'Doctor Who' star Karen Gillan is the female villain in 'Guardians of the Galaxy'

Marvel's casting for Guardians of the Galaxy has been as offbeat as the comic from which the film is based. You've got funnyman Chris Pratt in the Han Solo-esque role of team leader Star-Lord; ex-WWE champion Dave Bautista as Drax the Destroyer; sci-fi franchise stalwart Zoe Saldana as Gamora; Michael Rooker as the time-hopping Yondu; character actor John C. Reilly as Nova Corps leader Rhomann Dey; Glenn Close (!!!) as a top-ranking Nova Corps official; and then you've got Lee Pace and Ophelia Lovibond whose roles are being kept secret. The seemingly random casting isn't over, though, with the addition of Doctor Who star, Karen Gillan.

Best known for playing Amy Pond for three Doctor Who seasons, Gillan will reportedly take on the "lead female villain". Does that mean there's a primary male villain she'll be teaming up with or doing battle against? Pace's role is said to be of a bad guy who will eventually turn to the light, potentially spinning-off into his own solo franchise. That's led many, including myself, to speculate that he's Mar-Vell aka Captain Marvel, one of the few who could carry his own film. 

As for Gillan, my guess, and I freely admit this is a reach, is that she may be playing Mistress Death, the physical embodiment of death itself. Thanos, who we know is the primary heel of Phase Two and is one of the links that unites the Guardians, is obsessed with Death. His sole purpose is to destroy as much life as possible in order to impress her so that she will love him.  Mistress Death also has a connection to The Elders of the Universe and the being known as The Collector, who Lovibond's character is expected to be associated with. Like I said, it's a theory, and not a fully-formed one but it's what I've got for now.

Guardians of the Galaxy will begin filming soon for release on August 1st 2014. [THR]