First up at the highly anticipated Marvel Panel in Hall H of Comic Con was Ant-Man. Things got started right off the bat, Director Peyton Reed took the stage, followed by Michael Douglas and Paul Rudd, the two Ant-Men. Following them was Darren Cross who is now confirmed as YellowJacket and Evangeline Lilly who will be Hope Van Dyne, the daughter of Hank Pym.
Reed mentioned that this is actually his 20th Comic Con, and then Paul Rudd chimed in that this is his very first time. Rudd went on to talk about how excited he is to be in the movie and how envious he’s been of the Marvel films because he rarely gets to work with special effects.
Talking about the plot of the film, Michael Douglas confirmed that there’s a heist in the film and that his role is as a mentor to Paul Rudd’s character as the new Ant-Man. He also said that Cory Stoll’s Daren Cross character is Pym’s business partner, but he’s taken the company in an “evil” direction. That is what incites Pym to recruit Rudd.
Evangeline Lilly talked about how she hadn’t seen the script yet, but she’s so excited that she’s had to learn meditation techniques to get to sleep at night.
Talking about his role, Cory Stoll says that Darren Cross started out as Pym’s Mentee and that he doesn’t think of the new direction he’s chosen as evil, just as his best view for the future. At which point Feige chimes in and confirms that Stoll will in fact be playing Yellow Jacket.
While official filming doesn’t begin until August 18th, when the movie starts production in Atlanta, they brought some footage to show off to fans.
Footage Description:
It starts out with a long camera shot through a laboratory. We see beakers, a glass case with an anthill in it. Off the camera, we can hear Pym and Scott Lang (Rudd) talking. Pym tells him that he wants him to be Ant-Man because he’s just a regular guy. Lang looks nervous and Pym responds with ” Geez Lang,” says Pym, “You’d think someone only shrunk your balls.”
It then cuts to a tiny Ant-Man on a rooftop, being pursued by full-sized people. Lang climbs on the back of a ant and Pym is guiding him through the helmet. Next, we see Lang inside a computer. Pym tells him to run, so he jumps off a huge ledge, being caught in mid-air by a flying ant. Then the logo pops onto screen.
Official Synopsis
When Marvel’s “Ant-Man” hits theaters July 17, 2015, director Peyton Reed will help shepherd the hero into the Marvel Cinematic Universe with a cast led by Paul Rudd and Michael Douglas, with writer Adam McKay contributing to the film’s script.
Armed with the astonishing ability to shrink in scale but increase in strength, con-man Scott Lang (Rudd) must embrace his inner-hero and help his mentor, Dr. Hank Pym (Douglas), 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.