reporting by Josh Horowitz

"Guardians of the Galaxy" takes place in a very colorful universe -- and we mean that literally, as there are aliens representing every shade in the Crayola box -- so to say that Benicio del Toro was the most colorful of all is a true accomplishment.

His character The Collector has been described by director James Gunn as a space Liberace, and we totally see it. What Liberace was to Earth bling, The Collector is to outer space bling, which is more along the lines of Infinity Stones and Marvel Easter eggs than diamonds and fancy pianos.

But despite del Toro's dynamic take on the role and his long career of bringing over-the-top characters to life, the actor credits director James Gunn and the "Guardians" comic books with creating The Collector's memorable signature look more than his own vivid imagination.

"They had a pretty good idea of what the look was going to be," he told MTV News. "The wardrobe was excellent -- you couldn't top that. The hair... we spent a lot of time dying that hair, trying to get it white. And the eyebrows. But that was all scripted."

Still, del Toro was given some wiggle room with the character, who also appeared in the mid-credits scene for "Thor: The Dark World."

"James was very encouraging to bring something interesting to the character," he said. "You go in with some ideas, and you try them to see if they work. Some of them, I might have an idea for something, then when I do it, I don't like it. But I was pretty excited about the fact that the sky was the limit. I did a couple of things where I was like, 'I don't know if I should try that.' And then I felt like, 'try everything!'"

"Guardians of the Galaxy" is in theaters now.