Oddly enough, it’s Ant-Man that represents the longest-in-development project from Marvel Studios to date, and since the beginning, Edgar Wright has been set to write and direct. Over the years, beginning long before Iron Man even hit theaters in 2008, there have been casting rumors and fan wishlists for who should play the littlest Avenger who Wright says can “kick your ass one inch at a time.”
One Hollywood name that pops up frequently as a fan-suggested candidate for the part is of course, Patrick Wilson, who even earned a special mention on our own list of Ant-Man contenders. Paul Rudd has since officially landed the lead role of Scott Lang in Wright’s adaptation, with two-time Oscar winner Michael Douglas signing on to play the other, older Ant-Man, Hank Pym. Wouldn’t it be interesting, if after all of that, Patrick Wilson still somehow plays Ant-Man as well?
Let’s backup a bit. First, The Wrap has word that Patrick Wilson is in talks with Marvel Studios for a part in Ant-Man, and while they don’t know if that role is on the hero or villain side, they claim Marvel is looking for another leading man of sorts for the project. That sounds right up the alley for Wilson who’s hit it big lately in the horror genre with The Conjuring and a pair of Insidious films, and who had an integral role in Zack Snyder’s Watchmen as the heroic Nite Owl.
While Wilson could feasibly be playing one of any number of unconfirmed villainous characters from Marvel Comics, not dissimilar from his role in The A-Team which we dug, he’d be a great fit to play Hank Pym, the scientist who actually creates the Ant-Man tech. Michael Douglas is playing Hank Pym though, you say? Well, he is, but only in the modern era, as the mentor of sorts to Rudd’s Lang who he passes the torch too, so to speak.
![Patrick Wilson in Talks to Join Marvel’s ‘Ant-Man’](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/Young-Hank-Pym-Ant-Man-Avengers-Academy-Cover.jpg)
Over a month ago we reported on a rumor which detailed flashback sequences to a young Hank Pym in the ’60s who served as an agent battling communism during the Cold War era. It’s here where we see not only the first Ant-Man in action, but meet one of the film’s antagonists who might be played by Michael Pena who we know has been offered a role, and is reportedly in negotiations.
That report came as no surprise since years ago, in 2006 to be precise, Edgar Wright had gone on record detailing key elements of his Ant-Man script which began with a prologue in the ’60s. Here’s what he told SHH’s Ed Douglas at the time:
Well, the thing is that what we want to do, the idea that we have for the adaptation is to actually involve both. Is to have a film that basically is about Henry Pym and Scott Lang, so you actually do a prologue where you see Pym as Ant-Man in action in the 60′s, in sort of “Tales to Astonish” mode basically, and then the contemporary, sort of flash-forward, is Scott Lang’s story, and how he comes to acquire the suit, how he crosses paths with Henry Pym, and then, in an interesting sort of Machiavellian way, teams up with him. So it’s like an interesting thing, like the “Marvel Premiere” one that I read which is Scott Lang’s origin, it’s very brief like a lot of those origin comics are, and in a way, the details that are skipped through in the panels and the kind of thing we’d spend half an hour on.
With Captain America: The Winter Soldier featuring flashbacks to the WWII era and likely, the years between then and present to delve into the history of Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) and Black Widow (Scarlet Johansson), we’d love to see more of that sort of exploration of the history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. With The Winter Soldier character actually serving as a Soviet assassin for most of his career, Marvel would be smart to have young Hank Pym encounter him in the ’60s while on a mission. That would help tie Ant-Man into the established universe and explain why the studio may have positioned Ant-Man’s release when they did, as the first chapter of Phase 3.
![Ant-Man Movie Logo](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/Ant-Man-Movie-Logo-570x384.jpg)
Only Rudd and Douglas are officially cast thus far, with Michael Pena rumored for a key role alongside Evangeline Lilly (Lost, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug) who is reportedly in talks to to play Ant-Man’s leading lady – a role which requires the usual Marvel multi-pic contract (cue the rumors of a Wasp introduction).
___________________________________________________
More: Ant-Man’s Cinematographer & Composer
___________________________________________________
Captain America: The Winter Soldier hits theaters on April 4, 2014, Guardians of the Galaxy on August 1, 2014, The Avengers: Age of Ultron on May 1, 2015, Ant-Man on July 17, 2015, and unannounced films for May 6 2016, July 8 2016 and May 5 2017.
Follow Rob on Twitter @rob_keyes for your Marvel movie news!