With the likes of DC Comics and Universal's 'monster movie' reboots rushing to follow the lead of Marvel's 'Cinematic Universe', cinema-goers will be experiencing a lot of shared universes over the next couple of years.

James Gunn, the director of Marvel's incredibly successful Guardians of the Galaxy, might seem an unlikely person to complain about such a trend. Nonetheless, the typically honest and outspoken Gunn has taken to Facebook to criticise the rush towards shared universes.

He writes that "studios are trying to grow trees without a strong seed... I know George Lucas, Kevin Feige, John Favreau, etc, had ideas where their films would potentially lead in the face of success. But I don't think it ever got in the way of making that first movie count as if it was the last."

He concludes by noting, "I think filmmakers and studios should be prepared for the big picture, but never, ever let it get in the way of making a single great film. Be a little more experimental and see what works as opposed to trying to force success. And mostly, remember that we as an industry exist to serve the audiences, to communicate with them - they have a voice in what we create as well. We are not here to dictate what they want to see, mostly because that's simply not possible."

Gunn was involved with cult independent studio Troma during his earlier career, and directed dark comedies Slither and Super before being given the Guardians gig. He will direct a sequel to the blockbuster, due out in 2017.