James Gunn Shares Candid ‘Slither’ Photos To Celebrate The Anniversary Of His Directorial Debut

James Gunn is best known for his fan-favorite work with the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise, but his space-faring adventures for Marvel would’ve never happened if it wasn’t for a little film called Slither.

Released in 2006, the horror-comedy marked Gunn’s directorial debut, and to celebrate the film’s 14th anniversary, Gunn shared a treasure trove of behind the scene photos on Instagram along with a personal caption on how the movie changed his life.

14 years ago today my directorial debut Slither opened. It was not a hit (to say the least), but because of the great reviews & that so many of you folks loved it, it was the start of a great career for me. Just as importantly, I met many wonderful people making the film, who have remained close friends to this day. Here are some photos from that time – including some never-before-seen. #Slither #imbillpardy

You can view the photo gallery from Gunn below:

As Gunn readily admits, Slither was not a hit. In fact, it failed to recoup its small $15 million budget at the box office. However, the film was a hit with critics who gave it a Certified Fresh score of 86% on Rotten Tomatoes where the “Critics Consensus” calls it “A slimy, B-movie homage oozing with affection for low-budget horror films,” and says “Slither is creepy and funny — if you’ve got the stomach for it.”

The film also stars Nathan Fillion and Michael Rooker, who have become frequent staples in Gunn’s work. While Fillion has made brief cameos in the Guardians films, Rooker has been featured more prominently as the blue-skinned alien scavenger Yondu. On top of that, Rooker and Gunn are so close that the director recently admitted that the nationwide shortage of household products has left him with no choice but to use rolls of toilet paper with Rooker’s face on it. Now that’s friendship.