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Why 'Guardians of the Galaxy' director gave Play-Doh prizes out on set

As the first film of 2014 to cross the $300 million domestic box office line, "Guardians of the Galaxy" has turned out to be one of year's more surprising blockbusters. So what put this movie over the top? A talking raccoon? A toned Chris Pratt? Or was it the backstage presence of ... Play-Doh?Turns out that actors and crew who had a particularly good day on the set received a special prize from d

As the first film of 2014 to cross the $300 million domestic box office line, "Guardians of the Galaxy" has turned out to be one of year's more surprising blockbusters. So what put this movie over the top? A talking raccoon? A toned Chris Pratt? Or was it the backstage presence of ... Play-Doh?

Turns out that actors and crew who had a particularly good day on the set received a special prize from director James Gunn: A small container of Play-Doh.

As Gunn noted in recent Facebook and Instagram posts, "I chose Play-Doh because I love the smell of it — opening a new container and smelling it puts me in a creative, child-like place. And who doesn't love playing with Play-Doh?"

(He also sent out assurances that the makers of Play-Doh were not paying him to promote their product —but his timing couldn't have been better, as National Play-Doh day is on Sept. 16.)

The picture that accompanies Gunn's comments is of the director with one of the actors, Spencer Wilding, who (as Gunn explained), plays the "Mean Guard who jabs Quill in the prison with the electrical staff and gets his comeuppance to 'Escape (The Piña Colada Song)'."

So which scene in the blockbuster earned Wilding his complementary modeling clay? Alas, it got cut from the final film. But Gunn promised the scene will appear on the Blu-Ray DVD outtakes. 

"Guardians of the Galaxy" is currently in theaters.

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