8 More Movie Plot Twists So Subtle You Totally Missed Them

3. Stan Lee Is The Watcher Informant - Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2

The Movie

James Gunn's mega-successful sequel to one of the MCU's biggest creative gambles, Guardians of the Galaxy.

Though the 2017 sequel perhaps didn't quite reach the same heights as its predecessor, it was nevertheless another dementedly funny, ultra-charming and visually stunning thrill-ride.

The Twist You Didn't Notice

Now, nobody missed Stan Lee's dual-cameo in the movie, but not everybody quite knew the full extent of their meaning.

Lee's first cameo occurs mid-way through the film as Rocket (Bradley Cooper), Groot (Vin Diesel), Yondu (Michael Rooker) and Kraglin (Sean Gunn) are travelling towards Ego's (Kurt Russell) planet.

As their ship flies overhead, we see Lee talking to the Watchers, explaining that he was once a Federal Express man. In the film's post-credits scene, he's again seen talking to the Watchers as they appear to abandon him on the planet.

While even fairly casual MCU viewers probably clocked that Lee's dialogue referenced his cameo as a FedEx delivery man in Captain America: Civil War, it also confirmed a long-held fan theory, that Lee's various MCU cameos are all experienced by the same entity.

Though the theories largely suggested that Lee was the comic book character Uatu the Watcher, an extra-terrestrial tasked with observing Earth, Lee is ultimately credited as the "Watcher Informant."

Gunn later said that he conceived the scene as a direct reaction to the fan theory, and also to pay tribute to Lee, who initialy created the Watchers and was ridiculed by other writers who felt they were stupid.

To the layman, it might just seem like a cute meta joke, but for the hardcore crowd, it's a joyous addendum to one of the most imaginative and beloved running gags in pop-culture history.