Chris Pratt’s return as Star-Lord in the MCU looks set to be the Marvel characters’ biggest challenge in the franchise yet. The Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy brought a wide ᴀssortment of characters into the MCU timeline, with each of the original team having vital moments in the movies that unfolded along the course of their shared story.

Star-Lord was unshakably one of the team’s most important members, both as the group’s arguable leader, and oftentimes the heart of the team too. Being half-Celestial certainly also didn’t hurt when it came to his importance, though it seems to be the next chapter of Star-Lord’s story that will cement how important Quill gets to be in the franchise’s future.

Star-Lord’s MCU Ending Splits Him And The Guardians Of The Galaxy Up

Star-Lord Is On His Own For The Next Chapter Of His MCU Story

Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3 features a lot of major events in the course of its final act, which ties up the MCU movie trilogy nicely. Indeed, the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 ending sees the original team’s roster undergo mᴀssive changes, with only Rocket and Groot remaining from the initial team.

With Rocket having taken over as the Guardians’ leader, Star-Lord decides to head back to Earth, seeking to reunite with his grandfather after the death of Peter’s mother and Peter’s subsequent kidnapping by the Ravagers. Given his grandfather is delighted to see him, and Peter appears to be sticking around, his story seems set to remain on Earth for now.

Though this could otherwise make it appear as though Star-Lord’s story may end there, the third Guardians of the Galaxy film actually closes by letting audiences know that “The Legendary Star-Lord Will Return“. This is notable in terms of confirming that Peter Quill will be back, and in that it doesn’t say that the Guardians will be back.

As such, it seems like Star-Lord’s own series or return storyline will be one totally separate from the Guardians of the Galaxy, despite the character being inextricable from the team and the film тιтles for over a decade. Interestingly, this means his next appearance is set to be an MCU challenge in a whole new way.

The MCU’s Real Star-Lord Challenge Will Be Seeing How The Character Can Work Without The Team

Star-Lord Has Essentially Always Been Shown With His Team Before Now

The Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy was an obvious success, garnering considerable box office results and critical acclaim alike. Said success clearly showed people were interested in Star-Lord to a capacity, but said capacity has until this point been unclear, since there have been a range of other Guardians characters for people to be drawn in by.

We did see the Guardians split up over the course of Avengers: Infinity War, but even this only showed us Star-Lord alongside Drax and Mantis. Since their interaction with Dooctor Strange, Spider-Man and Iron Man was comic relief that used all the characters – and their fight against Thanos showed all their strengths – even this doesn’t really demonstrate Quill’s solo potential.

This all sets up a scenario wherein a Star-Lord return presents unique risks and challenges. While Star-Lord would obviously be interacting with some other characters, losing the appeal of the team’s banter – and trying to replicate it without the characters themselves – seems a tricky task to pull off without comparing unfavorably to what came before for the hero.

Given it seems Star-Lord intends to remain on Earth, his circumstances being so different do seem to exacerbate this challenge. Not only will Star-Lord be without his allies and co-stars, he’ll also be in a drastically different setting – and while this has the potential to totally work, it is all a contrast with what made the character work before.

The MCU’s History Suggests It Can Pull Off Star-Lord’s Story Without The Guardians Of The Galaxy

The MCU’s Track Record Suggests They Can Make Splitting Star-Lord Off From The Guardians Work

While seeing Quill reunite with the new Guardians of The Galaxy down the line could prove suitably heartwarming for the MCU, the franchise’s history suggests it can make Star-Lord’s story work without needing to turn to this. Broadly speaking, the MCU has historically created characters who work in and out of teams, especially with more focal figures like Star-Lord.

This is best evidenced by the Avengers – since the original roster all got their own respective releases, and generally worked effectively in solo stories or collaborative efforts – but it’s not solely beholden to them. More recently, the Thunderbolts – or New Avengers – reinforced this idea, since several members of their roster had appeared in prior releases.

Figures like Yelena and Bucky effectively slot into this crossover story just as well as they work as individual figures in their more personal stories. Logistically, it seems the same may well be true for Star-Lord in reverse, since the franchise introduced him as part of a team to begin with.

The MCU also proved capable of providing powerful Star-Lord-centered moments via scenes like Quill’s childhood backstory or his discovery that Ego was responsible for his mother’s death. As such, it seems entirely possible the MCU can pull off a more solo Star-Lord story, even if this appears to require a different approach to what came before for the character.