Tag: Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania

Peyton Reed Promises ‘Quantumania’ Won’t Be “Palate Cleanser”

Ant-Man and the Wasp are going big. The traditionally tiny heroes have a long track record of being an afterthought among fans, with their films often viewed as simple Avengers epilogues or “smaller”, less important entries in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Paul Rudd‘s large supporting role in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame went a long way in solidifying the size-changer and his cohorts as major Marvel players, but it didn’t do much to change the reputation of his solo franchise. According to director Peyton Reed, this will change with the series’ third film, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.

Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Reed promised that the movie will not be another “palate cleanser” for the MCU. Instead, the film, which kicks off Phase 5, will match the expectations set by large-scale team-up projects like Captain America: Civil War and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Describing his attitude towards Quantumania, the filmmaker explained:

People felt like, ‘Oh, these are fun little palate cleansers after a gigantic Avengers movie’. For this third one, I said, ‘I don’t want to be the palate cleanser anymore. I want to be the big Avengers movie.’
Peyton Reed

via EW

Reed went on to say he “metaphorically kicked in Kevin Feige’s door” to demand the third Ant-Man adventure be considered very important to the greater MCU. If fans of the legacy character were worried Marvel Studios wasn’t taking him seriously, they can take comfort in knowing Reed is on their side. The director also described how the exciting new setting helps change the tone of the movie and create more “epic“:

In the first one, we introduced the idea of the Quantum Realm, we kind of dipped our toe into it, and then even more so in the second one. But we obviously left a lot of unanswered questions. We wanted to go in a different direction, and create an epic movie where the bulk of it takes place in the Quantum Realm. For me, it was really exciting, because the other two films take place in San Francisco, and this one, we were creating this incredibly complex subatomic world, and all the environments and ecosystems and creatures and beings that inhabit that world.
Peyton Reed

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania hits theaters on February 17th, 2023.

Source: Entertainment Weekly

December 16, 2022
Peyton Reed Teases “Great” ‘Fantastic Four

Long before Marvel Studios regained the live-action rights to Fantastic Four, director Peyton Reed pitched a version of the film to the execs at Fox. That film obviously was never made and Reed has since gone on to become the driving force behind Marvel Studios’ Ant-Man franchise. With the third film in the franchise, Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, next up on Marvel Studios’ theatrical slate, it seems that the first round of press has begun and Reed found himself asked about his never-was Fantastic Four.

In an interview with Somos Geeks, Reed quickly dismissed his take on Marvel Studios’ First Family in favor of hyping the upcoming film which is due to hit theaters on February 14th, 2025. Marvel Studios Fantastic Four was originally set to be directed by Jon Watts, who directed Marvel Studios and Sony’s Spider-Man trilogy; however, Watts had to depart the project and after a long search, Marvel Studios brought WandaVision director Matt Shakman on board. Though Shakman has only been on the project for a little less than four months, development on Fantastic Four has been ongoing for years, including an ongoing cycle of concept art. That art, it turns out, is something Reed has been fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of while hanging out at Marvel Studios. “Matt Shakman is gonna do great,” said Reed, continuing on to say. “and I’ve seen initial artwork for the Fantastic Four…stuff around the Marvel offices…it’s gonna be great.”

Concept art does not a movie make, of course, but Reed’s vote of confidence, which he volunteered on his own, should not be taken lightly. While there are some parts of the internet who don’t appreciate the Ant-Man films or believe Reed should be helming Marvel Studios projects, the perception of the director by those in charge of Marvel Studios couldn’t be any more different than that. Reed’s voice and passion for Marvel are valued and respected at the studio and he may even be a contender to direct the capstone of the Multiverse Saga, 2026’s Avengers: Secret Wars. Concept art isn’t just lying around everywhere at the studio, so Reed’s ability to take a peek could hint as his involvement in Secret Wars. Of course, it could also mean absolutely nothing. But as every day goes by without a director for the sixth Avengers film and the release of Quantumania (which is going to really surprise MCU fans) draws nearer, one does have to consider the very real possibility that Reed might be on the shortlist to helm the big saga-ending project.

Source: YouTube

December 12, 2022
Marvel Studios Debuts New Trailers for ‘Quantumania’, ‘Guardians’ and ‘Loki’ at APAC Showcase 2022

If fans were wondering what they might expect at CCXP in Brazil this weekend, Marvel Studios seems to have given them a pretty big hint. Disney had a major presentation at the APAC Showcase 2022 in Singapore and while it wasn’t solely focused on Marvel Studios, the presentation gave fans in attendance a first look at 2023’s Phase 5 projects.

