If you’ve been jonesing for some small-scale superhero action largely predicated on the incredible charisma of the seemingly ageless Paul Rudd, we have some really good news for you. The final chapter in the Ant-Man trilogy (still can’t quite believe that’s a thing), Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, skitters into cinemas on February 16, 2023!
This latest outing by everyone’s favourite thief-turned-insect-themed-superhero (it’s not a crowded field, tbh) sees Scott Lang, aka Ant-Man (Rudd), Wasp (Evangeline Lilly), Dr Henry Pym, the original Wasp, Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer, who hopefully gets to do more this time around), and newly-minted hero Cassie Lang (Kathryn Newton), Ant-Man’s daughter, taking on Kang (Jonathan Majors), a time-travelling multidimensional villain who was sort of introduced in the Loki series on Disney+, and is slated to be the next big bad in the broader Marvel Cinematic Universe (good luck filling those Thanos-sized boots, son).
Also showing up in undisclosed roles are Bill Murray (poor timing there, really) and The Good Place’s William Jackson Harper, and word around the campfire is the wonderfully weird MODOK, recently voiced by Patton Oswalt in the eponymous stop-motion Disney+ series, is going to crop up as well. Peyton Reed, who surely didn’t envision calling the shots on a mega-budget superhero trilogy back when he was doing Down With Love and Bring It On, is once again directing.
It’s interesting that Marvel have decided to give their next major villain his big screen debut in an Ant-Man movie, though. These films have been comparatively low-key compared to the more thunderous salvos Marvel likes to unleash, and that’s been part of their charm; Scott’s struggles to be a good dad and ex-husband have been given equal dramatic weight to his battles against the villain of the day, which is refreshing. Will Quantumania retain that delicate balance? Guess we’ll find out soon enough.
