Vin Diesel has been having fun teasing fans about his possible participation in a Marvel Studios movie. On his Facebook page he has hinted about meetings and then said he couldn’t talk about what was discussed. Just last month at the San Diego Comic Con, Diesel stated that there should be an announcement coming from Marvel soon, though studio chief Kevin Feige denied that.

Diesel is at it again. This time the actor has posted a picture of a talking tree on his Facebook page, of course indicating that he might be playing/voicing the ambulatory tree character Groot in Marvel’s upcoming Guardians Of The Galaxy being directed by James Gunn.

Deadline picked up this ball and checked with their sources who tell them that the actor is indeed in negotiations with the studio for the role. It is not known at the moment whether Diesel will play the character through motion capture or if he will just voice Groot’s one line of dialogue – “I am Groot.” – in various inflections as needed for each scene. While I know that some fans were hoping that Diesel would land the voice role of Rocket Raccoon in the film, I think Diesel’s gravely voice is perfect for the Guardians arboreal member.

And if you are not familiar with the character of Groot, here is FilmBuffOnline’s Comic Book Film Editor William Gatevackes’ write up on the character from last year.

Groot:

Real Name: Groot

First Appearance: Tales to Astonish (vol. 1) #13 (November, 1960)

Created by: Stan Lee and Jack Kirby

Origin: Groot originally encountered Earthlings when he tried to capture a number of them for scientific study. However, once the comic calamities started to happen, he eventually used his power for good, to defend the universe from destruction.

Powers: Groot is made of wood. He can regrow any part or all of his body if only a sliver of it exists. He can also control certain plants and has a genius-level I.Q.

The Skinny: Groot has an interesting comic book history. He is one of the earliest Stan Lee/Jack Kirby creations, pre-dating the Fantastic Four, Hulk X-Men and Avengers. He first appeared in comics when Marvel was publishing a number of anthologies built around sci-fi themed monsters. Luckily, he went from being a monster-of-the-month to being one of Marvel’s next movie stars. Yes, Groot gets the big screen treatment while Doctor Strange, Black Panther, Iron Fist, and many other notable characters are waiting for their shot.