Peter Jason Quill, also known as "Star-Lord" is a Marvel Comics superhero who is the protagonist of Guardians of the Galaxy and its sequels. He is the half-Terran, half-Celestial leader of the Guardians team, as well as the love interest and husband of Gamora. In 1988, Peter was abducted by his eventual step-father, Yondu Udonta, and his ravager clan after his mother, Meredith, died from terminal brain cancer. 26 years later in 2014, after a series of events, befriending Gamora, Rocket, Groot, and Drax along the way, Quill begins to seek redemption from years of living as a thief and a playboy. His redemption involved stopping a sinister Kree Accuser named Ronan from using an infinity stone to destroy the interplanetary nation of Xandar.
Backstory[]
Peter Quill was born in late 1980 to Meredith Quill, a human, and Ego, a Celestial, making him a hybrid of the two. His conception was all part of a plot set up by his father to produce a second Celestial, whose power he could use to complete the Expansion, which involved assimilating millions of worlds into Ego's very being. Peter was only one in thousands of different children that Ego conceived over the course of millions of years, though all who came before him were killed and thrown aside, failing to meet Ego's expectations.
Quill never knew his father, as Ego left Earth shortly after his son was conceived. Quill grew up in St. Charles, Missouri under the care of his mother and grandfather. Throughout his childhood, Quill became something of a wild child, getting into numerous fights. He became very close to his mother, who brought together some of her favorite songs from her childhood into a mix tape she titled "Awesome Mix Vol. 1". When other children asked where his father was, Peter told them that his dad was David Hasselhoff and was busy with his career.
When he was eight years old, Quill's mother became afflicted with terminal brain cancer that, unbeknownst to Quill, was caused by Ego, who feared that his son's growing attachment to Meredith would turn him away from his Expansion plan. His mother's illness worsened over time, and shortly before she died, she gave Quill a present and a note attached to it. In her final moments, she begged Quill to hold her hand, but he could not bear to look at her. She died seconds later, leaving Quill distraught and screaming for her as he was pulled from the room by his grandfather.
Directly after her death, Quill ran out of the hospital crying and was suddenly abducted from Earth by the Ravagers. Their mission was to take him to his father in deep space but their leader, Yondu Udonta, knew very well of Ego's nature and plans. So, he instead decided that they would keep Quill as their own and chose never to tell him about his father. To help Quill understand the various languages out there, he had a translation chip surgically implanted in his neck.
The Ravagers taught Quill how to be the perfect thief. Quill later recalled how, growing up in a Ravager clan, Yondu Udonta had often "kicked the crap out of [him]" in order to teach him how to fight and "kept him in terror by threatening to eat [him]". He also told Quill that they kept him because he was "a skinny little kid who could squeeze into places that adults couldn't", therefore making it easier for thieving. Quill is later told that the threat of being eaten was actually a joke, but as a child, he believed it to be serious.
As he grew older, Quill started going by the name Star-Lord, which was a nickname given to him by his mother. Yondu Udonta gave Quill an M-ship when he was ten years old, that Quill named the Milano, after his childhood crush Alyssa Milano. Quill's extensive Nova Corps criminal record includes 1 count of fraud, 2 counts of public intoxication, 1 count of assault and 1 count of illegal manipulation of a Garmosian Duchess. Though Rhomann Dey picked him up for petty theft on one of Quill's capers, the charge was not put on his record. As Quill himself admits, he's slept with a variety of women from other species; one stabbed him when he tried to sneak out.
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)[]
Living in space for 26 years, Quill built up a reputation as the self-proclaimed legendary outlaw "Star-Lord" and continued to work for Yondu Udonta. During his time with the Ravagers, he became disloyal to them, eventually planning to leave. When Yondu was given a job by the Broker to steal a mysterious item called the Orb from Morag, Quill decided to steal the Orb for himself. Quill flew his ship to Morag and made his way through the various traps and dangers in a temple, as he went through the temple he played his Walkman and danced. When Quill eventually managed to locate the Orb, he used a Gravity Mine to steal it.
Quill was attacked by Korath the Pursuer who had also arrived to steal the Orb for Ronan the Accuser. Quill was able to distract Korath and killed his Sakaaran Soldiers and shot Korath. Quill picked the Orb up and made his escape while being chased by Korath. Quill made it to the Milano and used the Gravity Mine again to stop the other Soldiers. Quill piloted his ship an flew away from Morag while Korath shot at him. When he was flying away he discovered that a woman he had forgotten about was still inside the ship.
