Anyone who’s seen a Marvel movie since 2008 (or any movie since ever) is likely familiar with callbacks and Easter eggs. It seems as though every filmmaker falls prey to that irresistible urge to drop a subtle or shamelessly blatant reference here or there into their creations, suddenly enhancing an already enjoyable experience with an impromptu scavenger hunt. Naturally, Marvel Studios’Hawkeyeisn’t immune to such juicy temptation.
A recent episode of the Disney Plus seriesHawkeyesaw Jeremy Renner as the titular hero infiltrating a LARPing (live-action role-playing) group in New York, and as enjoyable as the entire sequence was, it turns out the events surrounding it may have included something extra. As Renner’sClint Barton/Hawkeye pulls up the NYC LARPersin-universe Instagram page, several recognizable names can be seen in the “followed by” section. Aside from the quick glimpse of an account named “drstrange,” suggesting a potentially wonderful side gig for Benedict Cumberbatch’s cheeky magician, viewers also picked up on the name “iamgr00t.”
RELATED:Hawkeye Succeeds Where The Falcon And The Winter Soldier Fell Short
Naturally, most people’s first thought was that this was an obvious reference to the big ol' tree guyGroot from James Gunn’sGuardians of the Galaxyfilms. But of course, Gunn himself decided to toss it into left field when the Easter egg was brought to his attention, all the while introducing an admittedly really cool bit of trivia. “That’s probably the IG account of the MCU version of Rob de Groot, [Dave Bautista’s] stunt double,” Gunn said, replying to a shot of the Easter egg on Twitter. “Unlike the real Rob, the MCU version is a total dick, has a posh British accent & a full, luscious head of hair. (Also, it’s a cool Easter egg.)”
It honestly wouldn’t be out of character for Gunn to completely make up a gag in a situation like this, but as some may already know (and as reiterated in the picture Gunn posted), Rob de Groot really didwork with Bautistaas his stunt double. To an outsider, this may initially look like a fun little joke, especially given how big of a coincidence it seems like to have a person named Groot working on a movie with a character named Groot. But many non-Americans already know that it’s not all that unlikely, as one fan pointed out in the replies, “It’s actually a very common last name in The Netherlands.”
Of course, even while doling out real information, Gunn can’t resist making a joke. Since most fans would default to assuming the Instagram account name was referring to Vin Diesel’s gentle giant of a character,theGuardians of the Galaxydirectorundoubtedly saw the perfect opportunity to subvert audience expectations. The fact that he actually knew a person named Groot was likely a lucky coincidence, and a perfect opportunity for such shenanigans.
The LARP scene inHawkeyeproves that Marvel Studios is still up for keeping things light-hearted without sacrificing production values or heart. Now, fans know that such things are possible even without Gunn’s involvement. Never mind that he somehow managed to wedge himself in there anyway. Think of it as a hilarious condiment on top of already well-made fries. (Sorry, that analogy got really dumb really fast.)
