Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania trailer breakdown: 6 things you may have missed
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Potential spoilers for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania follow.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’s final trailer has dropped online – and it looks like it could be the most surprising Marvel movie of 2023.
The Marvel Phase 5 movie will arrive in theaters worldwide on February 17, so the latest teaser has landed just in the nick of time. If you haven’t seen it yet, check it out below:
Looks excellent, right? We certainly think so. And since the final Ant-Man 3 trailer is full of blink-and-you-ll-miss-it moments, you probably missed some interesting aspects of this teaser.
Don’t worry, dear reader, because we’re here to point out six of the best and intriguing things you missed in this teaser. Possible spoilers to follow so if you want to go into the movie with no prior knowledge of what it’s about, go back now.
#AntManAndTheWasp: Quantumania from Marvel Studios, in theaters February 17 only. pic.twitter.com/dGhZ6k8getJanuary 10, 2023
1. Mask
The first 30 seconds of the trailer show several scenes playing alongside a monologue from Jonathan Majors’ Kang the Conqueror (more on how important this is in the next section). Most of the footage consists of shots from the film’s first teaser, which arrived in October 2022.
It’s not until 0:37 that we see something new, but it’s pretty important as far as Kang is concerned: it’s his mask! Unlike the comic book version of Kang, which depicts him as a blue-skinned person, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) version of Kang has a blue, retractable face covering, supposedly allowing him to breathe in low-oxygen environments and protecting his face from harm .
So the inclusion of a blue translucent mask is a subtle and fun nod to the makeup of its comic book counterpart.
2. The man with the plan
Now back to Kang’s monologue. We hear how the MCU’s new primary antagonist appeals to Scott Lang’s position as a father and how he missed so much time with his daughter Cassie. You know, because of those prison sentences and the five years he was trapped in the Quantum Realm between Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.
Unfortunately for Scott, Kang won’t just give him what he craves, which is more time with Cassie, without getting anything in return. So it looks like Scott will have to put his pre-superhero skills – breaking in, stealing an item and escaping alive – to the test.
So what should Scott locate and/or steal? The trailer doesn’t give that away, but we have a hunch, based on Kang’s comedic counterpart. In the Marvel source material, Kang has a device known as a Time Chair – a floating chair that allows him to traverse the Marvel multiverse. We haven’t seen Kang use this device in any of the footage so far, which begs the question: where is it?
We believe Kang’s Time Chair was stolen or hidden by someone. In order for him to finally conquer the Marvel Cinematic Multiverse – you know, now that one of his variants, He Who Remains, is no longer there to stop him after his death in Loki episode 6 – he needs his Time Chair to travel through time to travel and space. Step forward Scott Lang, the only man who can traverse the Quantum Realm (wearing his Ant-Man suit) and recover Kang’s Time Chair by putting his thief skills to good use.
Oh, and it looks like Kang will use Cassie as collateral to get Scott to obey. It seems our little hero has no choice but to help…
3. Calling in the Shang-Chi references
Once the Marvel Studios logo disappears, we’re treated to some spectacular images of the Quantum Realm/Kang domain.
The most interesting part of what we see is a clear reference to Shang-Chi and the legend of the ten rings. We see multiple circular pillars floating around Kang’s headquarters, which has a design similar to a pyramid. Fun fact: If this isn’t a direct callback to Rama-Tut – Kang’s Egyptian variant in Marvel comics – we don’t know what is.
But we digress. Those cylindrical structures aren’t the only things teasing a link to Shang-Chi’s MCU debut. At 0:47, we see some giant rings rising up next to Kang’s fortress, and they look very similar to the ten rings wielded by Shang-Chi’s father (and later Shang-Chi himself) in the Marvel stage 4 movie.
One of Shang-Chi’s post-credits scenes teases the possibility that the Ten Rings are highly advanced, technological alien artifacts. Could it be that in the Quantum Realm/this alternate universe, Kang stole Shang-Chi’s father’s rings and is using them for his own nefarious purposes? Given the inter-connectivity that the MCU is known for, we wouldn’t be surprised.
4. CHANGE MODOK
Now this really is the blink of an eye and you miss the moment. At 0:56, we see Scott and Cassie being led by Kang (and some of his foot soldiers) to a platform to look out for what appears to be a form of teardrop in the multiverse.
Look behind them before the camera angle changes, though, and you’ll catch your first glimpse of another Quantumania villain – it’s MODOK! In the MCU, the origin story of this supervillain has been changed. In the comics, MODOK is created when a scientist named George Tarleton turns into him when – yes, you guessed it – an experiment goes wrong.
However, in the MCU, MODOK is played by Corey Stoll, who played Darren Cross/Yellowjacket in 2015’s Ant-Man. In that movie, everyone thought Cross died when Scott destroyed his Yellowjacket suit. However, Cross clearly survived and we think Kang is the person responsible for a) saving his life and b) turning him into MODOK. It would explain why Cross teams up with Kang to get revenge on Scott and company.
Anyway, later in the trailer (1:45) we see MODOK preparing to do battle with someone. He’s got some real upgrades from his comic counterpart – particularly those energy cannons under his little arms – so expect this MODOK to be more deadly than he is in the comics.
5. Link an Ant-Man combo
Whatever mission Kang wants Scott to complete, our hero will need all the help he can get.
Fortunately for Scott, it seems that the physics rules of the Quantum Realm are his best shot at success. At 0:51, we see Scott split into two versions of himself. At first this seems to play into the “shattering timelines” line Janet van Dyne says.
However, we think this is a deception. We think this Scott cleavage scene is happening after he dives into, well, whatever that stormy pit we see at the 0:58 and 1:04 marks. Later, we see Scott being held up to a lightning-infused structure by millions of other Ant-Men – the same ones who are destroyed at 1:37 – in a manner reminiscent of how ants make chains and rafts in the real world.
So it looks like the Quantum Realm will split Scott into many, many variants of itself to complete Kang’s task, only for those other versions to die trying to escape.
6. More than a time-travelling genius
Unsurprisingly, it seems Kang is out of ball game when Scott successfully retrieves the item Kang wants back.
In the last 30 seconds of the trailer, we see Kang’s army – complete with Black Panther-esque warships – raining energy beams on our heroes. Meanwhile, we hear Scott tell Kang “we had a deal”, clearly implying that Kang goes back on his word to a) return Cassie and b) allow Scott and company to leave unharmed.
What becomes clear from the final snippets of footage is that Kang is not a meek, time-traveling intellectual. Not only do his shocking blasts and laser beams look incredibly powerful – that last shot of Kang screaming as he unleashes them is terrifying – but he’s also a physically imposing and relentless fighter. Just look at the brute force he displays as he punches and stomps Scott in what will undoubtedly be their final confrontation. Get ready for Kang to bring the pain in phases 5 and 6 of Marvel’s Multiverse Saga.
For more MCU-based content, read how to watch the Marvel movies in order. Plus, read everything worth knowing about other MCU Phase 5 projects, including Secret Invasion and Loki Season 2, coming to Disney Plus later this year.