Ant-Man and the Wasp Movie Added to Marvel Phase 3, Captain Marvel Delayed
Marvel Studios’ Phase 3 is going through some more changes. Earlier today, Marvel Entertainment officially announced an Ant-Man sequel for Marvel’s Phase 3 of movies, which will also feature The Wasp. The new movie, dubbed Ant-Man and the Wasp, is due out in theaters on July 6, 2018. Paul Rudd, who is also set to reprise his role of Scott Lang aka Ant-Man in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, will return as Ant-Man alongside Evangeline Lily as Hope Van Dyne aka The Wasp. This is based off of one of Ant-Man’s prologues, in which Hope’s father, Hank Pym, bequeaths his daughter with a new Wasp prototype suit, so she can carry on the mantle from her mother, Janet.
Obviously, this is not the only change to Phase 3. Ant-Man and the Wasp is taking Black Panther’s previous July 2018 release date. So what happens to T’Challa now as Black Panther? Marvel has now opted to move Black Panther up for a February 16, 2018 release date. The unfortunate part of this news? The long-awaited Captain Marvel film has been delayed several months. Captain Marvel will now arrive on March 8, 2019. Marvel is also moving forward with three currently untitled films due out on May 1, 2020, July 10, 2020 and November 6, 2020. These will likely be a part of Marvel’s Phase 4.
Despite low expectations and a controversial production which saw it’s original writer-director, Edgar Wright, exit the film, Ant-Man was quite a sleeper hit for 2018. The film ended up grossing $178.5 domestically, putting it on par with the domestic takes for Captain America: The First Avenger and Thor. However, the film also grossed over $409 million worldwide. In short, Ant-Man performed well beyond expectations at the box office. It’s international number is sure to climb even higher after the film opens in China on October 18.
The fans who have been wanting to see a solo Marvel film starring a female superhero will likely not be pleased with this news. Not to mention the fact that Hope Van Dyne is not Janet Van Dyne, the classic and traditional version of The Wasp from the comics, while Hope was a fairly marginal character in Marvel Comics history, and she was in fact a villain from MC2.
The next Marvel Studios release coming down the line is Captain America: Civil War, which hits theaters on May 6, 2016.