'Guardians' Director James Gunn Defends Superhero Movies After Oscars Diss

"Guardians of the Galaxy," last year's highest-grossing comic book movie, was nominated for two Oscars during Sunday's ceremony. But despite the inclusion, "Guardians" and its brethren were on the receiving end of a diss from Jack Black during the Oscars' opening musical number.

"Opening with lots of zeroes, all we get are superheroes: Superman, Spider-man, Batman, Jediman, Sequelman, Prequelman -- formulaic scripts!" Black sang in "Moving Pictures," a tribute to the power of movies performed by Neil Patrick Harris.

The shot came one day after "Nightcrawler" writer-director Dan Gilroy praised independent film for surviving against an onslaught of superhero movies.

"Independent film, the foundation and everybody here today, I think, are holdouts against a tsunami of superhero movies that have swept over this industry," Gilroy said after winning Best First Feature at Saturday's Independent Spirit Awards. "We have survived, and thrived, and I think that's true spirit."

Not to director James Gunn. On Monday, the "Guardians of the Galaxy" director wrote a response to Gilroy and Black on Facebook:

Whatever the case, the truth is, popular fare in any medium has always been snubbed by the self-appointed elite. I've already won more awards than I ever expected for Guardians. What bothers me slightly is that many people assume because you make big films that you put less love, care, and thought into them then people do who make independent films or who make what are considered more serious Hollywood films.

[...]

If you think people who make superhero movies are dumb, come out and say we're dumb. But if you, as an independent filmmaker or a "serious" filmmaker, think you put more love into your characters than [when] the Russo Brothers do Captain America, or Joss Whedon does the Hulk, or I do a talking raccoon, you are simply mistaken.

Read Gunn's full response over at Facebook.