Dave Bautista to exit the MCU as he confirmed that his upcoming portrayal of Drax the Destroyer in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 will be his last appearance as the character. Drax was Bautista’s breakout role, which he credits to his unique ability to deliver deadpan comedy with his towering physical presence. However, as he gets older, he has found it increasingly difficult to maintain the required physical condition for the role.
This is something to be expected by the former pro-wrestler turned actor, as Dave himself was quite frank on several occasions about his departure from the GOTG franchise.
Bautista has previously mentioned that his age and the time-consuming makeup process for the character of Drax have become more and more challenging for every GOTG film, leading many fans to wonder if he is ready to step down from the role. There are several occasions where this was made more evident. Once he requested to wear a shirt while appearing on the Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind roller coaster at Disney World’s EPCOT, which was noticed by fans. This notion was supported by the fact that Drax wears a shirt in both the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special and in the trailer for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
He also made it clear through a tweet back in 2021 that though Drax will probably remain in MCU, his portrayal of the comedic Guardian will most likely be passed to another.
https://twitter.com/DaveBautista/status/1390837973898440708?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1390837973898440708%7Ctwgr%5Eb2eebef647a9efa67bbb724b90f2037297ff3ae8%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcollider.com%2Fguardians-of-the-galaxy-3-dave-bautista-leaving-mcu-comments%2F
And more recently, his eventual departure from Guardians of the Galaxy and perhaps from the MCU, in general, was further supported by his statements at an interview with GQ magazine. To quote:
“I’m going to be 54 years old by the time Guardians 3 comes out, and the shirtless thing is getting harder and harder for me… the journey has come full circle and I’m just ready to kind of step aside and wrap it up.â€
Dave Bautista to exit the MCU and his plan to pursue more dramatic roles are understandable. He has gained critical acclaim for his roles in films such as Dune, Blade Runner 2049, Hotel Artemis, and SPECTRE, and is widely considered to be the most successful professional wrestler-turned-actor. Bautista retired from professional wrestling following his match at WrestleMania 35, ending a 20-year career in the sport. Currently, Bautista can be seen in Rian Johnson’s Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, now available to stream on Netflix.
Source: Collider