Star-Lord went to Xandar in order to sell it. He brought it to the Broker who had made the deal with Yondu in hopes of selling it. The merchant refused to take the Orb after Quill told him that Korath had been working for Ronan the Accuser. As he was leaving the shop, Quill encountered Gamora, an assassin, who, after he attempted to flirt with her, attacked and stole the Orb. Quill was also attacked by the outlaw duo of Rocket Raccoon and Groot, who both desired the bounty that had been placed on Quill's head by the Ravagers. After a lengthy chase, all four were eventually apprehended by the Nova Corps, Quill was arrested by Rhomann Dey, who he had previously been arrested by, and taken to the Kyln for incarceration.
Once they arrived at the prison, Gamora revealed to them that she was planning on betraying Ronan and selling the Orb to a third party. Quill then spotted one of the guards using his Walkman, Quill confronted the guard and demanded that he put the Walkman into storage, the guard refused and instead used a taser rod to electrocute Quill. After being processed, Quill almost found himself a target in the prison, only to be saved by Rocket and Groot who declared that Quill was their booty. That night, some prisoners, including Drax the Destroyer, came to kill Gamora. Quill managed to convince Drax that, since she had betrayed Ronan, he would most likely come for her allowing Drax to exact his revenge. Quill had assured Gamora that he didn't care about her well-being, but knew that she would be able to show him where to sell the Orb. Gamora said that if they could escape the prison and retrieve the orb for her third party, she would split the 4,000,000,000 unit profit between herself, Quill, Rocket, and Groot.
The next day, Rocket devised a plan to break out of the Kyln, as a team they would collect a series of items from across the prison which would allow Rocket and hack into the security tower. The went awry when Groot completed the last step first, setting off the alarms. Quill ran the steal a prisoner's false leg, offering the man 30,000 units in exchange. Quill made his way to the security tower, shooting at the drones that tried to stop him. He was assisted by Drax, who joined them in order to find Ronan. Rocket revealed that stealing the leg was simply a joke, which greatly annoyed Quill. However, Rocket managed to turn on the anti-gravity and caused the watch tower to fly to safety.
As they began collecting their belongings, Quill noticed that the guard had stolen his walkman. Determined not to lose his most prized possession, Quill gave Gamora a bag, claiming it contained the Orb, and went to find the guard. Quill fought through the guards and found his Walkman, knocking out the guard who had stolen it. Quill then flew outside the prison to the ship, where Drax complimented him on his incredible bravery. However, when Quill revealed what it was he had gone back for, Drax called him an imbecile.
On the Milano, Quill found Rocket pulling apart bits of his ship to build weapons, including the Hadron Enforcer, Quill was furious and told him to stop. After commenting on the large sum that was going to be paid to the group, Drax claimed to have no interest in money. Quill stated that the group was going to have to have trust between them.
Arriving on Knowhere, a remote criminal outpost in space built in the giant severed-head of a celestial, the group decided to relax while waiting to meet Gamora's contact, Taneleer Tivan: The Collector. Quill and Gamora spent time together where they discussed Thanos and music, Quill even allowing Gamora to listen to his music before trying to kiss her. They were interrupted by a fight that had broken out between Drax, Rocket, and Groot. Quill broke up the fight but could not stop Drax from leaving, as he was furious that he still had not had a chance to kill Ronan. Quill told them that the lack of trust that they had had prevented them from ever making friends, and instead attacking anyone who got close.
Carina, the Collector's assistant, then arrived and invited them into the Collector's museum. Quill presented Tivan with the Orb. As Tivan began to open the orb, he explained that it was in fact an Infinity Stone, an item of immeasurable power that was capable of destroying entire planets and kills all but the most powerful beings who wield it. Tivan explained the history of the stones until the Orb opened, revealing a strange purple glowing gem. Before Tivan could pay them however, Tivan's tormented assistant grabbed the stone, triggering an explosion that engulfs his collection. The team barely managed to survive the explosion.
As they left the museum with the Orb, Rocket was horrified, claiming that they should just give it to Ronan and escape. Quill suggested that they give it to Yondu Udonta in exchange for money. Before they could continue arguing however, Ronan the Accuser and Nebula arrived with an army of Sakaarans behind them, as Drax had called his enemy for a chance to kill him. Gamora attempted to flee with Orb only to be pursued by Nebula. Quill and Rocket assisted and managed to destroy many of the Sakaaran ships. However Gamora was forced to fly out into deep space where Nebula destroyed her ship and retrieved the Orb, leaving her sister to die in space. Quill unwilling to watch Gamora die sends Yondu his coordinates and exits his pod giving Gamora his mask to help her survive. Before Quill could suffocate and die, they were rescued by the Ravagers and Yondu.
