Thank you to Marvel Studios for hosting me and setting up this interview during the Ant-Man and The Wasp Event! All opinions expressed are 100% my own.
One of my favorite things about my job is getting to talk to directors and producers about all the behind the scenes and planning of films. Things like that really interest me so when I met with Director Peyton Reed about Ant-Man and The Wasp, the morning after seeing the movie, I was so excited and anxious. I wanted to know every little detail and everything that went through his head because this movie is everything. The first thing we talked about was the mid and post credit scenes (read more about that here), and then we moved on to this hilarious movie!
Warning: Some of these quotes are mildly spoilery. If you have not seen the movie yet and wish to be kept completely in the dark, bookmark this interview to read after you see the movie.
The Quantum Realm
I mentioned this in my Ant-Man and The Wasp review, but I thought the imagery of the Quantum Realm was gorgeous. Michael Douglas’ character Hank even says at one point “Scott, you never mentioned how beautiful it is.” It is breathtaking and I totally wish it was a real place that I could go visit. We asked Peyton about it, and he let us know the plan was always to expand on what we saw in the first Ant-Man. “I think there was a concentrated effort in the first Ant-Man and in Dr. Strange to kind of start embracing that psychedelic aspect of the Marvel Comics, which is always part of the Marvel Comics since the ’60s, but had not really been explored in the MCU. There are different dimensions and hopefully, they’re all gonna serve different purposes in the future.”
“With regards to our movie, it was something where we were trying to figure out what we were gonna show and how we were gonna deal with the plots around it. We had to key off what we saw in the first movie, but we wanted to show the audience a little more. It was really fun to design what that could look like, dramatically, how it would work but then it also had to fit into the rest of our movie which is, compared to some of the other Marvel movies, a little more grounded. Ant-Man takes place in our world, not in Outer Space or Asgard or something like that. It had to have a reality to it too so it was a huge challenge to visualize the concept around it but really, really fun.”
How Morrissey Became A Part of the Film
There’s so much Morrissey in this film so of course we had to ask Peyton the reasoning behind it, which made so much sense after I heard him explain it. “For a very brief time, years ago, I played Drums in a Morrissey/Smiths cover band called ‘Louder Than Bombs’. We played a few shows here in Los Angeles just for fun and then quickly learned as people came to see the show [there was another cover band]. We went and saw that cover band, who were way better than our cover band. They were all Latino kids and that I learned that Morrissey had a huge following in Los Angeles. It occurred to us as something that Luis would know about and be into and particularly the idea that his Grandma only plays Morrissey.”
“It just seemed like one of the crazy things that Luis would mention in the course of his conversation. We were talking about how we were gonna do it in this movie. How are we gonna do a version of what we did with Luis in the first movie that doesn’t repeat it. And when the writers came up with the idea of the truth serum thing? That was really fun.”
The Father Daughter Theme
One of my favorite scenes in the movie is where Scott is talking to Cassie and they’re chatting about having a partner. Cassie wants to be his partner, which in the comics, she becomes a superhero herself. As a major Marvel comics fan I have my fingers crossed that we will see Cassie as Stature, so we asked Peyton about that, fully expecting him to dodge the question. “I think that everybody is aware who Cassie Lang is in the comics and that she does become a hero. We wanted to start laying some groundwork for that possibility. I don’t know what specific plans are but I really like the idea. I like the idea that you have these glimpses where she goes toe to toe with Agent Woo. She covers for her Dad and she’s got that side of Scott that’s a little mischievous but she’s a tough kid. And I really love that intimate scene where she’s talking about [Scott needing] a partner and in her mind, it’s her and him having to say of course you could do it but I’d be a terrible father if I allowed you to do it.”
“One of the things that I liked the most in the movie is the evolution of the Scott/Cassie relationship. It helps that Abby is so good. She’s such a focused young Actor and it’s sort of rare. Paul is a huge part of it – they just have a really nice chemistry together and he’s able to relax her. It’s a nice dynamic because really, fathers and daughters is real thematic. It certainly was in the first one and we wanted to progress that in this movie, whether it’s literal fathers and daughters, like Hank and Hope, and Scott and Cassie, or more figurative like Bill Foster and Ava.”
The Future of Ant-Man and The Wasp
Of course we tried to get all the details of Avengers 4. How will Ant-Man fit in? Will we see The Wasp (maybe both?!) suit up and help out. Just what will happen?! Peyton again, totally dodged the question on us, but he did tell us some good stuff. “I have to be so careful. Wasp is gonna shoot me in the neck, with a gun. I don’t know if it’s a real threat but to me, the whole idea of the Spoilers thing is – there are certain things that you want to keep secret and there’s an exhilaration as an audience to experience something. It’s so rare now to see a movie that you know nothing about. It’s kind of a lost art.”
“There are certain things that are predetermined that we’ve all talked about and then there are things that we’ve talked about that could possibly happen or wouldn’t it be cool if? I think one of the fun things about the Marvel Universe is Kevin [Feige] has a larger plan but that plan is extremely fluid. His general philosophy, at least with the Ant-Man movies, has been make them as stand alone as possible and anything you guys decide to do, whoever the Directors are in the next movie, they’re gonna have to deal with the ramifications. There’s a fluidity and it’s the idea of whatever makes for the best character arcs – the most interesting and maybe surprising thing, wins. I know things that I want to do with those characters and stories that I want to tell and how we progress the characters. Obviously, in this movie, it excited me putting Wasp at center stage and really telling that story. This whole movie is really about Does she need him as a partner? Are they gonna be able to work as a partnership? I feel like this movie really answers that question. But then it’s like well what next? And the possibilities are really endless.”
More Coverage
- Read my (spoiler free) review!
- Paul Rudd Discusses Family, Friends, & Humor in this Ant-Man and The Wasp Interview
- Evangeline Lilly Is All About Girl Power & Talks About Finding Her Light
- Ant-Man and The Wasp Mid-Credit Scene Cast & Director Reactions!
- Laurence Fishburne Is A Comic Book Nerd & Would Have Played A Piece of Debris in Ant-Man and The Wasp
- Interview: Michael Douglas Couldn’t Wait To See Evangeline As The Wasp & More
- Cast Reactions to the Ant-Man And The Wasp Mid-Credit Scene (SPOILERS!!)
- Hannah John-Kamen Loves Being A Badass as Ghost in Ant-Man and The Wasp
About Ant-Man and The Wasp
Scott Lang is grappling with the consequences of his choices as both a superhero and a father. Approached by Hope van Dyne and Dr. Hank Pym, Lang must once again don the Ant-Man suit and fight alongside the Wasp. The urgent mission soon leads to secret revelations from the past as the dynamic duo finds itself in an epic battle against a powerful new enemy.
See Ant-Man and The Wasp hits theaters now!
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Tessa Smith is a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer-approved Film and TV Critic. She is also a Freelance Writer. Tessa has been in the Entertainment writing business for ten years and is a member of several Critics Associations including the Critics Choice Association and the Greater Western New York Film Critics Association.
2 Comments
The father/daughter parts were my favorite moments in this movie!!!!
YES!!! I agree!! So touching!