It's a very exciting time for The Marvel Cinematic Universe. This weekend brought the release of Ryan Coogler's Black Panther, which is already making an insane amount of money at the box office. The remaining installments of Phase Three will only continue to up the ante, especially the next two Avengers movies. But sandwiched between Infinity War and Avengers 4 is Peyton Reed's Ant-Man and The Wasp. The sequel will make Evangeline Lilly's Hope into a full blown hero, while also further delving into the details about her mother's disappearance decades earlier. Janet van Dyne will be played by the great Michelle Pfeiffer, and Marvel head Kevin Feige recently teased just how great she is in the project, saying:
I don't want to say too much, but I will say that's she's every bit as iconic and amazing in this part as you would imagine. People ask sometimes about movie stars and star power and who's the most exciting person to be around, and the truth is that once you get to know them as people, they don't feel like movie stars --- everybody is just a super-impressive human. But in a room full of movie stars, Michelle Pfeiffer rises to the top.
It looks like Michelle Pfeiffer has some exciting things coming up in Ant-Man and The Wasp, which should help amp up the already fever pitch excitement surrounding the sequel. Now the question is: how will the film narratively make use of Janet?
Kevin Feige's comments to Vulture teases what's to come in Ant-Man and The Wasp, while also referencing Marvel's massive ten year anniversary photo. Just about every major actor in the MCU assembled for the photo, which broke the internet upon its release. It appears that Michelle Pfeiffer's presence and career carries enough weight for her to standout even amongst the biggest and most famous of The Avengers.
It should be interesting to see how Janet van Dyne factors into the story, and whether or not she'll be able to return to the present timeline. During the first Ant-Man Michael Douglas' Hank Pym revealed that Janet was lost in the Quantum Realm many years ago, shrinking so small that she all but disappeared. Smart money says that we'll get to see more of this event, and Hank and Janet as young lovers. Cinephiles have seen how CGI can de-age actors, and the tech has made great strides in films like Rogue One and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.
Ant-Man and The Wasp also seems like a great time to bring Janet back from the Quantum Realm, allowing Michelle Pfeiffer to be part of the present timeline. This would allow the actress to have way more material to work with, likely resulting in the "iconic" and "amazing" performance that Kevin Feige teased.
Ant-Man and The Wasp will arrive in theaters July 6, 2018. In the meantime, check out our 2018 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
