Armed with the astonishing ability to shrink in scale but increase in strength, con-man Scott Lang must embrace his inner-hero and help his mentor, Dr. Hank Pym, protect the secret behind his spectacular Ant-Man suit from a new generation of towering threats. Against seemingly insurmountable obstacles, Pym and Lang must plan and pull off a heist that will save the world.
Ant-Man is an American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics characters of the same name: Scott Lang and Hank Pym. Produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, it is the twelfth installment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
The film was directed by Peyton Reed, with a screenplay written by Edgar Wright & Joe Cornish and Adam McKay & Paul Rudd, and stars Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Corey Stoll, Bobby Cannavale, Michael Peña, Tip “T.I.” Harris, Wood Harris, Judy Greer, David Dastmalchian, and Michael Douglas. In Ant-Man, Lang must help defend Dr. Pym’s Ant-Man technology and plot a heist with worldwide ramifications.
Ant-Man held its world premiere in Los Angeles on June 29, 2015, and was released in North America on July 17, 2015, in 3D and IMAX 3D.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe
In 2015 Marvel Studios continued its streak of pleasing fans and critics alike with the release of the box-office blockbuster sequel “Avengers: Age of Ultron.” The film opened to over $191 million at the box office and has gone on to gross more than $1.2 billion at the worldwide box office and counting.
In 2014 Marvel Studios released “Captain America: The Winter Soldier” and “Guardians of the Galaxy,” the top-grossing domestic film of 2014 with $333.2 million and $772.8 million worldwide. “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” which broke the opening record for an April release by earning $95 million in its first weekend, went on to gross more than $711 million worldwide.
In 2013 Marvel produced the megahits “Thor: The Dark World” and “Iron Man 3.” The two films have earned over $644 million and $1.2 billion worldwide, respectively, since their openings. In 2012 Marvel’s critically acclaimed “The Avengers” set an all-time, domestic three-day weekend box-office record at $207.4 million. The film went on to gross over $1.5 billion worldwide, becoming Disney’s highest-grossing global and domestic release of all time.
Completing the roster of films that make up the Marvel Cinematic Universe are the box-office hits “Thor,” “Captain America: The First Avenger,” “Iron Man,” “Iron Man 2” and “The Incredible Hulk.”
President of Marvel Studios and “Ant-Man” producer Kevin Feige explains why Marvel has continued its unprecedented box-office success within its ever-expanding universe of characters. “For all of us at Marvel it’s always been about the characters and always making sure at the core of the film it is about being able to relate and connect to these amazing but flawed individuals,” says Feige. “We have been really lucky and grateful that audiences have continued to champion these characters and take the ride with them.”
He continues, “The other fun thing is we want our films to stand apart on their own, and we love that ‘Thor’ is sort of a science fiction fantasy film, and ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ is an action-adventure science fiction film and that we have techno-thriller elements in the ‘Iron Man’ films. ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ is a 1970s political thriller and ‘Ant-Man’ is a heist film. So we don’t believe that the superhero film is a genre unto itself. We love taking subgenres and putting them together and then adding the superhero elements into other genres of film.”
Marvel Studios’ co-president Louis D’Esposito explains why it is critical to keep the Marvel Cinematic Universe moving forward in different directions. “We want each of our established franchises to feel fresh, but at the same time we also have to continue to introduce new characters and franchises into the mix,” says D’Esposito. “I think we have been really lucky in finding that balance, keeping things going in new directions as well as continuing to give audiences more of the franchises and characters they have grown to love. There are so many characters in the Marvel Universe, so it is fun when we get to take a new one from the comics to the big screen.”
The first step in the process of creating a new franchise was deciding how the story of Ant-Man fit into the ever-expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe. Launching another character and franchise is a process that is aided by the goodwill of audiences earned over the years by producing successful films for fans and critics alike. “With the success of ‘Guardians of the Galaxy,’ it showed us that audiences don’t have to be that familiar with the characters to embrace them if the movie’s good,” says Feige.
“Audiences are ready for new material and when they see that Marvel logo, they know it is part of the Cinematic Universe. They may or may not know who those characters are, but they know what that logo stands for-something new, something reliably good, with quality, freshness and the unexpected. With ‘Ant-Man,’ we actually have the best of both worlds. It’s completely original and fresh and he is a founding member of The Avengers. We wanted to play with that history and backstory with Hank Pym and how the torch is being passed to Scott Lang and how they connect in this movie and in the future.”
Ant Man
Directed by: Peyton Reed
Starring: Paul Rudd, Judy Greer, Evangeline Lilly, Hayley Atwell, Corey Stoll, Michael Douglas, Abby Ryder Fortson, Lyndsi LaRose
Screenplay by: Edgar Wright, Joe Cornish
Production Design by: Shepherd Frankel, Marcus Rowland
Cinematography by: Russell Carpenter
Film Editing by: Dan Lebental, Colby Parker Jr.
Costume Design by: Sammy Sheldon
Set Decoration by: Leslie A. Pope
Music by: Christophe Beck
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sci-fi action violence.
Studio: Walt Disney Pictures
Release Date: April 17, 2015
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