This post contains spoilers for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Fans and critics have agreed that the new Guardians of the Galaxy movie is a success! GotGvol2 is enjoyed by everyone whether they have a passing interest in movies or are deep cut comic book nerds. Its a Marvel movie, and anyone who knows the MCU knows 3 basic things to keep an eye out for in the movies; Easter eggs, post-credit scenes, and the signature Stan Lee cameo.



Stan Lee, the creator and co-creator of many famous Marvel characters, hasn’t limited himself to appearing in just MCU movies, but also all Marvel based films across the various licensed movie studios. What is the source of the power of a man that is able to easily cross brands? My theory is that magnificent mustache. However, the internet has had a long standing theory that Stan Lee is actually Uatu the Watcher.

Uatu is a member of an ancient and very powerful species of aliens called The Watchers. They have sworn to only observe the universe and its occupants around them without interference all while maintaining the appearance of tall space babies. Uatu, the Watcher of Earth, seems to make an appearance in the comics every time a major event happens. Amazingly, the “excelsior” shouting icon has appeared in all the major events (movies) in the MCU.

In Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2, Stan Lee is seen talking to a group of Watchers and recalling his many cameos. This appearance has single handedly confirmed that he is the same person in every movie playing a different role. But where does that leave the fan theory?

Here at FTW, we love when a fan theory is confirmed, but it appears that the theory of Stan Lee being Uatu is not quite correct. Stan Lee is credited as “Watcher Informant” in the end credits. This means that Stan Lee is not a shape-shifting Watcher making an appearance every movie, but rather he is working for the enigmatic alien peeping Toms. But that only raises more questions! If our favorite cameo champion isn’t a Watcher, then how is he appearing from place to place and how does he establish himself in the roles we see him in? What is the nature of the relationship between him the giant spy babies? What is his true purpose? Is he allowed to interfere where the Watchers cannot? Has he interfered and altered the timeline already? Are we possibly overthinking this and analyzing it a little too much? We may never know for sure but only time will tell, and until then keep on theorizing!

Author: Erik Montgomery