MCU: 10 Fascinating Facts Behind Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017)

2. Ego's Planet Is The Biggest Visual Effect Ever Created

Guardians of the galaxy
Marvel Studios

Marvel movies, while always epic in scale, don't always have the greatest CGI. It's never bad per se, but for the most part it's purely functional, and never the highlight of any of these flicks. That said, Guardians of the Galaxy 2 did have some noteworthy computer-generated moments, including that ridiculously lifelike younger version of Kurt Russell, and Ego's planet form.

The latter effect was important to get right, as a planet with a face could have tanked the intensity needed to sell the film's climax and ended up looking a little bit like The Mummy's face in the wall of sand in The Mummy Returns. It's clear the team knew this, and this planet received a huge amount of focus, and at the time of the film's release was "the biggest visual effect of all time".

Made up of over a trillion polygons, the effect was incredibly detailed, and acted as an example of just how good the CG in these films could be.

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Josh has over 11 years of experience as a published writer, having worked nine of those years as a full-time content producer at WhatCulture. In that period he has created hundreds of articles, videos and podcast episodes for multiple WhatCulture channels, specialising in gaming, horror and film & TV. He now primarily works as a senior content producer and presenter on WhatCulture Gaming where he co-hosts the WhatCulture Gaming Podcast, a top 3 UK most listened to gaming podcast that he co-created in 2018. Over the years he has reviewed several high-profile gaming releases, covered industry events with on-site reporting, opined on breaking news, and even kicked off his interviewing career by chatting to childhood hero, Tommy Wiseau.