James Gunn's Pets

Dr Von Spears was the inspiration for James Gunn’s Gaurdians of the Galaxy‘s character Groot. Following a doggy DNA test, Gunn found out that his dog is an extreme mutt, showing lineage from a Siberian husky, a cocker spaniel, and a greyhound.

Formerly feral, Emily is James Gunn’s rescued cat that he adopted in 2012.

Over seven years ago I thought I heard a baby crying in the bushes outside my house. It ended up it was an eight-month-old stray cat kitten. I pet her a bit – she was friendly for a stray – and I gave her a can of tuna. My parents came to visit and said, “I think there’s a crying baby outside.” I said, “No that’s just a cat who sounds like a crying baby.” For a couple more days I fed her and pet her. I started calling her “Emily”, because that just seemed like her name and, when you’re naming a stray animal you never expect to see again, the pressure to come up with an inventive name is almost nil. As the days went by, I hoped to see “Missing Cat” notices on the local telephone poles, but no go. This kitten was one of L.A.’s many unloved, unclaimed cats, whether feral or abandoned or a runaway from a bad situation. So, with the help of a neighbor, I corralled her into a dog crate and took her into the house. She darted under the couch and stayed there for two days before coming out. My plan was to foster her out. As you can see in this photo today, HER plan was a bit different. She still cries like a human baby; it’s not necessarily a sign of distress, just her weird way of saying hi. She’s a complete pain-in-the-ass, but I’ve never once regretted taking her in. Happy #Caturday, everyone, from me and #emilymonster. #cat #cats #catsofinstagram #adoptdontshop

@JamesGunn, Instagram, August 2019

James Gunn has a Puggle named Lola.

Mikaela Mehrizi Hoover has a Yorkshire Terrier named Ava Bear. Good friend and director James Gunn often doggy sits Ava Bear and calls her his “Goddaughter”.

James Gunn has a rescue dog named Ozu that he adopted in May 2022. Gunn said this about Ozu on Instagram, “Ozu, who came from a hoarding situation in a backyard with 60 other dogs & never knew human beings, was problematic to say the least. He immediately came in & destroyed our home, our shoes, our furniture – he even ate my laptop. It took a long time before he would even let us touch him.” Ozu went on to inspire James Gunn to include Krypto in his 2025 Superman reboot. Gunn eventually revealed that Ozu was also the model used to create the CGI Krypto.

as Superman in the 2025 Superman reboot, David Corenswet has a pet superdog named Krypto. Krypto has made many appearances over the years, with this version inspired by Superman director James Gunn’s rescue dog Ozu. It’s still unknown if a canine actor portrays Krypto in any scenes or if Krypto is purely CGI.