While some characters in Guardians of the Galaxy, like Groot and Rocket, were rendered with computer graphics, the majority of the movie’s aliens were transformed by makeup. Over the course of filming, the movie’s team of 50 makeup artists applied approximately 1,250 prosthetics between the principal cast and alien extras.
Guardians of the Galaxy comes out in theaters on August 1, 2014.
Zoe Saldana trades her Na'vi blue for Gamora green in Guardians of the Galaxy. The artists didn't want the green to put people off, and chose the shade to show vibrance and youthfulness. The makeup and prosthetics took five hours every morning.Stuart Wilson—WireImage/Getty Images; MarvelFormer WWE heavyweight champ Dave Bautista plays Drax the Destroyer. His 18 prostheses took a team of five makeup artists four hours to apply.Samir Hussein—WireImage/Getty Images; MarvelMichael Rooker plays the blue-skinned bandit Yondu, who has a "mohawk" that lights up from front to back.Frazer Harrison—Getty Images; MarvelBenicio Del Toro's hair and eyebrows were bleached for his role as The Collector.Lester Cohen—Getty Images; MarvelKaren Gillan had to shave off all her hair to attain the sleek look of Nebula, a cybernetically enhanced alien.Jason Merritt—Getty Images; MarvelHaving played the Elven king Thranduil in the Hobbit trilogy, Lee Pace is no stranger to makeup and prosthetics. In Guardians, he's painted in blue for his role as Ronan the Accuser.Dimitrios Kambouris—Getty Images; Marvel
