Marvel Studios
Rumors of Disney and Marvel bringing back Peyton Reed to direct the Ant-Man sequel Ant-Man and the Wasp are very close to becoming fact. According to Deadline, Reed is now in advanced talks with the two studios to direct the sequel which should come as no surprise to anyone considering how much of a success Ant-Man was. Reed proved to be a great choice for the first Ant-Man, taking over the project late in the game after Edgar Wright abruptly left due to creative differences. What followed was a crisis involving tons of negative buzz and disappointed fans, as Wright was revered by many and had been working on the project with Marvel for years.
Disney and Marvel scrambled for a replacement and chose Reed, who was able to win over skeptical fans when he brilliantly revealed his inner-nerd at Comic-Con 2014. What followed was a box-office success both domestic and worldwide. As of Wednesday, Ant-Man has had a global haul of $454m, overtaking past Marvel hits Captain America: The First Avenger and Thor. That’s not accounting for the big business it’s doing in China right now either.
Marvel and Disney seem to be wanting to back their guy again with Ant-Man and the Wasp, starring returning leads Paul Rudd and Evangeline Lilly with a slated release date of 2018. While many fans still like to dream of what Ant-Man would have been had Wright never left, Reed turned in a worthy effort and brought justice to a character and story many doubted could become a successful film franchise.
As of now, no writers have been attached to the film and while Wright and Joe Cornish wrote the script for the last film, it’s not likely that they would return. Rudd and Adam McKay did rewrites but Marvel and Disney may try to attach a dedicated writer this time around, as Rudd and McKay may have been more of a quick-solution to an unexpected problem.
Ant-Man and The Wasp is due in theaters in 2018.
