Disney has fired director James Gunn, who was in the process of writing the script for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (via The Hollywood Reporter).  A replacement is yet to be named.

The firing comes after a number of offensive tweets that Gunn shared in 2008 and 2009 resurfaced on the conservative website The Daily Caller.  The tweets included jokes about pedophilia, rape, 9/11, AIDS, and the Holocaust.  Gunn is an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump, and conservative personalities began calling on their followers to confront Gunn at Comic-Con.

Walt Disney Studios chairman Alan Horn released a statement on the firing: "The offensive attitudes and statements discovered on James’ Twitter feed are indefensible and inconsistent with our studio’s values, and we have severed our business relationship with him."

Gunn has reportedly deleted his Twitter account but posted a series of tweets regarding his past behavior before doing so, saying that he once viewed himself  "as a provocateur, making movies and telling jokes that were outrageous and taboo," adding that he has "developed as a person, so has [his] work and [his] humor."

Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy films have been immensely popular, with the first bringing in $773 million worldwide, and the second earning $862 million.  The films were more overtly comedic than other entries in the MCU (Thor: Ragnarok aside). Gunn was set to write and direct the third entry in the franchise (see "'Captain Marvel,' 'Guardians of the Galaxy 3,' 'Avengers 4,' Groot Charity").