I Am Groot Animated Shorts Coming To Disney+ In August 2022
Baby Groot, the breakout star of "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2," is getting his own series of animated shorts, which are set to debut on the Disney+ streaming service this summer. "I Am Groot" takes its title from the only line of dialogue that Groot ever speaks.
We first heard about this series when Marvel Studios chief Kevin Feige announced it at a Disney investor presentation back in December of 2020. Since then, there hasn't been much news on the "I Am Groot" front, but now, the official Twitter account of the Guardians of the Galaxy (yes, they tweet from outer space) has revealed the series premiere date of Wednesday, August 10, 2022.
I Am Groot, Marvel Studios’ Original shorts, coming August 10 to @DisneyPlus. pic.twitter.com/3rDl3VgPFi
— Guardians of the Galaxy (@Guardians) June 5, 2022
As you can see, Groot looks to be in vacation mode in the promo art for "I Am Groot." He's lounging on a towel with a beach drink by his side, and shockingly, it's not a piña colada, despite the fact that "Escape (The Piña Colada Song)" is on the "Guardians of the Galaxy" soundtrack. Groot may very well be listening to that soundtrack since he's got Peter Quill's tape deck with him.
Feige said that "I Am Groot" will "feature several new and unusual characters," and it stands to reason that the series might be pulling from the comic of the same name, in which Groot gets separated from the Guardians team and finds himself on "an alien and unknown world full of strange creatures." Since the live-action version of Groot is a teenager by the time of his appearance in "Avengers: Infinity War," it would appear that "I Am Groot" is taking place earlier in the timeline — or perhaps outside it altogether.
'Not necessarily part of the Guardians saga'
Elsewhere on Twitter, "Guardians of the Galaxy" director James Gunn seemed to indicate that episodes of "I Am Groot" might not be entirely canonical within the Marvel Cinematic Universe as we know it. "They are animated shorts," he tweeted, "so not necessarily part of the Guardians saga."
They are animated shorts so not necessarily part of the Guardians saga. https://t.co/NEHWcmAHtS
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) June 5, 2022
Since the MCU is now an ever-growing multiverse, "I Am Groot" could very well be taking place in an alternate timeline like the various stories in Marvel's "What If...?" animated series last summer. This is shaping up to be a big year for the Guardians; they've recently had a new theme park attraction, Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, open at Epcot in Disney World, and will next be showing up onscreen in "Thor: Love and Thunder."
Thor, of course, appeared in his own series of "Team Thor" mockumentary shorts, which are now considered part of the Marvel One-Shots series. And they might be a good comparison point for "I Am Groot" since they're just a funny bit of apocrypha that isn't essential to MCU continuity.
Baby Groot made his onscreen debut at the end of the first "Guardians of the Galaxy" movie in 2014, and his appearance in "Guardians Vol. 2" landed mid-2017, which means that he predates the Porgs and Grogu (aka Baby Yoda) of subsequent "Star Wars" projects. After their appearance in "Love and Thunder," the Guardians will be taking a page out of the "Star Wars" playbook, though, by appearing in their own holiday special this December.
"I Am Groot" premieres on Disney+ on August 10, 2022.