While on Yondu Udonta's ship, Quill was beaten and mocked by his former boss, who was still furious that Quill had betrayed them and stolen the Orb. Quill argued with Yondu about how Yondu claimed Quill should be grateful that he wasn't eaten by the other Ravagers. Yondu lost patience and aimed his Yaka Arrow at Quill throat. Quill managed to talk Yondu out of killing him by telling him he knows where there Orb is and that they can work together to retrieve it. Suddenly Rocket, Drax, and Groot threaten to attack the Eclector in an attempt to rescue them, luckily Quill manages to defuse the situation.
Back on the Milano, Quill berated Rocket, Groot, and Drax about their foolish attempt to rescue them from Yondu, in which they would have destroyed the ship if Yondu hadn't handed them over in just five seconds. Quill told the group that he has a plan to stop Ronan as they could not simply stand back as Ronan kills billions of innocent people when he destroys Xandar. Rocket argued that they plan meant certain death for them all. However, the entire group agreed and were willing to put their lives on the line to stop Ronan. With the rest of the team on board, Quill came out with a plan and recruited the Ravagers help, Yondu told Quill that if he did not give him the stone at the end of the battle, he would kill him. Quill then called Rhomann Dey and told him of his plan asking for the help of the Nova Corps.
Ronan arrived on Xandar with the Dark Aster and thousands of Sakaaran soldiers. Quill and the Ravagers engaged them in a massive ariel battle, while Kraglin and Rocket shot a hole in the side of the ship to allow Quill and Yondu Udonta to board. Yondu's ship was shot down in the battle and for a moment it appeared that they would not be able to defeat Ronan's army. However, the Nova Corps arrived helped in the battle. Quill was able to land his ship inside the Dark Aster.
As the Nova Corps hold off the large ship by creating a force field, Quill, Groot, and Drax fought their way to Ronan meanwhile. Gamora battled Nebula. They were attacked by a squad of Sakaaran Soldiers led by Korath the Pursuer. During the fight Drax managed to kill Korath. Eventually they made it to Ronan and Quill shot him with the Hadron Enforcer; however, Ronan is unaffected by the attack. For a moment they were defenseless, Drax was held by the throat by Ronan, but before he could kill them, Rocket comes crashing in with his own ship heavily damaging the Dark Aster, causing it to crash.
Quill pulled the injured Rocket out of the crashed ship and he joined the rest of the group, believing Ronan to be dead and their own lives to be lost when the ship crashed to the ground. However, they were protected from serious injury by Groot, who shielded them seemingly at the cost of his life, making a dome around the team. When the Dark Aster crash landed to the ground, Groot's body was destroyed and the rest of the team survived with only minor injuries. They looked to each other to ensure they were all okay, only to witness Ronan the Accuser, unharmed, exiting the wreckage of his ship.
Ronan began to mock the injured team, calling them the Guardians of the Galaxy. As he prepared to use the Infinity Stone to destroy Xandar, Quill, seeing no other opinion, distracts Ronan by dancing to "O-o-h Child" by the Five Stairsteps and challenging the war monger to a dance off. While Ronan starred at Quill with utter confusion, the time allowed Drax and Rocket to repair the Hadron Enforcer and use it to destroy his hammer. As the Infinity Stone hung in the air, Quill willingly sacrificed himself and grabbed the stone.
The stone's power began to rip Quill's body apart, causing him unbearable pain. Quill began to hallucinate images of his dying mother asking him to take her hand. Gamora, Rocket, and Drax came to his aid and grabbed his hands, allowing them to also absorb the Stone's power. Between them they successfully absorbed its power and were able to control it. Ronan starred in horror, demanding to know how it was possible, Quill responded that they were the Guardians of the Galaxy. The four then directed the Orb's power to blast Ronan, killing him.
With Ronan and his army now destroyed, Yondu Udonta demanded that Quill hand over the Orb despite Quill telling him that it is only safe with the Nova Corps. Quill tricked Yondu into taking a container supposedly containing the stone but actually contained a Troll doll. As the Ravagers left Xandar, they remarked that it turned out well that they did not deliver Quill to his father as a child. After the Ravagers left. Back on Xandar, Quill spoke to Gamora about how although they would now want him dead, the Ravagers were the only family he had ever known, Gamora told him that wasn't true anymore. Quill gave the real Orb to the Nova Corps.
