Michael Rooker has shut down his Twitter account after Gunn was removed from 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3' over old offensive jokes.
- Jul 24, 2018
AceShowbiz - Guardians of the Galaxy star Michael Rooker has shut down his Twitter account following the firing of the movies' writer and director James Gunn.
The filmmaker was dropped from the franchise by Disney executives on Friday, July 20, after a string of offensive Twitter messages he posted between 2008 and 2009 resurfaced.
Many stars stepped up to support Gunn over the weekend, with Selma Blair urging movie bosses to rethink their decision and his Guardians star Dave Bautista criticising Disney chiefs, while several more have signed a petition demanding the director's reinstatement.
Guardians leads Zoe Saldana and Chris Pratt have also addressed the drama, ahead of the start of filming on the third movie later this year, and now Rooker, whose character Yondu Udonta was killed off in the last instalment, has quit Twitter.
"This account will be inactive after today," the actor writes. "We're very tired & upset over the ongoing BULLS**T... neither I nor my rep will use Twitter again. Twitter sucks and I want nothing to do with it. Thank you to all who gave kind words & support."
But Rooker made it clear he will still be visible on Instagram.
Rooker's former castmate Saldana told her followers that Gunn's firing had kicked off a "challenging weekend" for her, adding, "I'm pausing myself to take everything in before I speak out of term. I just want everyone to know I love ALL members of my GOTG family. Always will."
Co-star Pratt, a devoted Christian, appeared to allude to the incident with a Bible verse from the Book of James: "Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters," he wrote. "Let every person be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger."
In the resurfaced tweets, 51-year-old Gunn joked about rape and paedophilia. The director has since apologised for the offensive nature of his messages and explained to fans that, in the past, he would often say things for the shock value.
"It's not to say I'm better, but I am very, very different than I was a few years ago; today I try to root my work in love and connection and less in anger," he said. "My days saying something just because it's shocking and trying to get a reaction are over."
