Will the strongest villain appear in 'Ant-Man 3', restoring Marvel's battered pride?

Will the movie 'Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantum Mania' be able to revive Marvel's shattered pride?

On the afternoon of the 2nd, a video press conference was held for the movie 'Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantum Mania' (director Peyton Reed, hereinafter referred to as 'Ant-Man 3'), and Paul Rudd, who plays 'Ant-Man', and Jonathan Majors, who plays 'Kang', attended and spoke. .

Regarding how 'Ant-Man 3' differs from previous seasons, Paul Rudd said, "The biggest difference is the appearance of the conqueror 'Kang'. Of course, it is still a movie that values family love, but the atmosphere is different and the scale is enormous. “It’s incredible. All of this is because of Kang’s appearance,” he emphasized.

Jonathan, who plays 'Kang', said, "Kang is a super villain who belongs to the entire MCU multiverse and travels across time and space. He is the only villain who can time travel." He added, "It is unique because there are variants. There are many variants of 'Kang.' “It cannot be defined by just one version,” he said. Paul Rudd, who heard this, added, "Of all the variants, the worst variant has appeared."

They also said, "If you enjoyed the humor and family message of 'Ant-Man' in Parts 1 and 2, you will not be disappointed with this movie," adding, "The humor and family relationships unique to 'Ant-Man' have created an original and unique franchise in the MCU." did. He explained, “Rather than thinking that this third part replaced parts 1 and 2, I hope people will think of it as expanding on what we have.”

Regarding Scott Lang, who is Ant-Man, Paul said, "Ant-Man is an ordinary person. He was not born with super powers. And he is a father. A character like this is placed in a completely unfamiliar and scary environment called the 'Quantum Realm'." “It was fun to act out the setting of meeting and confronting an enemy more powerful than Thanos. The character was fun, and it was even more fun to be able to act with Jonathan, a great actor,” he said.

He added, "I am actually a father, so I know what it is like to want to protect your daughter. The family love shown in Parts 1 and 2 is the driving force of this movie. That drive continues in Part 3, too." He added, "There are even bigger trials and scales." “It grows tremendously,” he added.

Paul Rudd also said, “If you enjoyed the humor and message of family love in the first and second films of ‘Ant-Man,’ you will not be disappointed with this film.” He added, “The humor and family relationships of ‘Ant-Man’ have created an original and unique franchise in the MCU.” “He said. He explained, “Rather than thinking that this third part replaced parts 1 and 2, I hope people will think of it as expanding on what we have.”

Jonathan Makers said, “There are cute and warm elements in ‘Ant-Man.’ In this film, those elements are even more maximized. As we enter a new environment called the quantum realm and an enemy called ‘Kang’ appears, such wit and family love shine even more. “I think it was effective. There is a synergy that comes from the combination of Caen and Scott Lang,” he said. “I think the third element that emerged through conversation created a new wind and new texture.”

Paul Rudd concluded by saying, “To put all of this into one word, I think you can say that ‘Ant-Man’ Parts 1 and 2 are on the same road, but Part 3 has a different address.”

'Ant-Man 3', which opens the MCU in 2023, is raising expectations as to whether it can be the first step toward recovery by overcoming Marvel's cracks and slump that began in Phase 4. Recently, Marvel movies have not received support from fans and are receiving poor ratings. ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’, released in November last year, attracted only 2.1 million viewers.

'Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantum Mania' is about the 'Ant-Man Family', who has fallen into the unknown world of the 'Quantum Realm', facing the most powerful villain in MCU history, 'Kang', the conqueror who rules the infinite universe, and confronting the worst threat that transcends time and space. This is the first Marvel blockbuster of 2023.

Director Peyton Reed, who created a global mega hit with the 'Ant-Man' series, is once again directing this work. Expectations are high for the ensemble of Paul Rudd, who plays Ant-Man, and Evangeline Lilly, who plays the Wasp. In addition, Michelle Pfeiffer once again plays the role of Janet Van Dyne, who showed her presence. Here, Katherine Newton joins the cast as Ant-Man's daughter, Cathy Lang. In particular, Jonathan Majors was selected to play the role of Kang, the conqueror who is a more powerful villain than Thanos and the archenemy of the Avengers.

Released on February 15th.

Choi Ji-ye, Ten Asia Reporter wisdomart@tenasia.co.kr