Director wants more women in Marvel movies

Zoe Saldana as Gamora and Chris Pratt as Peter Quill/Star-Lord in Marvel's Guardians Of The Galaxy.

Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn wants to see more women in Marvel movies.

And, he wouldn't be surprised if that means behind the camera too.

Gunn co-wrote and directed this year's surprise box-office hit Guardians of the Galaxy, which has so far raked in over A$900 million worldwide.

But he says characters such as Zoe Saldana's green-skinned assassin Gamora are in short supply at the moment.

"Without a doubt. I completely want to push that and I hope that we'll be able to have the chance to have more female Guardians," he tells AAP.

"I think it would be great to have a movie where there's more than one female in a team, because that seems to be the limit these days."

Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow.

Gunn is likely referring to fellow Marvel flick The Avengers, a superhero crew of five men and just one woman - Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow.

Similarly, the Guardians group of oddballs includes Gamora and four males, of animal, human and plantlife varieties.

That is, a talking racoon (voiced by Bradley Cooper), a tree whose vocabulary consists of "I am Groot" (voiced by Vin Diesel), a humourless hulking warrior called Drax (Dave Bautista) and a smart-mouthed thief (Chris Pratt's Star-Lord).

But arguably, Saldana's lethal lady best encapsulates typical leading man qualities.

"Gamora's our Clint Eastwood, which Zoe and I talked about from the beginning. She's the hardass from the team and she's a character I care for a great deal," Gunn says.

And, he adds, you can expect to see a lot more of her in 2017 with Guardians of the Galaxy 2, which he's also writing and directing.

The Guardians of the Galaxy.

"That female perspective is very important to me and it's something that I feel greatly when I'm writing."

He says it's evident if you look at his CV, whether its Elizabeth Banks' starring part in Slither, or Ellen Page's scene-stealer in Super.

"It's something that I want to continue with Guardians 2 and take to the next level."

As for those wondering if Marvel will ever hire a female director to helm one of its upcoming projects, Gunn says it could be on the cards.

"I would think there's a good chance of that," he says.

- AAP