Quill's group, now known as the Guardians of the Galaxy, had their criminal records expunged by the Corps, and Quill learned that he is only half-human, his father being part of an ancient species. Quill finally opened the last present he received from his mother; a second cassette tape filled with her favorite songs. The Guardians left in the rebuilt Milano, accompanied by a twig recovered from Groot, which was already regrowing.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2[]
Quill learns that his father is Ego the Living Planet, a primordial Celestial who manifests a human avatar that allows him to interact with other races, with Ego informing Quill that he too possesses his Celestial abilities. Peter is initially happy to have found his father and to have family again, however, it is eventually revealed that Ego intends to terraform all other planets into extentions of himself, killing all other life, and had conceived Peter with the intention that his son would provide the extra power necessary to do so. He turns against his father when it is revealed that Ego killed his mother to ensure his focus on his self-perceived 'duty'. Peter keeps Ego occupied in combat with his newfound Celestial powers until the other Guardians are able to destroy Ego's brain. After Ego dies and Peter loses his Celestial powers, he is rescued from the planet's destruction by Yondu, who sacrifices his life in the process. The Guardians hold a memorial to give Yondu an honorable funeral, during which Peter realizes that Yondu is the man who has truly been a father to him, and the Ravagers arrive to pay homage. Peter also replaces his Walkman, which Ego had destroyed, with a Zune.
Avengers: Infinity War[]
Peter, along with the rest of the Guardians, rescue Thor from the wreckage of the Asgardian refugee vessel, and learns of Thanos's quest for the Infinity Stones. He leads Gamora, Drax, and Mantis to Knowhere, where Thor tells them Thanos will be seeking the Reality Stone. Gamora, his wife, privately asks her husband to kill her if Thanos should capture her to prevent him from learning the location of the Soul Stone, to which he reluctantly agrees; the couple then shares a kiss. On Knowhere, Peter gives Gamora instructions when the group confronts Thanos, which she ignores; she is then captured by Thanos as she had feared. After they share their love for one another, Peter tearfully keeps his promise, but is rendered ineffective by Thanos with the Reality Stone. After Thanos leaves with Gamora, Peter, Drax, and Mantis go to Titan and meet Iron Man, Doctor Strange, and Spider-Man, and eventually fight Thanos when he arrives on the planet. The heroes briefly gain the upper hand, with Mantis subduing him with her powers, but when Peter learns that Thanos has "killed" Gamora, he loses his temper and attacks Thanos, inadvertently breaking Mantis' hold. After Thanos completes the Infinity Gauntlet and eliminates half of all life in the universe, Star-Lord is among those who cease to exist.
Avengers: Endgame[]
Quill is first seen dancing, as in the original timeline, when James Rhodes and Nebula travel back to Morag in 2014 to steal the Power Stone before he could. After watching him for a while, with Rhodes referring to Quill as an idiot, he beats Quill up, rendering him unconscious and creating an alternate timeline in which the Guardians never existed. Nebula then takes the tools from Quill's clothes to open the door and obtain the Stone.
He is one of the many people resurrected due to Banner snapping his fingers and reversing the Snap. During the battle on Earth, Quill is saved by Gamora from 2014. As he mistakes her for the actual one and goes to approach her, Gamora attacks him and asks Nebula in disgust if he is the one she falls in love with to which Nebula responds that it was either him or the tree.
After Tony snaps his fingers with the stolen Infinity Stones, Thanos and his forces disappear, Peter and his fellow Guardians (sans Gamora) appear to his funeral. Thor joins the Guardians on their further adventures as Quill begins to search for Gamora, who has mysteriously disappeared.
Personality[]
Peter Quill was abducted from Earth by the thieves and smugglers called the Ravagers. Their leader, Yondu Udonta raised Quill and showed him how to survive in deep space. Yondu also taught Quill how to be the perfect thief. Peter Quill is naturally upbeat and sarcastic and is known for looking on the bright side. It seems that his 1980s pop culture-laden references his life on Earth.
He is also very protective of his Sony Walkman that was given to him by his mother. This was shown numerous times when he attempted to assault a prison guard who took it, and when during the prison break when Quill made his way back into the prison just to retrieve the device. Later, Quill's anger for his father was more focused due to Ego breaking the Walkman despite the confession that Ego had also murdered his mother.
Before joining the Guardians, Quill lived in the ways of an average criminal and thug, going so far as killing Korath's men and attempting to kill Korath himself when they seemingly threatened his well being as they were arresting him for interrogation by Ronan. Although, he only attacked them when he was aware that he could get the drop on them and win, as well as when he knew that he could not convince them to let him go. However, he merely stunned and knocked out the guards on the Kyln with his Quad Blasters instead of using lethal force, which shows that he only would kill to defend himself or in battles with foes that are outside the law, such as Ronan and Korath's men. He is very conscientious of his physical weaknesses, which prevents him from acting impulsive as he is always aware of the dangers of his actions, especially in combat.
