Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania producer Stephen Broussard revealed some surprising information about the genre of the next MCU movie.
Ant-Man 3 is set to be the biggest movie in the Ant-Man trilogy to date thanks to its exploration of the Quantum Realm, which will also feature a full movie debut for Jonathan Majors' Kang the Conqueror. And as the movie inches closer to its February 17 debut, Marvel is set to categorize it into a genre as it has with the rest of its movies from both the Infinity Saga and the Multiverse Saga.
Disney and Marvel have brought a variety of genres into the MCU over the last few years, including "Science Fiction, Comedy, Super Hero, Action-Adventure" for She-Hulk: Attorney at Law and "Supernatural action-adventure" for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
Now, with the first release of Phase 5, Marvel took a bit of a surprise route when classifying its latest blockbuster movie.
Ant-Man 3's Surprising New Genres
Coming from the official press release for Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, Marvel Studios VP of Production & Development Stephen Broussard shared the subgenres for the latest MCU theatrical release.
Broussard classifies Ant-Man 3 as an "epic sci-fi war movie" movie, although Disney has already called it a "Sci-Fi Adventure” in an earlier press release:
"‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ is many things. It’s a family adventure first and foremost. It’s the story of a family of Super Heroes basically being pulled into an adventure within the Quantum Realm, and within that, 3 it becomes an epic sci-fi war movie and a coming-of-age story. It’s a lot of different things wrapped into one film."
While the MCU has had a war movie of its own in the form of Captain America: The First Avenger (and a few entries with 'war' in the title, like Captain America: Civil War), the fact that a third Ant-Man movie will take the form of a sci-fi war movie comes as quite the surprise to fans who were expecting the franchise to continue with its light and comedic tone.
The Ant-Man threequel seemingly depicting an all-out war could be an indication of the might that Kang will bring along with him in the movie and going forward into his future appearances.
Director Peyton Reed also discussed the family values in this movie, confirming that Cassie Lang is now 18 years old and that her relationship with her father remains "a crucial part of the Ant-Man movies." Scott's biggest motivation is to continue being a good father, although this movie forces him to learn what she's like as more of an adult:
"Scott’s daughter, Cassie Lang, is now 18, and Scott and Cassie’s relationship has always been a crucial part of the Ant-Man movies. His biggest motivation in life is to be a good father to his daughter, but events have kept him from spending time with her. In this movie, Scott struggles a bit because he still relates to Cassie as a kid, but she’s a young adult now. And she’s an idealist. She has her own ideas of how to conduct her life, which make for some really great dramatic and comedic tension."
Head writer Jeff Loveness discussed how epic this movie will be as well, putting the most unexpected hero against "an Avengers-level threat" as Kang takes center stage:
"When I first met with Peyton [Reed] and Marvel, we got so excited about making this epic, massive, adventure movie with the Super Hero you might least expect to be in it. From the beginning, the idea was to put them up against an Avengers-level threat, the next major villain of the MCU, Kang the Conqueror—but it’s just Scott, Hope and their families."
Ant-Man 3 Becomes All About Family
Family has always been a central theme of the Ant-Man franchise as Scott Lang works to be the best father he can be for Cassie, who has been his motivation to do good since the beginning. Now, with Cassie becoming a superhero in her own right while also maturing into adulthood, it appears that those themes are more prevalent than ever as they fight alongside each other for the first time.
On the other side, it's quite a surprise to see that "sci-fi war movie" is being used to classify Ant-Man 3, with Kang the Conqueror beginning his mission to rule over the entire Multiverse.
His powers were teased for the first time in the movie's second full trailer, and he'll prove to be as tough of a foe as any that Scott Lang or his family have faced in the MCU to date. The fact that Kang will seemingly go to 'war' could indicate that his conflict with Ant-Man, and the rest of the Avengers, could be a more prolonged conflict when compared to the fight against Thanos in Infinity War.
It could also be a hint towards the Multiversal War teased in Loki, an omen of what Kang will bring to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
While most of the plot for Ant-Man 3 is still being kept under wraps, these new genres should give fans a good idea of the emotion and drama that the MCU will bring as the Multiverse Saga moves into its middle Phase.
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania will arrive in theaters on February 17.