According to a report from Geek Culture, brand new trailers were shown for Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, Loki Season 2 and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. The Disney Plus streaming series Secret Invasion and the Captain Marvel sequel, The Marvels, were also part of the presentation, though the site reported that no new footage was shown though a release date “between June and August” is being reported elsewhere. Whether that’s just a guess because those are the Summer months or if that was stated at the presentation is still unclear.

It’s been expected that a new trailer for Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania and the first trailer for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 would be a part of Marvel Studios’ reported CCXP presentation in Brazil and the fact that they were rolled out in Singapore all but confirms it. A new look at Loki Season 2, which reportedly features Jonathan Majors‘ Kang the Conqueror, Gugu Mbatha-Raw’s Ravonna and a plethora of Variant Lokis who find themselves fighting in what’s likely the multiversal war He Who Remains warned of in Season 1.

Photo Credit: Twitter User MJ Felipe

Majors‘ Kang was definitely a focus of the presentation as the new trailer for Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania reportedly showed an extended scene of the character negotiating with Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang. A similar scene played exclusively at D23, painting a chilling portrait of the character. Like the rest of the footage from the APAC Showcase, the new footage has not yet been released to the public, but with Quantumania headed to theaters in February following Avatar: The Way of Water, it is incredibly likely the new trailer will be officially released sometime in early December.

Photo Credit: Twitter User MJ Felipe

Finally, footage from May’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 played for the audience and revealed serious tension between Star-Lord and the Variant Gamora who now finds herself part of The Ravagers but with no interest in Quill’s affection. Much like the footage shown at D23, the APAC Showcase footage gave a brief glimpse of Will Poulter’s Adam Warlock and teased a look at the origins of Rocket. Like Quantumania, it’s possible that Disney might like the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 trailer to play in front of Avatar: The Way of Water, which is likely going to draw large audiences throughout early 2023.

Photo Credit: Twitter User MJ Felipe

Photo Credit: Twitter User MJ Felipe

Though nothing new was revealed about Secret Invasion or The Marvels, it is interesting that the streaming series Echo was absent from the presentation. At last update, Echo was expected to stream on Disney Plus sometime after Secret Invasion and before Loki Season 2. Short of projects like Ironheart and Agatha: House of Harkness, which are expected to premiere in the fourth quarter of 2023, the APAC seemed to be a pretty comprehensive look at what 2023 has in store for Marvel Studios’ fans, making Echo’s exclusion a bit of an anomaly.

Source: Geek Culture, MJ Felipe on Twitter

November 30, 2022
The Sunday Paper—November 27, 2022

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is now the next Marvel Studios film up to continue the franchise. Accordingly, we are seeing plenty of news bits here and there about the upcoming film which will feature potential Multiverse Saga Big Bad Kang the Conquerer.

Actor Jonathan Majors previously played He Who Remains on Loki and teased he was just one of “many iterations” of Kang that he’d be playing during his tenure in the MCU and now Ant-Man franchise director Peyton Reed has chimed in on which version audiences will see in Quantumania. “Kang The Conqueror in our movie is a very different character,” from Majors’ He Who Remains, teased Reed in an interview. “He’s someone who has dominion over time, and he’s a warrior and a strategist,” added Reed, whose description is in lockstep with how Majors has previously described this version of the character. Reed finished the thought by describing this version as, “an all-timer antagonist“, giving fans of the comics a pretty good idea of what to expect.

A Funk Pop that made its way to stores earlier than expected offered fans the first look at M.O.D.O.K. A new theater standee shared on Twitter has indicated that in addition to the main cast of Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Michael Douglas returning for the film, one other actor is set to return for his third MCU film—David Dastmalchian. The actor has played Kurt Goreshter in the previous two Ant-Man films and along with Michael Pena’s Luis and T.I.’s Dave was a frequent source of comedic relief.

There’s been a lot of hype around Tenoch Huerta‘s incredible performance as Namor, the leader of Talocan and antagonist in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Many have hoped that this performance would kick off interest from Marvel Studios to get this character his own solo project, but sadly it seems that rights are still an issue for some of the Marvel characters. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever producer Nate Moore has confirmed that the character can definitely return in a future project, but Disney is not able to produce a standalone project based around the character. It seems the rights are still with Universal, who also holds the rights to Hulk and was the reason that character never got a sequel since the Edward Norton film back in 2008.

