Groot and Yondu quickly travel throough space, they stumble upon a planet where two Kronan are fighting.
Eternity

Quill exclaims that he 'sees it...Eternity' a reference to the Celestial, Eternity, from Marvel Comics.
Stan Lee

This is a double Easter egg as Lee appears as an astronaut recounting all his other cameo appearances while standing around...
The Watchers

...The Watchers! In Marvel Comics, the Watchers are alien observers who cannot interfere with the major events of the Marvel U but instead watch and catalog what they've seen.
Hasselhoff

They laid the groundwork for a Hasselhoff cameo, and they got one!
EGO

Ego's true planet-sized form is shown, a reference to how he appears in the comic books.
James Gunn's parents

James Gunn's parents, James Gunn Sr. and Leota Gunn, appear in the film and are credited as "Weird Old Man" and "Weird Old Man's Mistress."
Xandar

The Nova Corps. planet from the first film is briefly seen during Ego's universal takeover montage.
Grandpa Quill

Peter Quill's grandfather appears, albeit briefly, in the film and he's made a friend played by Damita Jane Howard.
Pac Man

Peter battles his father in the form of Pac-Man in the finale.
Yondu's trinkets

At Yondu's funeral, his various doo dads and trinkets from his console are placed around his body including the gem-Frog he took from The Broker in the first film....
Peter's Troll Doll

...plus Peter's troll doll.
Cosmo

The psychic Russian space dog doesn't appear in the film but does make a cameo in the credits.
Guardians of the Galaxy 3000

The line-up of the original Guardians of the Galaxy team appears together in one of the mid-credit scenes including Sylvester Stallone as Starhawk, Michael Rosenbaum as Martinex, Ving Rhames as Charlie-27, Michelle Yeoh as Aleta Ogord, with Miley Cyrus as the voice of Mainframe, and Krugarr.
I Am Groot

Some credits in the closing credits transform into I Am Groot before appearing as their final credit, such as Post Production Supervisor Jennifer Bergman's here.
Adam Warlock

The arrival of Adam Warlock, a powerful and fan-favorite cosmic Marvel character, is teased at the end of the film.
Grandmaster

Jeff Goldblum's Grandmaster from Thor: Ragnarok appears, quite inexplicably, in the credits for the movie.
Teen Groot

Groot finally ages a little bit, now an adolescent he resents the other Guardians because of his hormones. This particular post-credit scene leads right into Avengers: Infinity War.
Howard

Howard gets one last cameo before the film closes
'No Raccoons...'

In addition to the other thanks and notices, a note appears that 'No Raccoons or tree creatures were harmed during the making of this film. The same cannot be said for handlers of said raccoons or tree creatures.'
We Are Groot

David Hasselhoff appears one last time and quotes Groot from the finale of the first film.
Hey wait

The film closes out as Stan Lee asks The Watchers where they're going off to...