Why Yondu Really Snored Through One Important Guardians Scene, According To Michael Rooker

Yondu, Baby Groot, and Rocket in Guardians 2

Spoilers ahead for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.

Although it was released months ago, comic book fans can't stop talking about Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Jame Gunn's triumphant sequel helped to explore the psyche of the titular team, while helping to bridge the gap between the first film and their eventual appearance years later in Avengers: Infinity War. One character who got a ton of screen time the second time around was Michael Rooker's Yondu. The antihero also received perhaps the most heartbreaking death scene in the entire MCU, although it turns out that Rooker was snoring onset when he was supposed to be playing a dead body. And now we know a little bit more about why that blooper happened.

TMZ managed to catch up with Michael Rooker at the airport (of course), where they asked him about the snoring blooper. Rooker said,

Dude, we did like nine takes. I fell asleep each take. I can fall asleep anywhere, and I think what happened was, you know when you're working and they had a camera on the side of me, right so they could see me breathing. So I had to calm my breath so you didn't see me breathing. And in doing so, it just relaxed me and I went to sleep. Several times. I just sort of woke up before the next take. The situation was in a very relaxed environment. The lights were low, it was very relaxing, almost romantic. Chris Pratt's doing his monologue and in the middle of his monologue, you hear me snoring. It's beautiful.

It looks like trying to relax his body made Michael Rooker a bit vulnerable to a sudden nap. It brings a whole new meeting to "I'll sleep when I'm dead".

While casual audiences might think that Michael Rooker's on set snooze was a bit unprofessional, those in the film business have always maintained that sets are notoriously boring places. Actors spend a great deal of time in holding as shots are set up, and they usually have to do a ton of takes for important scenes. Star-Lord's monologue about Yondu was a heartbreaking moment, so it makes sense that the scene took so long to film. And if all you have to do is lay down with your eyes closed, I think you'd have a Rooker-esque nap as well.

The blooper in question was released when Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 became available for home purchase. And James Gunn posted it himself on Facebook, check it out.

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Pretty hilarious, right?

I just can't get enough of the cast's reaction to Michael Rooker's snoring. While Chris Pratt attempted to get through his monologue and ignore the sounds, Dave Bautista wasn't quite as strong. While the crew reset for another take, you can see Bautista tell a crew member about the snoring. Things get even more embarrassing when Pom Klementieff and Zoe Saldana join the scene as well, all while a blue clad Rooker snores.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is currently available for home purchase and the Guardians will return to the MCU in Avengers: Infinity War this May. In the meantime, check out our 2017 release list to plan your net trip to the movies.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.