As shared on Instagram, there’s already a The Marvels‘ shirt available that gives us a good look at the main trio of Monica Rambeau, Carol Danvers, and Kamala Khan. The biggest reveal from this merchandise is the costume that Monica will seemingly wear during her outing as a hero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Kingpin actor Vincent D’Onforio made a comment about Daredevil: Born Again that had everyone speculating this week. Though he’s often been clear that he’d love to see Kingpin take on Spider-Man in the MCU, he’s also made it known that a Punisher vs. Kingpin battle is on his list of goals. With the rumors of Jon Bernthal’s return to the role continuing to swirl, perhaps D’Onofrio’s comments could give fans of the character a little more reason to hope he’ll be included.

In the world of DC, James Gunn took to Twitter to shoot down reports about Henry Cavill’s alleged contract(s) with DC Studios to play Superman down the road after his return in Black Adam. Gunn made it clear that only he and co-head of DC Studios Peter Safran know anything about the subject, and any report out there is likely false.

Any time a legendary filmmaker comments on superhero films, the internet discourse goes instance, and Quentin Tarantino’s recent comments ignited the discussion again. Tarantino is not a big fan of modern superhero films. The acclaimed director recently said he’s never helmed one because he’s “not a hired hand” and while “the writing’s not quite on the wall yet”, he believes the fascination with superhero films will eventually fade.” However, when asked about what type of comic book film he would be interested in making, Tarantino revealed it would be the 1963 Stan Lee and Jack Kirby series Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandoes, which actually inspired Inglorious Basterds.

Despite Tarantino’s lack of interest in the superhero genre, we wrote about his long history with comic book movies, which you can check out here. While you’re at it, you can check out our feature on comics Avengers who are a bit “too wack” for the MCU.

November 27, 2022
Fan-Favorite Character Confirmed to Return for ‘Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania’

Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania is set to kick off Marvel Studios Phase 5 when it releases in theaters in February. The third film in the Ant-Man franchise, Quantumania is set to take the Ant-family into the Quantum Realm where they’ll meet the big bad not only of their film but also of the Multiverse Saga: Jonathan Majors‘ Kang the Conqueror. The first two films in the franchise were smaller in scale, which means Quantumania will take the family into uncharted territory as the film will have “a profound effect on the MCU“, according to returning director Peyton Reed. However, heading into uncharted territory doesn’t mean some familiar faces from the franchise won’t return for the adventure.

A new theater standee shared on Twitter by user @charlestrotter has indicated that in addition to the main cast of Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michelle Pfeiffer and Michael Douglas returning for the film, one other actor is set to return for his third MCU film.

As can be seen just below Kang’s pinky finger, David Dastmalchian is credited with an appearance in the film. Dastmalchian has played Kurt Goreshter in the previous two Ant-Man films and along with Michael Pena’s Luis and T.I.’s Dave was a frequent source of comedic relief. At last check during the events of Ant-Man and The Wasp, the trio was now successfully running their business venture, X-Con Security Consultants. While Dastmalchian’s return for the third film may seem like it was a slam dunk, the actor did not believe he had a role in the film as recently as March of 2022.

Just how big of a role Kurt will have in the third film remains to be seen but, at the moment, he’s the only one of the “Wombats” who looks to be in the film. Trade reports confirmed that T.I. would not be returning for Quantumania and Michael Pena refused to comment on whether or not he’d return. While Pena’s name does not appear on the standee, be cautious in taking that as confirmation that Luis will not be in the film.

Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania is set to hit theaters on February 17th, 2023.

Source: Twitter

November 27, 2022
CCXP Confirms Marvel Studios Plans for Next Week’s Event

Brazil’s annual comic-con experience, CCXP, has more often than not proven a source of self-made disappointment and frustration for Marvel fans. Returning as a live event in 2022, however, CCXP looks to be set to make at least a little noise that should satisfy those same fans. A tweet from the official CCXP account has confirmed that not only will Marvel Studios One-Above-All Kevin Feige be in attendance on December 1st, but he’ll also be bringing some friends and some info on at least a couple of projects with him.

A Marvel Studios estará na #CCXP22 e com um time de peso! Vamos ter novidades de “Homem-Formiga e a Vespa: Quantumania” e a presença de Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly e Jonathan Majors, além de um painel de Guardiões da Galáxia Vol. 3 para agitar o Pavilhão no dia 1/12. pic.twitter.com/2wBVSVpBut
— CCXP (@CCXPoficial) November 22, 2022

According to the tweet, Feige will be joined at the event by Peyton Reed, Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly and Jonathan Majors to hype Marvel Studios’ next theatrical release, Ant–Man and The Wasp: Quantumania. The third film in the franchise, Quantumania is set to hit theaters on February 17th, 2023 and although the first trailer for the film hit social media at the end of October, it’s possible that a new look at the film debuts at CCXP. However, as often is the case, it’s possible that any new footage released may be a con exclusive and not be shared publicly for some time.