Quill has shown he can be heroic; he was unwilling to watch Gamora die in space, so he exited his pod giving Gamora his mask, saving her life, nearly at the cost of his own. He was also the one who brought the Guardians together to save Xandar, showcasing his leadership qualities and a certain amount of charisma, since all the members were well-known outlaws.
Quill can create inventively, and often extremely unorthodox, solutions to problems on the fly. His confrontation with Ronan the Accuser is an example of this, distracting him long enough for Rocket and Drax to put the Enforcer back together to destroy Ronan's hammer to break loose the stone.
Due to being raised as a child by aliens, having possibly not learned just how weak humans are compared to other beings, he never suspected that he was half-alien himself and assumed his inhuman resilience to be normal for any creature.
Other appearances[]
TV series[]
Peter is one of the protagonists of the animated Guardians of the Galaxy series, which is heavily inspired by the 2014 film. His storyline involves him keeping his new-found family together and seeking answers about his paternal history. In additon, the first season managed to have maintained his royal title as "Prince of Spartax" from the comics. He is voiced by Will Friedle.
He also appears in the Lego special Guardians of the Galaxy: The Thanos Threat.
Video games[]
Peter is currently the only Disney Prince to have their very own video game series with Guardians of the Galaxy: The Tell Tale Series. In this series of games, Peter, who is the leader of the Guardians team, is on a quest to solve the mystery of a relic known as the "Eternity Forge", a magical forge that has the ability to resurrect deceased loved ones. At the same time, he and his new-found family are also at odds with a group of Kree lead by Hala the Accuser, who wants to use the forge to resurrect her late son. He is voiced by Scott Porter as an adult and by Jeremy Shada as a kid. As seen in a flashback, Peter Quill had to promise his mother not to get into fights with a bully. After Meredith Quill died, Peter Quill is taken in by Yondu where Meredith entrusted him to watch over Peter.
- Film versions of the character also appear in Lego Marvel Super Heroes, Marvel Heroes: Omega, Marvel: Future Fight, and Marvel: Contest of Champions.
- Peter is also playable in the video game Disney Infinity: Marvel Super Heroes and Disney Infinity 3.0.
Disney Parks[]
- Peter, along with Gamora, made their first Disney parks appearance as face characters at the "Awesome Mix Tape Dance Party", during the Unleash the Villains event in 2014.
- He currently does meet-and-greets at Disney California Adventure, which began in the Summer of Heroes event. In addition, Peter appears in the Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Dance Off! street show.
- Between May 2017, and September 2018, Peter was a meetable character at Disney's Hollywood Studios.
- Peter was a meet-and-greet character in the 2017 Super Heroes Half-Marathon runDisney event at Disneyland.
- Peter performs at Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix Live! at Epcot during the summer months.
- In addition, he also appears in adaptations of the Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Dance Off! street show at Disneyland Paris and Shanghai Disneyland.
- Peter also does meet and greets at Shanghai Disneyland.
- Peter does meet and greets on the Disney Cruise Line during it's annual Marvel Day at Sea event.
- He has even appeared in the nighttime fireworks show Disney Movie Magic at Disney's Hollywood Studios.
Trivia[]
- In the comics, Quill was originally a NASA astronaut whose mother was killed by aliens and who ended up assuming the mantle of the Star-Lord, an interplanetary policeman. This version of the character was later retconned in another reality. The mainstream version of Quill was taken into space at a young age, after having witnessed his mother being killed by a group of Badoons, and ended up imprisoned at the Kyln. He later formed a team called the Guardians of the Galaxy.
- His walkman was a blue TPS-L2 Sony walkman from 1979.
- Chris Pratt stated in an interview, that the shirt Star-Lord wears in Vol. 2, is the name of a space candy called "Gear Shift".
- His favorite movie is Footloose.
- Peter is a fan of Pac-Man, as he told Ego that he would make a ten foot statue of the character and he also formed a Pac-Man sculpture during his fight with Ego.
- The alias "Star-Lord" comes from a nickname Quill's mother gave him as a child.
- During the Nova Corps scans of Peter, a translator implant is detected in his neck.
- Star Lord's father in the film is different than the comics. in the film, His father is Ego: instead of Emperor Jason of Spartax, in which Quill is Prince.