In addition to Quantumania, CCXP will also feature something Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 related. A recent rumor indicated that Disney may be angling to have the first trailer for Vol. 3 ready to be in theaters by mid-December to play in front of Avatar: The Way of Water. While that hasn’t been confirmed, it makes sense that the studio would use the sequel, which is expected to have a monster opening weekend, to hype what’s likely to be one of 2023’s most anticipated films in Vol. 3.

Given the panel will likely run nearly an hour, it’s also possible Marvel Studios might use it to hype other projects set to debut in the first half of 2023 such as Secret Invasion and Loki, which are slated to stream on Disney Plus in Spring and Summer, respectively.

November 25, 2022
Jonathan Majors Teases the “Many Variants” of Kang

Jonathan Majors‘ memorable performance as He Who Remains in the Season One finale of Loki was a titillating taste of the type of talent the ascending actor brings to the ever-expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe. Though He Who Remains met his end at the hands of Sylvie, Majors isn’t done with the MCU. As teased in Loki, there are many Variants of Nathaniel Richards in the Multiverse, including “something worse” than He Who Remains.

It looks like “something worse” will come in the form of Kang the Conqueror in next February’s Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania. Both Majors and director Peyton Reed have described Kang the Conqueror as a warrior who looks poised to be a threat not only to Scott, Hope, Cassie, Janet and Hank in the Quantum Realm but also to Earth and its other heroes. The first look at the film makes it clear that this Variant of the character is nothing like his quirky doppelganger from Loki and according to Majors, the ability to create different versions of the character is exactly what drew him to the role.

In an interview with THR, Majors was asked if the opportunity to never play the same Kang twice was what ultimately sold him on taking the role:

Yeah, absolutely. That’s what’s on the page. That’s what the IP says. I was cool, very cool. Kang just lives in his own world in the MCU. No spoilers here, but there’s so many variants of him.
Jonathan Majors

Expanding on the thought, Majors pointed out that Marvel Studios’ “brain trust” is working hard behind the scenes to make the most out of one of Marvel Comics’ most fascinating villains.

And with the powers that are the MCU, that intelligentsia and that brain trust there, they’re just really working to use the IP to its best ability, and it’s extremely humbling that they picked me to step into that. So I’m honored to do it, and I’m always excited to see what we’re doing…Kang is a career in itself. It’s either the cake itself or the cherry on top, I don’t know. But to play multiple versions, it’s just beautiful. It’s a workshop every day.
Jonathan Majors

Given Majors’ versatile talents, it’s easy to see why Marvel Studios went after him for the role and it’s also becoming increasingly difficult to imagine anyone else in the role.

Source: THR

November 21, 2022
‘Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania Director Confirms Which Version of Kang Appears in the Film

When Jonathan Majors was first announced to be portraying the villainous Kang in Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, it was revealed that his deal with Marvel Studios set the actor up for several appearances over the course of multiple projects. By the time Majors appeared as He Who Remains in the season finale of the first season of Loki, it started to become clear just how big of a factor Majors was set to be in what ultimately became known as the Multiverse Saga. The aloof He Who Remains, as it turns out, was just one of an infinite number of versions of Kang and, as he said himself, definitely not the worst one. Majors teased that He Who Remains was just one of “many iterations” of Kang that he’d be playing during his tenure in the MCU and now Ant-Man franchise director Peyton Reed has chimed in on which version audiences will see in Quantumania.

“Kang The Conqueror in our movie is a very different character,” from Majors’ He Who Remains, teased Reed in an interview with Empire. “He’s someone who has dominion over time, and he’s a warrior and a strategist,” added Reed, whose description is in lockstep with how Majors has previously described this version of the character. Reed finished the thought by describing this version as, “an all-timer antagonist“, giving fans of the comics (and probably Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heros) a pretty good idea of what to expect.

The third installment in the Ant-Man franchise has always been destined to break the mold of the first two films, which were small, palate-cleansing features that followed Avengers films into theaters. According to Reed, Quantumania “has a profound affect on the MCU” and teases a connection between it and 2025’s Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, both of which are written by Marvel Comics and Rick and Morty writer Jeff Loveness. “There’s been a lot of discussion about the impact that this appearance of Kang The Conqueror makes,” said Reed, adding “there are big things in store.”

But what about Lang and his Ant-Family? Do they stand a chance against someone like Kang. Reed didn’t give anything away, but does make it clear that Lang is definitely the underdog. “That’s interesting to me: to take the tiniest, and in some people’s minds weakest, Avenger, and put them up against this absolute force of nature.”

Audiences dont’ have to wait too long to find out exactly what happens as Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania hits theaters in February.

Source: Empire

November 21, 2022